Écu blanc (silver écu of Louis XIV)

A large silver coin of about 27 grams gross and a face value of 3 livres, taking the écu d'argent of 1641 as its model. This piece is dated 1690, the work of the engraver Roettiers at the mint of Troyes. The personal rule of Louis XIV ran through three great wars, and the swelling of the standing army and the building of Versailles emptied the treasury. The controller-general Colbert reordered the structure of revenue and turned it to surplus once; even so, the account states plainly, France grew poorer under war spending that went past all measure.