Venice, grosso N.D.

Italy/Venice
Grosso n. d. (12th-15th century)
Anonymous
Obv.: St Mark handing over the ducal flag to the Doge
Rev.: Christ enthroned

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Venice has always been worth a visit, even today magnificent buildings remind us of the heyday of the "Queen of the Adriatic". In the 13th century, the city was the most powerful naval power in the Mediterranean. The grosso was the silver coin in circulation in Northern Italy in the late Middle Ages. In the second half of the 13th century, the coin was the most common means of payment alongside gold coins. The grosso of Trento, for example, was the first multi-penny coin of the Regnum Teutonicum. As the demand for larger denominations increased in Italy, the Republic of Venice began to mint its own coins. Enrico Dandolo was the first doge to have the grosso minted in Venice, presumably to supply the army for the Fourth Crusade.