MED 
tspon the arts. It is doubtful whether or not any Indian 
coins exift before the time of the moguls, or the thirteenth 
Century. Some old coins have been found near Calcutta, 
of gold, filver, copper, and tin, all mixed together. On 
one fide they bear a warrior with a fword, and on the 
other an Indian female idol. The later coins of India are 
■well known, fuchas the pagoda, rupee, and cajli, the molt 
common copper; whence cur word. All th.ei'e coins are 
very thick, like the old Egyptian. On one remarkable 
fet of rupees, are prefented the twelve Tigris, a lion on one 
of them, a bull on another, &c. &c. The Portuguese, 
Englifn, French, and Dutch, fometimes ftruck coins in 
their fettlements with Perfian irifcriptions on one fide 
and Latin on the other. Rupees and caflt are known of 
Elizabeth, of Charles II. of the year 1730, and of other 
periods. 
The coins of Perfia have continued on the Arabian 
model, even after the Arabian caliphs loft their dominion 
in that country ; and bear on both Tides inscriptions from 
the Koran. The Perfian copper, however, has the fun 
and lion, the arms of Perfia, on one fide. 
Of Mann us, and fome other petty kings in Arabia, we 
have coins during the imperial period of Rome. The 
brafs coins of Haroun A 1 Rafchid, the Charlemagne of 
Afia, and his contemporary, and of other powerful princes 
who refided at Bagdad, have an Arabic infcription on the 
reverfe; the obverfe is a mere tranfcript of any old Greek 
or Roman coin that fell in the way of the moneyer. The 
gold and filver coins have many infcriptions. The later 
Arabian coins, which are filver, bear the name and titles 
of the prince on one fide, and fome Sentence from the 
Koran, or the like, upon the other. The more modern 
are in the fhape of a fiihhook, with Arabic infcriptions. 
No regular coinage was formed by the Turks till they 
became mailers of Conftantinople. Their coins refemble 
thole of Perfia and Arabia, having merely infcriptions on 
both fides. 
The coins of the African dates, at leal! Such as profefs 
the Mahometan religion, have merely infcriptions without 
any figures: thofe of the internal parts are unknown. 
No coinage was tiled among the Mexicans and Peruvians, 
the only civilized nations in America ; but La Honton 
mentions an American Savage who had a Square medal of 
copper depending from his neck: Mr. Pinkerton fiippoles 
it to have come from Japan. 
In Italy, when the Roman empire in the weft ceafed 
■with Oreftes, in the year 476, the Gothic kings ftruck 
coins till Teias, the iaft of them, was conquered in 552 
by Narfes, the general of Jultinian. Then the exarchs 
of Ravenna, viceroys for the Byzantine emperors, iffued 
copper with felix ravenna, &c. but the gold and lilver 
of the Greek emperors lufticed for Italy. After Charle¬ 
magne, about the j'ear 780, made a great revolution in 
Italy, there are coins of him ftruck in Rome and Milan. 
The modern coins of Italy begin with the filver pen¬ 
nies of-various ftates. The papal coins originate with 
Hadrian 1 . 772-795, to whom Charlemagne gave leave to 
coin money. The filver pennies continued till a late pe¬ 
riod, with the name of the pope on the one fide, and 
sevs petrvs on the other. On thefe coins there are 
rude portraits of fome of the popes. Afterwards, when 
the pope ceafed to have power in Rome, from Paichal II. 
till Benedict XI. in 1303, there are pennies ot the Roman 
Senate and people, bearing on one Side Peter, and on the 
other Paul. In the middle ages, the chief bilhops of Italy, 
France, and England, Itruck coins, as well as the pope. 
The firft gold coin is of John XXII. 1316. The coins of 
Alexander VI. Julius II. and Leo X. are remarkable for 
elegance. 
The coins of Milan begin with Charlemagne. The firft 
coin of the family of Vi Icon ti occurs in 1330 under Azo. 
The fet finilhes with Louis XII. 
Coinage begins at Naples in 840 and 880, with duke 
Sergius and biftiop Athanaftus, The next coins are of 
Roger of Sicily, and Roger II,. in 1130, William I. II, 
A L; 3i(j 
and Tancred. Naples and Sicily were Subdued in 1194 
by the emperor of Germany; in 1255 Manfred appears; 
in 1266 Charles of Provence ; and others till Joan, in 1414 r 
after which follow the houfe of Arragon, and later kings; 
Venice begins in the tenth century. The firft coins are 
Silver pennies marked veneci. Then follow the coins of 
Henrico Dandulo in 1192; of Ziani in 1205, &c. Gold 
was firft coined at Venice in 1280, and copper in 1471 3 
but the filver groats are as old as 1192. 
Florence furpaftes all the cities of Italy in the dignity 
of her coinage. Some filver pieces occur from the twelfth 
century, or an earlier period; but, in 1252, the famous 
gold coins called jlorins, from the flower of the lily upon 
them, appeared, and were imitated by the popes, France, 
and England, as being the firft gold coins ftruck in Eu¬ 
rope alter the eighth century ; for during five centuries 
no gold w'orthy of notice was ftruck in Europe. The 
florins of Florence have on one lide St. John the Baptilt 
fianding, on the other a large fleur-de-lis; and it is not 
doubted that the French fleurs-de-lis took their origin 
from thefe coins. They weigh a drachm, and are no lefs 
than 24 carats fine, according to Italian writers; and are 
worth about twelve (hillings. 
Genoa firft began to coin money in 1129, under the 
government of the emperor Conrad. Thofe of the dukes 
of Savoy began in the fame century. Coins were iffued 
by the patriarchs of Aquileia from 1204 to 1440. Ferrara 
has coins of the marquifes from 1340. 
In France, the coins of the firft race, from Clovi3 
490, till its termination in 751, are chiefly gold trientes , 
well wrought, with the heads of the kings. Some folidi 
and J'emiJJes alfo appear. Thefe coins, which properly be¬ 
long to the clals of ancient coins, have on the obverle the 
king’s head and name, but fometimes the name of the 
moneyer; the reverie has a crofs with the name of the 
town. The coins of the fecond race, beginning with 
Pepin in 750, and extending to Hugh Capet in 987, com¬ 
mence the modern clafs. Thefe are no lefs barbarous than 
the others are elegant : they are almoft all filver pennies, 
and very feldom bear the head of the king. Thofe of 
Charlemagne have only carolvs in the field, while the 
reverie bears R. F. or lome fuch infcription. One piece 
alone, ftruck at Rome, has a rude bull of him. The coins 
of Louis le Debonnaire are better done. The third race 
begins with Hugh Capet in 987, and extends to the pre- 
fent time. The coinage did not begin to improve till 
1226 under St. Louis, when the groat appears. Its name 
in Italian is grojfo, in French grojfe, in Englilh groat, or 
“ great coin,” la called from its lize in companion with 
the penny ; and it pafled from Italy to France, to Germany; 
and to England. After the conqueft of France by the 
Englilh, bale coins of many kinds were introduced ; and 
in the year 1574, in the time of Henry III. copper was 
firft introduced into the French coinage. Befides thefe, the 
other remarkable coins of France are, the blancs, or billon 
groats, firft ilfued in-1348 ; the ecus a. la couronne, or crowns 
of gold, fo called from the crown on one fide, and begun 
by Charles VI. in 1384; thofe of Anne of Bretagne in 
1498: the tejlon, or piece with the king’s head of Louis 
XII. the Henri of Henry II. with Gaul fitting in armour, 
and a Victory in her hand. There are many coins of car¬ 
dinal Bourbon, eledted king in 1589 ; and in 1642, Louis 
XIV. takes the title of cataloni^e. princeps. The firlfc 
louis d'or made its appearance in 1640.. 
Spain vies with France in the elegance, of her early 
feries, which conlilts almoft w holly of trientes of gold 
finely executed. On one fide they bear the head ot the 
king, with fiis name; and on the other a crofs, with the 
name of the town. While the Moors, or Arabs, pofielfed 
Spain, from the eighth to the thirteenth century, and 
Granada in particular till the end of the fifteenth, luch 
was the influence of the Mahometan faith, that the Mo- 
refque coins ot Spain only prelent us with inlipid inferip. 
tions on both fides, Indeed the Mahometan religion, by 
its abfolute refufal to allow the reprefentation of any living 
s creature* 
