Florin Brooch

There are an enormous number of medieval pewter brooches in the form of gold and silver coins from all over Europe – nobles, angels, écus, leeuwengroots. This brooch reflects the size and decoration of the florin; the original, dated 1300-1383, was found in Ypres.

There is pictorial evidence of what look like real gold coins being worn as jewels, and a Flemish find of a pewter decoration for a band or garland that still holds a late 13th-century silver double tournois (Heilig en Profaan 3, No. 4332). The fashion for coins or coin-shaped jewels seems strange to us, but it seems to have been long-lasting and to have permeated a wide range of social classes. Some may have been a stylish display of wealth; others perhaps a charm (like the purse pendants) to attract wealth.