Ecu of Three Crowns – a 1715 French Rarity

Rare French Ecu - Louis XV Three Crowns

One of the rarest of the French Ecu types is this Louis XVEcu of Three Crowns struck in 1715. Only six of the numerous French Mints operating in this period record any mintage for this type of silver Ecu. Of those six mints two offer no know examples, while the other four exist, but are very rarely offered on the market today.

The one collectible mint for this type is the Lille Mint, which used the W mint mark seen at the center of the reverse of the coin illustrated above. If you are looking to add this type to your Ecu collection, the time seems right, as at least two examples have come to market in the past year.

This particular examplewas sold for about $50,350 in June 2008 at the Maison Palombo- Auction 5. More recently, a second examplewas sold through Heritage Auction Galleriesat their NYINC salefor about $46,000.

If you're really looking to awaze the hobby, how about turning up an example of the legendary Louis XV 1/2 Ecu of Three Crowns. Also said to have been struck in 1715, but only at the Paris Mint. Only line drawings are known of this coin and it's existance, though possible, is nebulous.