1551 France Silver Douzan NGC AU-55 Henry II

The douzain (sometimes written “douzan”) was a billon coin of 12 deniers tournois—one sol, or 1/20 of a livre tournois. It was everyday small change: a thin silver-copper alloy whose silver wash wore off quickly. Designs and output changed with each king because the coin was a workhorse of a strained monetary system.

Henry II (1547–1559) Political and economic context.
Henry II continued Francis I’s Italian wars against the Habsburgs. The 1550s brought victories (Metz, Calais) and a costly defeat at Saint-Quentin (1557), ending with the Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis in 1559. The early Price Revolution—American silver, rising grain prices—was already under way, but the kingdom was still relatively intact. Small change was chronically scarce; the crown therefore minted large quantities of billon rather than full-silver coins.

The coin.
An ordinance of 31 January 1549 introduced the distinctive douzain aux croissants. It was struck from 1549/1550 into the early 1560s (overlapping Francis II and the start of Charles IX). Typical standard: about 2.62–2.68 g at 0.292 fine silver. Obverse: crowned shield of France between two crowned crescents. Reverse: a fleur-de-lis cross made of eight interlaced crescents, with H’s and small crowns in the angles. Dauphiné issues substituted dolphins. Production was enormous at many mints (Paris, Rouen, Lyon, La Rochelle, etc.); a single 1550 La Rochelle issue exceeded two million pieces. These are the commonest “silver” coins of the reign, almost always found worn.