Item number: A2856

Year: AD 1655

Material: Copper

Size: 22.7 x 23.4 x 0.6 mm

Weight: 2.0 g

Provenance: Fuchin Coin 2020

According to the description provided by the auction house, this 4 Maravedis copper coin, minted in AD 1655 under the reign of Philip IV of the Kingdom of Spain, was recovered from a shipwreck site in the sea.

The preservation and craftsmanship of this coin are relatively poor. On the obverse, one can just barely make out the mark “IIII” in the upper right, indicating King Philip IV. Below this, there appears to be a design that likely represents a coat of arms. The reverse side seems to feature a beaded border around the edge. The minting year “1655” is clearly visible at the top, while some faint and indistinct lettering can be observed near the bottom.

In the 15th century, Europe witnessed the rise of the Age of Exploration, driven by the search for maritime routes to Asia via the Atlantic Ocean. Spain and Portugal, located on the Iberian Peninsula, emerged as pioneers of this era of global discovery and established extensive transatlantic trade networks. Merchant vessels from various nations often served dual purposes—not only engaging in commerce but also transforming into pirate ships when encountering foreign vessels. Such acts of maritime aggression were frequently sanctioned or even supported by their home governments.

In AD 1492, following Columbus’s arrival in the Americas, vast amounts of gold and silver precious metals from the New World were transported to Europe, triggering a price revolution in the continent. Given the lack of improvement in Spain’s industrial capacity, it resulted in the domestic situation characterized by “more money, fewer goods,” namely, the issue of inflation.

To address the issue of inflation, the Spanish Empire decided to issue more coins, ideally using silver as the primary material, given its value as a precious metal. However, for the royal court, allocating silver for external military expenses took precedence at the time, leading to the decision to use cheaper material, such as copper for minting Billon coins instead.

In AD 1599, Philip III was the first to declare that all Maravedis auxiliary coins would be minted from copper, excluding silver and other precious metals. In AD 1652, his successor, Philip IV, further stipulated that the denominations of the auxiliary coins would be 1, 2, 4, and 8 Maravedis.

物件編號: A2856

年代: 公元 1655 年

材質: 紅銅

尺寸: 22.7 x 23.4 x 0.6 mm

重量: 2.0 g

來源: 福君錢幣 2020

根據拍賣行提供的敘述，這枚鑄造於公元1655年，腓力四世統治下的西班牙王國發行的4馬拉威迪銅幣，其出土地點是海中的沈船。

這枚錢幣的保存狀況和工藝不甚良好，正面勉強能夠辨識右上角有「IIII」代表腓力四世的戳記，下方的圖案有可能是一面盾徽。錢幣背面看起來在周圍有一道珠圈，上方的鑄造年份「1655」清晰可見，下方看起來也有一些模糊的文字。

公元15世紀，歐洲興起探索藉由大西洋前往亞洲貿易的大航海時代，位於伊比利半島的西班牙和葡萄牙成為地理大發現的先驅，並且建立了繁忙的大西洋貿易路線。各國的貿易船隻不僅是單純的商船，若遇到其他國家的船隻也會化身成為海盜船掠奪，這些行為甚至還會得到母國政府的背書和支持。

公元1492年，哥倫布到達美洲後，新大陸的金銀貴金屬大舉運往歐洲，促成歐洲的物價革命。西班牙的產業能力未提升的前提下，造成國內面臨「金錢多，商品少」，即通貨膨脹問題。為了解決通貨膨脹的問題，西班牙帝國決定發行更多的硬幣，理想的原料理當是作為貴金屬的白銀。但對於王室而言，此時將白銀用作對外軍費的順序更為優先，決定改以較便宜的銅作為原料。公元1599年，先是腓力三世宣布，一律以銅打造比倫輔幣，不再混入銀等貴金屬。公元1652年，後繼的腓力四世進一步規定輔幣的面額為：1, 2, 4和8馬拉威迪。