The Printings of Our Women in Coinage

Women are of utmost importance in our lives, our mothers, loved ones, family and friends, the school girls who showed us the world in Basque... all of them have had the same importance in Basque history, but as has happened everywhere, this importance has not been adequately reflected either in the preserved documents or in the narrative of history that we tell.

Old coins are official documents that have survived to this day. The durability of the metal and the inherent value we have given them have allowed these coins to last so long. Looking at these coins, what is the reflection of women in Basque coinage? Let's see!

The first appearance of the female figure can be found on the unepigraphed drachmas made by the Aquitanians. For many of us, it will be difficult to distinguish the female figure on the obverse of these coins. However, if we look at the drachmas of Emporion and Massalia, which were the metrological and stylistic standards for these coins, there was the image of the nymph of Arethusa or Persephone.

Silver drachma specimen of the Aquitaine Sotiate people, 2.85gr 16.5mm – 2nd century BC

INUMIS, MAIL BID SALE 26, LOT 72 14.10.2014

In the case of the Sotiate coins, the female imagery did not merely represent a customary or imitative representation, it did not intend to represent a woman of the Sotiate people, but rather a transformation of a stylistic pattern received from abroad.

Silver drachma coin from the Greek colony of Emporiton – 4.06 gr – Image of the Nymph Persephone or Arethusa on the obverse. Pegasus horse on the reverse.

AUREO & CALICÓ SL, AUCTION 268, LOT 1084 03.06.2015

The coins minted in the present-day Basque territories or in the surrounding territories by the Vascones, Celtiberians, Iberians, Beronians or their Roman descendants had neither depictions of women nor any mention of them. In the High Middle Ages, during the conflicts against the Visigoths and Franks, there is no evidence of local coinage, and even the few examples minted by the Muslims of Tudela do not bear any trace of women.

We need to delve deeply into the history of the Kingdom of Navarre to see the first time a woman's name appears on a Basque coin. This first woman was Queen Joanna I (1274-1305); she was less than two years old when she was crowned and only eleven when she married Philip IV Capet, who would become King of France. The following small silver coins were minted in Navarre under Joanna's name (a few pieces of the so-called half-dime or obolo are also known):

Silver coin minted in the name of Queen Joanna I (1274-1305) – 1.06gr

Found: QUEEN JOHANA (Christian cross)

Ifrentzua: DE NAVARRA (Characteristic castle of the Champagne house)

CAYÓN AUCTIONS, QUICK AUCTION 18, LOT 13 24.09.2014

After Joanna's marriage, no more coins were minted in Navarre; for half a century, coins from the Capetian Kingdom of France were used, until Charles II (1349-1387), son of Joanna II (1328-1349), reestablished the lavish coinage.

Unlike France, the Kingdom of Navarre did not have Salic law, meaning that if a king died without a male heir, his daughters could inherit the crown. However, if he had sons, they always had priority over female heirs.

The coronation of a queen usually meant a change in the royal house; although the queen was the owner of the kingdom, she married at the same time, since the descendants born from this marriage took the surname of her husband. Likewise, the daily management of the territory, especially in times of war or conflict, was at risk of falling under the control of her husband. Therefore, the choices of grooms of these queens who owned the kingdom were the source of much diplomacy, pressure and intrigue between the European royal houses.

These female-led inheritances sometimes weakened the kingdom, but at other times they allowed Navarre to recover and maintain its sovereignty.

For example, after the marriage of Joan I of Champagne, that is, after the union with the Kingdom of France, the coronation of Joan II (1328-1349) allowed the new Valois dynasty of the Kingdom of France to be overthrown.

As a result, Philip of Evreux, husband of Joan II, began the next royal house of the Kingdom of Navarre. Joan did great service to Navarre, but we have no trace of any coinage bearing her name (nor any clear coinage of her husband Philip).

The noble Charles III (1387-1425), grandson of Juana II (1328-1349), left no surviving male heirs and his daughter Blanche (1425-1441) took the crown. When Blanche took the crown, she was already married to Prince Juan of Trastamara, and Navarre was therefore on the verge of another royal change. In this case, two coin designs were struck under the names of Blanche and her husband, As we saw in the section dedicated to the coinage of this period.

Silver blank or grosa minted in the name of Queen Blanche I and her husband Juan II – 2.75gr

Found: I:Z:B:DEI:GRA:REX:Z:RGA:NAVARRE (I and B with left crowns)

Ifrentzu: SIT*NOMEN*DOMINI*BENEDICTVM

AUREO & CALICÓ SL, AUCTION 313, LOT 179 05.07.2018

In the case of the first coin model, the initials of the kings and queens can be seen below the crown on the obverse, the letter I for King John and the letter B for Queen Blanca. In the case of the second model, the crown filled the obverse and as a result the letters of the kings and queens disappeared; these can still be read in the text image inscribed on the outside of the obverse.

Silver carlina carved in the name of Queen Blanche I and her husband Juan II – 2.61gr – Wide base of the crown

Found: I:Z:B:DEI:GRA:REX:Z:RGA:NAVARRE

Ifrentzwu: SIT:NOMEN:DOMINI:BENEDICTVM

AUREO & CALICÓ SL, AUCTION 264, LOT 279 11.12.2014

The reign of the Trastamaras was complicated; Blanche's early death should have resulted in the succession of her son, Carlos, Prince of Viana, but Juan had no intention of abdicating the crown. As a result, civil war broke out between father and son and the Beaumonts (in favor of the rights of the Prince of Viana) and the Agramons (in favor of the usurping King Juan).

During this war, in addition to the decline in the kingdom's prosperity, there was the death of two of Blanche's first heirs, Prince Carlos of Viana on the one hand and his sister Princess Blanche on the other. Thus, when in 1479 the treacherous father Juan was taken care of, Blanche's last daughter Eleanor received the crown of Navarre.

When a woman took the crown, a new royal house was born, and in this case Eleanor gave the House of Foix its turn. Eleanor was already a widow when she received the crown and lived in the Jaunterie of Bearn with her grandson Francis Phoebus of Foix.

In these times, the profession of king and queen of Navarre was a very dangerous one, and under the shadow of the Catholic Ferdinand, Eleanor was only able to wear the crown for fifteen days. She died suddenly, a coincidence.

Eleanor's grandson, the aforementioned King Francis Phoebus (1479-1483), had no better luck. He survived for four years, barely fifteen years old, and died in bed, having to hand over the crown to his sister Catherine (1483-1517).

Gold ducat minted in the name of Queen Catherine I of Foix and her husband Juan III of Labrit – 3.38gr

Found: IOHANES.KATHERINA.R.NAVARRE

Hell: SIT:NOMEN:DOMINI:BENEM

AUREO & CALICÓ SL, AUCTION 337, LOT 505 16.10.2019

Queen Catherine I and King John III had to endure Ferdinand's machinations throughout their reigns, until finally, in 1512, he invaded and forcibly removed the kingdom from them. King John III died of exhaustion after an attempted reconquest in 1516.

In the last gold coins of the reigns of Catherine and John, the Catholic Monarchs Isabella and Ferdinand followed the same pattern established by the Catholic Monarchs; that is, the image of the royal couple side by side on the obverse and the coat of arms of the royal house on the reverse. But Isabella and Ferdinand were both kings, one of Castile-Leon and the other of Aragon. In the Kingdom of Navarre, however, although the kingship belonged to a woman, the entire royal couple was depicted on the coins. The same pattern would be repeated in the future; in the coins of the Habsburg and Valois royal houses, women only appear in front of their peers (or not at all in the case of Joan of Castile). The Kingdom of Navarre, on the other hand, used a more flexible pattern. Let us see the following examples.

Double excellent gold coin engraved in the name of King and Queen Isabella and Ferdinand – 7.02gr 27mm (1497-1516)

Found: FERNANDVS:7:ELIXABET:DEI:G:

Hell: SVB:VMBRA:ALARVM:TVA S

ROMA NUMISMATICS LIMITED, AUCTION 24, LOT 1367 28.03.2022

Queen Catherine lived another year after her husband's death, a refugee in her territories of Bearn. She also died exhausted; she asked to be buried in the cathedral of Pamplona, the capital of her kingdom, before passing the crown to her son, the last king born in Navarre, Henry of Labrit (1517-1555).

Catherine's succession brought about the reign of the House of Labrit; this reign was begun by Henry of Zangot (1517-1555); we have already spoken at length about About Henry, the last king born in Navarre and how under his rule one of the most elaborate periods of Navarrese coinage began.

Henry the Conqueror did not have the desired son and the throne was once again taken over by his daughter, Queen Joanna III (1555-1572). Queen Joanna was already married to Antoine or Antonio of the House of Bourbon and had a son born to her father. At the magnificent mint of Pau They created some of the most beautiful coins of their time.

Joan and her husband, once again, took the image of the couple next to them as a model and they were not the only ones, as we will see later. But the coins minted at the mint located in the tower of the castle of Pau had the most advanced technology available at the time:

Silver coin engraved in the name of Queen Joanna III of Labrit and her husband Antonio I of the House of Bourbon – 9.22gr 27mm

Found: ANT ET IOAN DEI G RR NA DD B

Ifrenzua: GRATIA DEI SVMVS QD SVMVS 1555

MONNAIES D'ANTAN, AUCTION 15, LOT 911 16.05.2014

Silver shilling minted in the name of Philip II of Habsburg and Queen Mary of Tudor – 6.22gr

Found: PHILIP ET MARIA DGR ANG FR NEAP PR HISP 1554

Hell: POSVIMVS DEVM ADIVTOREM NOSTRVM XII

SPINK, AUCTION 17011, LOT 1736 28.03.2017

Medal commemorating the marriage of Francis II of Valois, Dauphin of France (later King) and Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, attributed to the engraver Guillaume Martin – engraved in 1558, this copy is a 19th-century replica

Found: FRAN.ET.MA.DGRR.SCOTOR.DELPHIN.VIEN.

Hell: FECIT.VTRAQVE.VNVM. 1558

CLASSICAL NUMISMATIC GROUP, INC., AUCTION 99, LOT 1315 13.05.2015

Antonio did not remain king of Navarre for long (always Jure uxoris). He was killed while besieging Rouen on the side of the Catholics during the French Wars of Religion (1562). Although they had a happy relationship after their marriage, in the last years Joanna of Hignola began to distance herself from her fickle husband and after becoming a widow, she began to promote the reformed religion with full force.

Silver teston carved in the name of Queen Dowager Joanna III of Labrit (first model)

File: IOANA.DEI.G.REG.NAVAR.DB P

Hell: GRATIA.DEI.SVM.ID.QVOD.SVM. 1564

MÜNZEN & MEDAILLEN GMBH (DE), AUCTION 34, LOT 964 26.05.2011

Among the few rulers who supported and befriended her in this endeavor, she was accompanied by another queen: Elizabeth I of England (1559-1603), one of those who fought for her political conscience and vision as vigorously and courageously as Joan.

A silver half shilling minted in the name of Queen Elizabeth I of Tudor

Found: ELIZABETH DG ANG FR ET HIBER RGINA

Hell: POSVI DEV ADIVTOREM MEV 1568

GORNY & MOSCH GIESSENER MÜNZHANDLUNG, ONLINE AUCTION 267, LOT 4469 17.10.2019

Silver teston carved in the name of Queen Dowager Joanna III of Labrit (Second model)

Found: IOANNA.DGREG.NAVARRAE. (Cow) DB

Hell: GRATIA.D.SVM.ID.QVOD.SVM. 1571 B

CGB.FR, E-MONNAIES JUIN 2015, LOT 356416 30.06.2015

But Joan was not in good health and died of tuberculosis at the age of 44 on 9 June 1572 while preparing for the wedding of her son Henry III of Bourbon in Paris. Henry was to marry the French king's sister, Margaret of Valois. After the couple's wedding (18 August), on 24 August, after the brutal massacre of the Saint Bartholomew's Day, Henry was forced to resign as heir apparent in exchange for his life.

Such a heartless event was not the best start to the couple's life together, and even so, it was not a happy marriage. After seventeen years, Henry and Margaret separated, without bringing any heirs into the world.

Henry, who maintained the family tradition in coinage, minted the last coins depicting the royal couple. In fact, the last ducats and testons minted by Henry have forever transmitted the image of the couple to us.

Double gold ducat minted in the name of King Henry III of Bourbon and Queen Margaret of Valois – 6.96gr

Found: HENRICVS.II.MARGA.REX.REG.NAVARRE. DB Symbol

Obverse: GRATIA.DEI.SVM.ID.QD.SVM. 1577 – (Acorn) Jerome Le Normand, engraver (N) – Pierre Nyert, mintmaster – H Crowned M Crowned

ALDE, PUBLIC AUCTION OCTOBER 2015, LOT 1358 26.10.2015

Silver coin engraved in the name of King Henry III of Bourbon but with the image of Queen Margaret of Valois – 9.53gr 28mm

Found: HENRICVS.II.DGREX.NAVARRE. DB (Acorn) Jerome Le Normand, engraver

Obverse: GRATIA.DEI.SVM.QD.SVM. 1577 – (Star) – Auger de La Garde, mintmaster

CGB.FR, E-MONNAIES JUNE 2015, LOT 356447 30.06.2015

If Henry rejected his mother's Huguenot religion for political reasons, his sister, Princess Catherine, was completely different. Catherine was regent of Navarre and Bearn for many years, while Henry was involved in the political games and religious wars of France. Catherine, the opposite of her brother, was born from the same lineage as her mother Joan and maintained her Huguenot faith until her death, despite all the pressure and encouragement from her brother. She was so devoted to her mother that Catherine also died of tuberculosis at the age of 45.

We do not have Catherine's image on any coins, as she did not mint any, but a few medals will allow us to honor this extraordinary woman.

Silver medal engraved in the name of Catherine of Bourbon – 45.4mm x 36mm, 11.61gr

Found: CATHERINE.DE.BOVRBON.SOEVR.VNICQVE.DV.ROY

AUCTIONEN MÜNZHANDLUNG SONNTAG, AUCTION 32, LOT 142 06.07.2020

Centuries would pass before the image of a woman left its mark on a Navarrese coin again. And what it left was the mark of the last coin minted in Navarre. In Pamplona, surrounded by the Carlists, the Liberal coins, made of cast bronze, were the last coins in Navarrese history. These coins bore the name of the Liberal queen, Isabella II of Bourbon of Spain. But there was no trace of the old kingdom of Navarre on them, the constitutional queen was from Spain and The old Latin script was replaced by Spanish..

Bronze 8 maravedi coin minted in the name of Isabella II – the last one minted in Pamplona and the only Navarrese coin minted in Spanish – 10.57gr

Found: ISABEL.2°.POR.LA.G.DE.DIOS.Y.LA.CONST.1837

Hell: REYNA.DE.LAS.ESPAÑAS. 8M PP (Pamplona)

TAULER & FAU AUCTIONS, AUCTION 33, LOT 3363 25.06.2019

By Salic law, a mint of the highest rank, such as Bayonne, only has one female figure, and this appearance is allegorical. The mighty Hercules is flanked by female allegories of liberty and equality, one on his left and the other on his right.

Five silver francs minted in 1798 (year 7) during the Directory period of the French Revolution – 24.88gr

Found: UNION ET FORCE Dupres (Recorder)

France: REPUBLIQUE FRANCAISE 5 FRANCS L'AN 7 L

ALDE, PUBLIC AUCTION JUNE 2018, LOT 341 12.06.2018

And the Basque Government used the same allegory, that of a republican woman wearing the Phrygian headdress of freedom, in the pesetas he worked on during the civil warHere we have turned the wheel, as the last Basque coins, like the first, presented the allegory of a woman who came from outside, Persephone, and two thousand years later, of republican equality and freedom.

A set of Basque pesetas sold by the Aureo & Calico auction house on the occasion of San Fermin Day 2015 – One and two nickel pesetas on the upper side – Rare copper alloy proofs on the lower side

Period: Civil War, period of the Basque Government

Type: One pesetas, two pesetas

Metal: Nickel (99/99.5% Ni + Co)

Diameter: 22 mm (1 Pesetas), 26 mm (2 Pesetas)

Weight: 4 gr (1 Pesetas), 8 gr (2 Pesetas)

Quantity: 6,000,1000 (1 Pesetas), 2,000,1000 (2 Pesetas)

Found: GOVERNMENT OF THE BASQUE COUNTRY AB (Engraver Armand Bonnetain)

Obverse: 1 PESETA 1937, 2 PESETAS 1937

These are the reflections of our women in coinage, they are not numerous but they are noticeable. Thank you.

Bibliography:

CATÁLOGO GENERAL DE LA MONEDA DE NAVARRA – Ricardo Ros Arrogante – 2013 – Altaffaylla argitaretxea

Navarre medieval currency – Manual of Numismatics – Miguel IbaÑEZ ARTICA – 2021

Coin of the Basque Country – Pablo Maria Beitia – 2018

Histoire monétaire du Béarn – Jules Adrien Blanchet – 1893 – link

MONNAIES DE FRANCE, DE NAVARRE ET DU BÈARN – Jean Claude Ungar – 2010

LES MONNAIES FRANCAISES ROYALES – Tome 1 et 2 – 2° Edition -1999 -Jean Duplessy (In Memoriam 1929- 2020)

MONNAIES FEODALES BEARN ET NAVARRE – Serge Salles – 2022

LA MONEDA EN NAVARRA – MUSEO DE NAVARRA – EXPOSICION DEL 31 DE MAYO AL 25 DE NOV 2001. Miguel Ibáñez Artica – link

 

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