The coins of Venice

Ducat of Andrea Dandolo c. 1354 - obverse

The history of Venice

During the fifth century AD, the north of Italy was in chaos as a result of the barbarian invasions that devastated much of the west of the Roman Empire. In this difficult times, the inhabitants of some of the towns of the region sought refuge in the scattered islets of the marshy lagoons north of the Adriatic Sea. There they found the security they longed for and also a basis for subsistence in fishing and in the salt trade. These were the modest origins of Venice, which with the passage of time grew to become a very prosperous city centered on trade, commerce, and international business. By the late Middle Ages it was one of the great economic and military powers of the Mediterranean.

Its unique nature as a city built on water provided Venice with protection and guaranteed its independence from the great powers of the Byzantine and Carolingian empires. The Venetians organized themselves in a republic controlled by the main merchant families, a form of government highly unusual during the middle Ages. The republic was led by the Doge, a ruler elected by an aristocratic assembly and whose power was controlled by a complex system of checks and balances.

 

Ducat of Andrea Dandolo c. 1354 - reverse

During its long history, the Venetian republic was remarkably stable and lacked the political turmoil that regularly affected the rest of the European states of the time. It was thus rightly called “the most serene”, la serenissima.

Because of its eminently commercial activity, Venice always had an intense monetary circulation. During the High Middle Ages, its merchants relied above all on Byzantine coins that were those of the highest quality available and were accepted throughout the Mediterranean world.

Grosso of Francesco Dandolo - c. 1328

The coins of Venice

The situation changed at the beginning of the thirteenth century. Byzantine coinage had been gradually debased and had consequently lost its reputation. A new international currency was urgently needed and the Venetians were ready to take the opportunity. Under the great Doge Enrico Dandolo (ruled 1192-1205), they introduced a new coin of high quality silver, the grosso or matapan. We do not know the exact date of its first minting but it was close to the beginning of the century.

With a theoretical weight of c. 2.2 g., the coin reached a purity of 98.5%, the maximum achievable with the technology of the time. This purity guaranteed a wide acceptance as a means of international payment. The design of the coin was strongly influenced by the Byzantine iconography, with a Christ enthroned on the obverse and Saint Mark and the Doge holding a banner, on the reverse.

Around 1250, as trade in the Mediterranean world flourished and expanded, Genoa and Florence - Venice's commercial rivals - minted new high-value pure gold coins, the Genovino and the Florin, with a standard of approximately 3.5 grams. The florin quickly established itself as the new standard currency for international trade. The success of this rival coinage would finally lead the Venetians in 1284 to introduce their own gold coin, the ducat. It had a theoretical weight of 3.53 grams and a purity of 99.5%, which would allow it to conquer a place as a widely accepted international currency and to compete successfully with the florin.

Ducat of Fra Giovanni Dandolo -1284

The obverse shows an upright figure of Jesus surrounded by stars, with the legend T[ibi] XPE (Christe) DAT[us] Q[uem] T[u] REGIS ISTE DVCAT[us]. On the reverse we see St. Mark handing over a banner to the Doge.

Venice would continue to mint ducats of the same quality until the end of the Republic in 1797.