weight 9,47gr. | silver Ø 29mm.
obv. Armored bust of Galeazzo Maria right, a pointed ringlet
behind the head, within reeded circle, surrounded by the legend
✠ GALEAZ• M•SF•VICECOS•DVX• MLI• QIT• and head
of Saint Ambrose in circle
In full the legend reads GALEAZO MARIA SFORTIA
VICECOMES DVX MEDIOLANI QUINTUS, translation
"Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Viscount, 5th Duke of Milan…."
rev. Helmet on a shield of Milan, crowned and topped with a
winged dragon holding a man in its mouth on either side of the
helmet G3 - M and two trunks standing in fire to which two buckets
are attached, surrounded by the legend PP•ANGLE•Q3 - •CO•AC•
IANVE•D•
In full this legend reads PAPIAE ANGLERIAE QEU3 COMES
AC IANVAE DOMINUS, translation "... Count of Pavia and
Angara, also Lord of Genoa"
Galeazzo Maria Sforza was born on 24 January 1444 in Fermo, near the family′s castle of Girifalco. He was the first son of Francesco Sforza and Bianca Maria Visconti. At the death of his father on 8 March 1466, Sforza was in France heading a military expedition to help King Louis XI against Charles I of Burgundy. Called back home by his mother, Sforza returned to Italy under a false name as he had to pass by the territories of the family′s enemy, the Duke of Savoy, who made an unsuccessful attempt on Sforza′s life. He entered Milan on 20 March 1466, and was acclaimed by the populace. In his first years, Sforza and his mother ruled jointly, but he later expelled her from Milan.
He married Dorotea Gonzaga, daughter of Louis III Gonzaga, and after her death Bona of Savoy, daughter of Louis of Savoy. Sforza was famous as a patron of music. Under his direction, financial backing and encouragement, his chapel grew into one of the most famous and historically significant musical ensembles in Europe. Composers from the north, especially the Franco-Flemish composers from the present-day Low Countries, came to sing in his chapel and write masses, motets and secular music for him. Some of the figures associated with the Sforza chapel included Alexander Agricola, Johannes Martini, Loyset Compère, and Gaspar van Weerbeke. However, most of the singers at the Sforza chapel fled after Sforza′s murder and took positions elsewhere, which caused a rise of musical standards in other cities such as Ferrara.
Galeazzo was assassinated on 26 December 1476 on the steps of the Basilica di Santo Stefano Maggiore by three nobles from the city, who were apparently trying to imitate the assassination of Julius Caesar. After his death, his son Gian Galeazzo Sforza became Duke of Milan, under the regency of his brother Ludovico. Galeazzo′s daughter Bianca married Emperor Maximilian I in 1494.
In the Renaissance we see the return of realistic portraits on coins, which had been so common in Greek and Roman times but had fallen into disuse in the Middle Ages. This testone (′testa′ = head), issued since 1474, was the first silver coin to show a lifelike Renaissance portrait of a ruler. It′s official name was ′Grossone da 20 soldi′ (1 Lira). Other rulers quickly adopted the policy as it turned coins into a means for propaganda allowing them to spread their own image and fame.
Crippa 6/A | Toffanin (MIR) 201/2 | CNI 171/77
RM 248/8 | Ravegnani Morosini 8 | Biaggi 1548 R
Very attractive specimen with wonderful toning. Rare.
vf+ à vf/xf
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