Vatican

harasha

I had been thinking, at times, of collecting Vatican and/or Papal States, but have not been too motivated in the past.
I recently watched a TLC special on the opening of the Medici tomb, in Florence, and once again, my interest has been kindled.
I have been thinking of a set to be based on the past 500 years. That would include the two Medici popes, Leo X (1513 - 1521) and Clement VII (1521 - 1534).
However, I have not seen much papal stuff prior to the 19th century.
Also, Pius IX is an offensive personality to me, but I could treat him as I have treated a Third Reich example in my world coin collection; simply use a coin that avoids a reference to the unmentionable one or his party's symbol.

Askari

Earlier papal material -- coins or medals -- doesn't show up much on eBay. It's not such a great venue for higher-value material other than for the most popular collecting areas. Generally, you have to find a specialist and expect to pay accordingly. There are a couple of dealers I've run across in the past who had nice assortments (and not so much of the highest-end material), but I just can't remember who they were. The years aren't being so kind to my memory, I'm afraid.