The museum staff informed Ms. Harding that her piedfort was 700 years old. The precious metal piece had been around since the early 1300s.
It was very valuable to the museum. They informed her about the significance such a find is to the Ludlow museum.
Overjoyed
With the details surrounding the possible sum circling through her mind, she became excited. It was thrilling to think she had dug up her very own treasure.
It had been hers all these years, and so she couldn’t help thinking about the payout.
The History of the Piedfort
The value of her find is great, even if historians are not quite certain of the piedfort’s purpose. While the medallion of precious metal may have been used for minting purposes as a pattern, they also may have been used as markers in specialized counting machines similar to the abacus. Numismatics know that piedforts were first determined to exist in France and Great Britain during the Middle Ages.
The very first piedforts are dated back to the 12th century. It makes sense that coin collecting is called “the hobby of kings” because rare piedforts in a kingdom’s coinage were sometimes used as gifts of diplomacy to visiting kings or other nobility. The gift signaled political overtures that became so significant a formal code was adopted in 1355 France that defined those who were entitled to the gift of the piedfort. It came into the language as two words, “pied fort.” It’s loosely translated to “heavily weighted.”
Piedforts Are a Rare Find
Piedforts have a unique value. As they were politically significant in the monarchies of France and England, these little bits of treasure mean a lot to state museums of history. The museum staff discovered that the piedfort Ms. Harding found consisted of silver and weighed 1.4 grams.
Its inscription, however, is what makes it especially important. The imprint she had stared at so many times as a child marks Charles IV’s ascension to the French throne in 1322.
The Piedfort's Monetary Value
Finally, she learned how much it was worth. The precious object that held so much value to her in her heart now had a price tag.
The staff informed her it was worth £2,000. It was a lot of money!