(sold for $188.0)

1661, Duchy of Modena, Alfonso IV d'Este. Silver ½ Lira (Mezza Lira) Coin. Rare!

Mint Year: 1661 Mint Official: Elia Teseo (E) Denomination: ½ Lira (Mezza Lira) Reference: MIR 813/1, CNI 12, KM-. Rare! Condition: Lightly deformed, otherwise a nice VF! Diameter: 27mm Weight: 3.45gm Material: Silver

Obverse: Draped bust of Alfonso IV d'Este right. Mint official´s initial (E) below. Legend: . ALPH . IV . M . R . EC . DVX . IX . 1661 . / E

Reverse: Crowned coat-of-arms on heraldic eagle in background. Legend:  NOBILITAS . ESTENSIS .

The Duchy of Modena and Reggio (Italian: Ducato di Modena e Reggio, Latin: Ducatus Mutinae et Regii) was a small northwestern Italian state that existed from 1452 to 1859, with a break during the Napoleonic Wars(1796–1814) when Emperor Napoleon I reorganized the states and republics of renaissance-era Italy, then under the domination of his French Empire. It was ruled from 1814 by the noble House of Este, of Austria-Este.

Alfonso IV d'Este (14 October 1634 – 16 July 1662) was Duke of Modena and Reggio from 1658 until his death. He was the father of Mary of Modena, consort of James II of England.

Alfonso was born in Modena, the eldest son of Francesco I d'Este, Duke of Modena, and his first wife, Maria Caterina Farnese. He became Duke of Modena and Reggio after his father's death in 1658. Alfonso's health was poor and he suffered from gout and tuberculosis. He died four years into his reign.

In 1655 he married Laura Martinozzi, Cardinal Mazarin's niece, thus strengthening his alliance with France. On Laura's sixteenth birthday, 27 May 1655, she was married to the Duke of Modena by proxy at the Palace of Compiègne, with the Count of Soissons standing in the place of the Duke of Modena. They had two children, Maria and Francesco, who went on to become Queen of England and Duke of Modena respectively.

In 1659 the Franco-Spanish War came to an end and Modena was rewarded with the town of Correggio for supporting France.

He was succeeded by his two-year-old son, under the regency of his widow.

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