1 Quattrino – Gubbio

In 1689, the Italian city-state of Gubbio, like much of the Papal States under Pope Alexander VIII, operated within a complex and often debased monetary system. The official currency was the Papal scudo, a silver coin, but in daily circulation, a plethora of older, clipped, and worn coins from various Italian and foreign mints competed. This created significant confusion in commerce, as the intrinsic silver content of a coin, not its face value, often determined its actual worth in transactions. The local economy, heavily reliant on wool, ceramics, and agriculture, suffered from this instability, as merchants and peasants alike struggled with unpredictable valuations and the constant risk of receiving bad coin.

The situation was exacerbated by the broader European "Price Revolution" and the influx of silver from the New World, which had gradually inflated prices over the preceding century. Locally, the Papal government's frequent fiscal manipulations to fund its projects and military engagements led to periodic devaluations and the issuance of inferior-quality coinage. For Gubbio's citizens, this meant that the coins they received for their goods or labour might have less purchasing power than expected, eroding trust in the monetary system and encouraging hoarding of older, purer coins, which further strained the local money supply.

Consequently, by 1689, Gubbio's marketplace was a microcosm of monetary disorder. Transactions required careful scrutiny and often involved negotiation over the specific coins to be used. While the Papal authorities officially decreed rates, the practical reality in Gubbio's shops and squares was a dual system of "good money" (full-weight silver) and "current money" (debased coinage), traded at a discount. This environment not only hampered local trade but also reflected the diminishing economic autonomy of smaller states like Gubbio, whose financial health was ultimately subject to the policies and pressures of the central papal administration in Rome.