Paolo Benatti Collection

Clement VII (1523-1534) Modena - Duchy - Munt. 111 AU (g 3.42) RRRR With Clement VII the pope again came from the Medici family. He followed, after the brief Interlude of Adrian VI, his cousin Leo X in the pontificate. Under his leadership, the Franco-Hapsburg conflict intensified with fighting in northern Italy. Initially neutral, Clement VII sided with Emperor Charles V, but in 1526 he switched sides to Francis I of France. Clement VII took refuge in Castel Sant'Angelo while the Medici were driven out of Florence. It was not until 1529, with the impending siege of Vienna by the Turks, that an agreement was reached with Charles V and a return to Rome and Florence was achieved. In 1531 another church split occurred, that of the Church of England, because Clement VII had refused to declare Henry VIII's marriage to Catherine of Aragon null and void. On the obverse of the coin particular emphasis is placed on the depiction of the pope's stole. The coat of arms on the reverse shows that of the city of Modena on the right and the split coat of arms of Pope Clement and the Salviati family on the left. This matches the mint, as in Modena Leo X's nephew Jacopo Salviati was archbishop. Specimen of extraordinary quality, with excellently impressed reliefs, devoid of the usual weaknesses that plague this type. Coin of extreme rarity. From the collection of Count Magnaguti, Mantua; P&P Santamaria ENH XI auction, Rome June 4, 1956, lot 133; Bank Leu AG 36 auction, Zurich May 7/8, 1985, lot 680; Aretusa 1 auction, Lugano September 18, 1993, lot 457. Exceptional conservation, a little numismatic gem, in our opinion the best of the very few specimens that have appeared. qFDC