Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 29, 2026

Tornesel

The tornesel, tornesol, or tornese was a silver coin of Europe in the Late Middle Ages and the early modern era.

Last revised
Jul 29, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
140 w
Citations
2
Source
A denier tournois; inscription reads:
+PHILIPVS•REX / +TVRONVS•CIVI[TATI]S. source ↗

The tornesel, tornesol, or tornese was a silver coin of Europe in the Late Middle Ages and the early modern era.

History

It took its name from the denier tournois, the denier of Tours. Marco Polo referred to the tornesel in recounts of his travels to East Asia when describing the currencies of the Yuan Empire.1 His descriptions were based on the conversion of 1 bezant = 20 groats = 133⅓ tornesel.1

The reverse of a Two Sicilies ½-tornese coin source ↗

The tornese was a subunit of the Neapolitan, Sicilian, and Two Sicilies ducats.

See also

See also

References

References

  1. Henry Yule. The Travels of Marco Polo: The Complete Yule-Cordier Edition. Third edition (1903), revised and updated by Henri Cordier. Plain Label Books. p. 1226-27. (ISBN 1603036156)