Sale: Triton XII, Lot: 896. Estimate $300.  Closing Date: Monday, 5 January 2009.  Sold For $525. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

CRUSADERS, Venetians in the Levant. AV Ducat (3.49 g, 5h). Imitating Venice. Uncertain mint. Struck in the name of Francesco Doná, 1545-1553. •/Z/•/M/•/V/Є/N/Є/T D/V/X FRΛN DON (Z retrograde), St. Mark standing right, holding Gospels and presenting flag (plain type) to Doge kneeling left; exergual line below / • SIT • T • XPE • DΛTQ • TV REGIS ISTЄ DVCΛ, Christ standing facing, raising hand in benediction and holding Gospels, surrounded by elliptical halo containing six stars to left, six to right. Cf. CNI VII 81; Ives -; Schlumberger -; Gamberini -. EF, lustrous, area of weak strike.

From the B.R. Bell Collection. Ex Classical Numismatic Group 54 (14 June 2000), lot 2055.

Part of a series of full-weight imitations of the Venetian ducat that appear to be largely unpublished to this day. Most often, coins of this series are offered for sale as normal Venetian issues. However, various faults in the design show otherwise: the ‘mandorla’ is open instead of closing at a point on the top and bottom, and it is composed of a series of dashes instead of pellets. The stars, though correct in number, have more points than five. Lastly, the reverse legend is shortened, ending in DVCA.