Watch List notes:

BELGIUM. Flanders. Lion d'Or, ND (1346-84). Ghent Mint. Louis II de Male. PCGS MS-62 Gold Shield.
4.87 gms. Fr-157; Delm-460; Gaill-214; DeMey-196. Obverse: Helmeted lion crouching left, on Gothic baldaquin with head coiffed in elaborate helmet; Reverse: Elaborate cross with letter D at center and F L A N around. An impressive and RARE Mint State example with provenance stretching back to 1958. Struck from a rusted obverse die but still sharply pronounced throughout. The luster is uniform and satiny, accented by subtle traces of patina in the peripheries. Attractive and desirable.

Struck during the recurring Bubonic Plague in Europe. Steering Flanders clear of the 100 Years War was arguably Louis II de Male's greatest achievement. In 1357 Count Louis II married his seven-year-old daughter Margaret to the minor Duke Philip I of Burgundy, who died from plague four years later. Sole heiress of her father's territories, she was a highly coveted bride courted by both Edmund of Langley, son of King Edward III of England, and Philip the Bold, son of King John II of France and Duke of Burgundy since 1363. After several years of tough bargaining, Count Louis II gave his consent to Philip and his brother King Charles V, and in return he received the lordships of Romance Flanders (Lille, Douai, Orchies) and a payment of 200,000 livres Tournois. Could the coin offered here be struck with gold from the same dowry? The idea certainly provides fertile ground for additional research.

Purchased from Florange (Paris), catalogue 9 (1958), no. 765. Includes original collector's ticket.

Estimate: $6000.00- $8000.00