A great privilege of grading in Europe is encountering some obscure coinage that is not usually seen anywhere else in the world. One such highlight from a grading event in Paris was a gorgeous hammered gold coin featuring a griffin. This rare and unusual coin comes from Liege, today a city in the country of Belgium, but at the time was its own prince-bishopric. While the griffin in 1300s Europe often represented a powerful guardian of both strength and vigilance, the story behind the period when this coin was produced is turbulent, to say the least.
The coin was struck during the time of John of Bavaria while elected principality of Liege. John was the younger son of Albert of Bavaria, the Count of Hainaut, Holland, and Zeeland. Albert of Bavaria was the grandson of Emperor Louis of Bavaria. At the age of 17, John was chosen to succeed Arnold of Hornes in the bishopric of Liege. He was enthroned in July 1390. John’s reign was hostile from the start, with his subjects fearing the loss of their privileges and customs to this discerned foreign ruler. In 1402, John would have to leave for the safety of Maastricht. John of Bavaria, absence from Liege, led his opponents to persecute his supporters and, with his continued inaction, his deposition was proclaimed in 1406.
In 1406, the opponents of John of Bavaria chose Thierry de Perwez as their bishop. In the winter of 1407 to 1408, the troops supporting Bishop Perwez besieged Maastricht. The family of the House of Bavaria could no longer tolerate the humiliations, and John of Bavaria was rescued by his brother William IV of Hainaut and his brother-in-law John the Fearless. The House of Bavaria was victorious on the battlefield of the Othee Plain, near Tongres, in September 1408. Eight thousand rebels from Liege who opposed the House of Bavaria were eliminated. Among the casualties were Thierry de Perwez and his father, Henri de Perwez.
After the restoration of John of Bavaria in 1408, John’s reprisals against the people of Liege earned him the name John the Pitiless. William IV of Hainaut died in 1417. Without a male heir, John of Bavaria planned to take the territories. John abdicated his bishopric of Liege and became recognized as Count of Hainaut, Holland, Zeeland, and Friesland by Emperor Sigismund with the marriage of his niece Elisabeth of Gorlitz. This caused a rift in the House of Bavaria, with Jacqueline of Bavaria claiming the inheritance and leading to foreign alliances and battles over the lands. John of Bavaria died in Holland in October 1423 without an heir. Jacqueline continued battling for the inheritance until 1433, when she was forced to abdicate.
The coin submitted is from Liege and dates from about 1412, during the reign of John of Bavaria after reclaiming Liege. The coin’s denomination is known as a griffon d’or due to its depiction of a griffin holding a quartered shield of Bavaria-Palatinate. The inscription “IOh’S DE BAVAIA” proclaims the name John of Bavaria. This wonderful example of a historic coin was submitted to the PCGS office in Paris and was graded MS63.