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1547, France, Dauphine Province, Francis I. Scarce Gold "Ecu" Coin. NGC AU+

Mint Period: 1515-1547 Mint Place: Romans (crowned "R") Region: Dauphiné (southeastern France) References: Duplessy 782, Friedberg 354. R! Denomination: Ecu d'or au soleil ("Gold Ecu with Sun") Condition: Certified and graded by NGC as AU (Details: Cleaned!) Diameter: 28mm Weight: 3.36gm Material: Gold!

Obverse: Circular   quartered Arms of France (triple lis symbols) and the Province of Dauphiné (dolphins) with a sun at 12 o'cock. Legend:  + . FRANCISCVS . DEI . GRA. FRANCOR . REX .  (privy mark: crowned "R") . Reverse: Cross fleury within inner circle. Legend: .  XPS . VINCIT . XPS . REGNAT . XPS . (privy mark: crowned "R")

The Dauphiné or Dauphiné Viennois is a former province in southeastern France, roughly corresponding to the present departments of the Isère, Drôme, and Hautes-Alpes. The historical capital is  Grenoble and the main towns Vienne, Valence, Die, Gap and Briançon.  Louis XI was the only king of France to reside in the Dauphiné for any  length of time.

In the 12th century, the local ruler Count Guigues IV of Albon (c.1095–1142) bore a dolphin on his coat of arms and was nicknamed le Dauphin (French for dolphin). His descendants changed their title from Count of Albon to Dauphin of Viennois. The state took the name of Dauphiné

Francis I (French: François Premier and François d'Angoulême) (12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547), was crowned King of France in 1515 in the cathedral at Reims and reigned until 1547.

Francis I is considered to be France's first Renaissance monarch. His reign saw France make immense cultural advances. He was a contemporary of Suleiman the Magnificent of the Ottoman Empire, as well as King Henry VIII of England and of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, his great rivals.

In 1524, Francis assisted the citizens of Lyon in financing the expedition of Giovanni da Verrazzano to North America; on this expedition, Verrazzano claimed Newfoundland for the French crown. In 1534, Francis sent Jacques Cartier to explore the St. Lawrence River in Quebec to find certaines îles et pays où l'on dit qu'il se doit trouver grande quantité d'or et autres riches choses ("certain islands and lands where it is said there must be great quantities of gold and other riches"). In 1541, Francis sent Jean-François de la Roque de Roberval to settle Canada and to provide for the spread of "the Holy Catholic faith."

Francis' legacy is generally considered a mixed one. He achieved  great cultural feats, but they came at the expense of France's economic  well-being. The persecution of the Protestants was to lead France into decades of civil war, which did not end until 1598 with the Edict of Nantes.

Francis' legacy is generally considered a mixed one. He achieved  great cultural feats, but they came at the expense of France's economic  well-being. The persecution of the Protestants was to lead France into decades of civil war, which did not end until 1598 with the Edict of Nantes.