Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XI 7 April 2016
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Scotland. James IV (1488-1513) AV Unicorn. IΛCOBVS DЄI GRΛCIΛ RЄX SCOTR, unicorn standing left, crown of three lis at neck, holding arms of Scotland; 6-point star stops, im: lis / ЄXVRGΛT DЄ ЄT DISIPЄnT nImICI, large twelve point star over cross fleury; six-point star stops, im: lis. S 5315; Friedberg 18. 3.85g, 25mm, 11h.
Extremely Fine. Very Rare. Of outstanding quality, easily the finest example on CoinArchives.
From the Dr. Murray Gell-Mann Collection.
Widely regarded as the most successful of the Renaissance Stewart monarch's of Scotland, James IV ruled for 25 years, having taken the throne at the age of fifteen, supposedly at the head of an army of rebellious Scottish nobles at the Battle of Sauchieburn. Although his father was an unpopular and ineffective ruler, it is said that James IV wore a belt of iron around his waist for the rest of his life in penance for his role in his father's death.
Well educated and a polyglot, according to Spanish envoy Pedro de Ayala in 1498 James spoke Latin, German, Flemish, Italian and Spanish, and he is also known to have been the last king of the Scots to speak Scottish Gaelic. A patron of the arts, it was during James' reign that the printing press was introduced to Scotland in 1507, and the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh, St Leonard's College, St Andrews University and King's College, Aberdeen were founded.
The present coin featuring the unicorn was a type instituted towards the end of the reign of James III. Remaining the official animal of Scotland to this day, the unicorn has been a Scottish heraldic symbol since the twelfth century when it was used on an early form of the Scottish coat of arms by William I. Unicorns were worshipped by the ancient Babylonians, and written descriptions of them appear in texts from the ancient Persians, the Romans, the Greeks and ancient Jewish scholars, all describing a horse-like creature whose single horn had magical properties and could heal disease. In Celtic mythology, the Unicorn of Scotland symbolised innocence and purity, healing powers, joy and even life itself, and was also seen as a symbol of masculinity and power.
James IV's most notable achievement as king of Scotland would not pay dividends for generations: 'The Marriage of the Thistle and the Rose' took place at Holyrood on 8 August 1503, when James took the hand of Henry VII of England's daughter Margaret. This paved the way for his grandson, James VI of Scotland, to become James I of England based upon the Tudor blood in his veins. However despite this alliance with England, when Henry VIII joined the Holy Alliance against France and England invaded France in 1513, James felt that he had to assist Scotland's old ally under the 'Auld Alliance' and led his army - one of the largest ever to cross the border - south. The English forces led by Lord Surrey inflicted a crushing defeat, and James along with many of his nobles and a great part of his army were killed in the disastrous Battle of Flodden, three miles south-east of Coldstream, Northumberland on 9 September 1513. James IV was the last British monarch to be killed in battle.
Extremely Fine. Very Rare. Of outstanding quality, easily the finest example on CoinArchives.
From the Dr. Murray Gell-Mann Collection.
Widely regarded as the most successful of the Renaissance Stewart monarch's of Scotland, James IV ruled for 25 years, having taken the throne at the age of fifteen, supposedly at the head of an army of rebellious Scottish nobles at the Battle of Sauchieburn. Although his father was an unpopular and ineffective ruler, it is said that James IV wore a belt of iron around his waist for the rest of his life in penance for his role in his father's death.
Well educated and a polyglot, according to Spanish envoy Pedro de Ayala in 1498 James spoke Latin, German, Flemish, Italian and Spanish, and he is also known to have been the last king of the Scots to speak Scottish Gaelic. A patron of the arts, it was during James' reign that the printing press was introduced to Scotland in 1507, and the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh, St Leonard's College, St Andrews University and King's College, Aberdeen were founded.
The present coin featuring the unicorn was a type instituted towards the end of the reign of James III. Remaining the official animal of Scotland to this day, the unicorn has been a Scottish heraldic symbol since the twelfth century when it was used on an early form of the Scottish coat of arms by William I. Unicorns were worshipped by the ancient Babylonians, and written descriptions of them appear in texts from the ancient Persians, the Romans, the Greeks and ancient Jewish scholars, all describing a horse-like creature whose single horn had magical properties and could heal disease. In Celtic mythology, the Unicorn of Scotland symbolised innocence and purity, healing powers, joy and even life itself, and was also seen as a symbol of masculinity and power.
James IV's most notable achievement as king of Scotland would not pay dividends for generations: 'The Marriage of the Thistle and the Rose' took place at Holyrood on 8 August 1503, when James took the hand of Henry VII of England's daughter Margaret. This paved the way for his grandson, James VI of Scotland, to become James I of England based upon the Tudor blood in his veins. However despite this alliance with England, when Henry VIII joined the Holy Alliance against France and England invaded France in 1513, James felt that he had to assist Scotland's old ally under the 'Auld Alliance' and led his army - one of the largest ever to cross the border - south. The English forces led by Lord Surrey inflicted a crushing defeat, and James along with many of his nobles and a great part of his army were killed in the disastrous Battle of Flodden, three miles south-east of Coldstream, Northumberland on 9 September 1513. James IV was the last British monarch to be killed in battle.