Gros (coinage)

County of Tripoli gold bezant in Arabic (1270-1300), and Tripoli silver gros (1275-1287). British Museum.

A gros was a type of silver coinage of France from the time of Saint Louis. There were gros tournois and gros parisis.[1] The gros was sub-divided in half gros and quarter gros. The original gros created by St Louis weighed about 4.52 g of nearly pure silver, and was valued at one sou, that is 12 deniers or 1/20 of a livre tournois. Unlike the gold écu that was minted in small numbers, mostly for prestige reasons, the gros was a very common coin, and very widely copied by non royal mints.

Notes

  1. ↑ The Cambridge Economic History of Europe: Trade and industry in the Middle Ages by Edward Miller, Michael Moïssey Postan, Cynthia Postan p.822
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