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Papal States
Pius IX
1 Scudo
教皇國
庇護九世
1斯庫多
Item number: A1407
Year: AD 1854
Material: Gold
Size: 12.8 x 12.8 mm
Manufactured by: Rome
Provenance: Fuchin coin 2024
This is a 1 “Scudo” gold coin minted during the papacy of Pope Pius IX. The obverse features a side profile of Pope Pius IX at the centre, surrounded by an inscription in Latin: PIVS IX (Pius IX), PONT MAX (Supreme Pontiff), and AN VII (Year 8), which refers to the eighth year of Pope Pius IX’s reign. Below the portrait, the R.Z. mintmark indicates the coin’s place of minting, with “R” standing for Rome and “Z” referring to the Italian word Zecca, meaning “mint,” thus signifying that the coin was minted in Rome. On the reverse, the coin features the inscription of its denomination, 1 SCVDO (1 Scudo), and the year 1854, encircled by a laurel wreath. The mintmark R appears again below, confirming the minting location in Rome. The edge of the coin is decorated with a beaded design.
“Scudo” was the primary currency used in the Papal States. One Scudo was equivalent to 100 Baiocchi, with each Baiocco further subdivided into 5 Quattrini. Historically, Scudi were minted in various metals, including gold, silver, and copper, with a gradual preference for more precious metals in later years. The first silver Scudo was issued by Pope Sixtus V in 1588.
After ascending to the papacy in 1846, Pope Pius IX faced the challenge of the burgeoning Italian unification movement. By 1870, following the withdrawal of French protection, the Kingdom of Italy captured Rome, marking the unification of the Italian peninsula. Pope Pius IX subsequently retreated to the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City, assuming the status of the “Prisoner in the Vatican.” The situation persisted until 1929, when Pope Pius XI signed the Lateran Treaty with Benito Mussolini, the then-dictator of Italy, establishing the sovereignty of the Holy See over Vatican City, the world’s smallest independent state.
Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalogue Of World Coins 1801-1900 9th Edition(Stevens Point: Krause Publications, 2018)
Friedberg, Robert, Gold coins of the world : complete from 600 A.D. to the present : an illustrated standard catalogue with valuations ( New York:Coin and Currency Institute , 1980)
Edoardo Martinori, La moneta: vocabolario generale(Rome: Instituto italiano di numismatica, 1915)