Italy - Republic of Venice
Doge Francesco Dandolo (1328-1339)
1329-39 Silver Grosso 19mm (2.65 grams)
Reference: N# 94904
FRA . DANDVLO S . M . VENETI ., St. Mark and the Doge standing facing, holding pendant flag between them, D / V / X in center field.
IC | XC, Christ, nimbate, enthroned facing, holding book of Gospels.

Coin Notes:
The Grosso in Venice The earliest surviving account of Enrico Dandolo’s introduction of the Venetian grosso associates it with the outfitting of the Fourth Crusade in 1202 and tradition makes the need to pay for the ships which transported the crusaders the cause of the grosso’s introduction. Even though coinage of the grosso might have begun a few years earlier, the influx of silver used to pay for the crusaders’ ships led to its first large scale mintage. The coin had 2.2 grams of 98.5% fine silver, the purest medieval metallurgy could make. It was initially called a ducatus argenti since Venice was a duchy, but is more widely known as a grosso or matapano, a Muslim term referring to the seated figure on its reverse. The designs for the grosso came from the doge’s seal and the Byzantine aspron trachy. The obverse shows the standing figures of the doge and Saint Mark the Evangelist, the patron of Venice. On the right, Saint Mark holds the gospel, which is his usual attribute, and presents a Gonfalone to the doge. The doge holds the “ducal promise” ... The legend names the doge on the left, with his title, DVX in the field. The legend on the right names the saint as S. M. VENETI, i.e. Saint Mark of Venice. The reverse shows Christ facing, sitting on a throne. The legend abbreviates his Greek name as, IC XC...A beaded bordure on both sides of the coin prevented silver from being shaved from the edge of the coin...In 1332, 1 grosso was the equivalent of 4 soldini, or 48 dinarii.

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Italy, officially the Italian Republic (Italian: Repubblica Italiana), is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Italy covers an area of 301,338 km² (116,347 sq mi) and has a largely temperate climate; due to its shape, it is often referred to in Italy as lo Stivale (the Boot). With 61 million inhabitants, it is the 4th most populous EU member state. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino and Vatican City.

Since ancient times, Greek, Etruscan, Celtic, and other cultures have thrived on the Italian Peninsula. Rome ultimately emerged as the dominant power, conquering much of the ancient world and becoming the leading cultural, political, and religious centre of Western civilisation. During the Dark Ages, the region suffered sociopolitical collapse amid calamitous barbarian invasions, but by the 11th century, numerous Italian city-states rose to great prosperity through shipping, commerce and banking, and even laid the groundwork for capitalism. The Renaissance led to a flourishing of Italian culture, producing famous scholars, artists, and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. Italian explorers such as Marco Polo, Christopher Columbus, Amerigo Vespucci, and Giovanni da Verrazzano discovered new routes to the Far East and the New World, helping to usher in the European Age of Discovery. Nevertheless, Italy remained politically fragmented and fell prey to European powers such as France, Spain, and later Austria, subsequently entering a long period of decline that lasted until the mid-19th century.

After various unsuccessful attempts, the second and the third wars for Italian independence resulted in the eventual unification of most of present-day Italy by 1866. From the late 19th century to the early 20th century, the new Kingdom of Italy rapidly industrialised and acquired a colonial empire, becoming a great power. However, southern and rural areas of the country remained largely excluded from industrialisation, fuelling a large and influential diaspora. Despite being one of the main victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil, leading the way to the rise of a Fascist dictatorship in 1922. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in military defeat, economic destruction and civil war. In the years that followed, Italy abolished the monarchy, reinstated democracy, and enjoyed a prolonged economic boom, thus becoming one of the world's most developed nations.

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