Written by Antonio Alejandro Piccolo

Today we invite you, dear readers of our numismatic blog, to focus your attention on an extraordinary testone of Pope Paul III (1534–1549), struck at the Macerata mint in the twelfth year of his pontificate, corresponding to November 1545 – October 1546.

The specific specimen we will be examining comes from the Paolo Benatti Collection and was offered in our Auction 7 as lot 1525; it previously appeared in the equally prestigious Varesi – APNB auction of October 2016, as lot 780.

Auction 7 – Paolo Benatti Collection, Lot 1525, Paul III (1534-1549) Macerata – Testone An. XII – Munt. 134; MIR 925 (this specimen) AG (g 9,85) RRRR

The origin of testone

As a denomination, the testone made its first appearance in papal coinage during the pontificate of Paul III. Its issuance is recorded in the Capitoli of the Rome mint dated October 1545, when the mintmasters were Vincenzo Castelli, together with Lorenzo and Giambattista degli Albizzi. Its official designation was triplice paolo, corresponding to a value of 3 paoli or giulii.

The testone of Paul III

On the obverse, we find a portrait of the elderly pope, his temple marked by a deep, branching wrinkle.
Paul III, born Alessandro, son of Pier Luigi Farnese and Giovannella Caetani, was born in Canino, in Tuscia, on February 28, 1468. The portrait thus depicts a man of 78 years, an impressive age for the time, to which the pontiff added another three, passing away on November 10, 1549, at the age of 81.
Despite his age, doesn’t he still appear remarkably vigorous?

The long beard he had always worn, together with his baldness, gives him a resemblance, even in his features, to his namesake saint. In fact, Saint Paul is deliberately included in the composition:

• we see him, in a niche, on the shoulder of the piviale (liturgical mantle), depicted in a combative stance, sword drawn;
• and again, on the large pectoral fibula clasping the same garment, his head is shown beside that of Saint Peter.

In three corners of the piviale, one can spot—more or less clearly—the fleur-de-lis of the Farnese family, derived from that of Florence, a state in whose service several soldiers of the pope’s house had once offered their mercenary services.

The belligerent image of Saint Paul on the piviale, however, should not be linked to the Farnese’s past military history, but rather to the historical context of those years, something that becomes clearer upon examining the reverse of the coin. There, we see the episode of the twelve-year-old Jesus standing on a pedestal, debating in the Temple among the doctors, aged elders dressed in classical garb.

This type very likely refers to the Council of Trent, convened by the pope himself, and Saint Paul’s drawn sword on the obverse is a symbolic reference to it. The sword alludes to the doctrinal battle launched by Paul III in response to the Protestant Reformation.

In the exergue appears the abbreviated mintmark of Macerata, beneath which are three iron maces arranged in a fan shape—the heraldic symbol of Mazzeo Mazzei, mintmaster in Ancona and Macerata during the pontificate of Paul III and his successors.

In addition to Macerata, this coinage was also produced in Camerino and Rome, where these masterfully executed dies were created by Giangiacomo Bonzagni of Parma or Alessandro Cesati, known as il Grechetto.

In short, an extremely rare coin that marks a brilliant beginning to the series of papal testoni, with a timeless appeal.

Learn more:

• Browse the catalogue of Auction 7 – Paolo Benatti Collection
• Read the press release of Auction 7 – Paolo Benatti Collection