Holograph 'Notes out of [Jean] Boizard's Traite des Monoyes' ['Treatise on Coin' (1692, second edition 1714), both editions of which Newton owned: see H237-8] on French Mint practice (the notes are in English)

Author: Isaac Newton

Source: MINT 19/2/138, National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, UK

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- Revision History
  - 1 January 2001
    - Catalogue information compiled by Rob Iliffe, Peter Spargo & John Young
  - 29 September 2011
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  - 12 March 2017
    - Transcribed by Will Scott
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<338r>

Notes out of Boizard's Traite de Monoyes.

Quatuor sols Parisis valent quinque sols Turnois. p. 9.

Gold has 24 degrees of goodness called Carats. Every Carat is divided into 32 equal parts in making of the money p. 11

Silver has 12 degress of goodness called deniers & every denier is divided into 24 grains, & every grain into $\frac{1}{2}$ $\frac{1}{4}$ $\frac{1}{8}$ &c. p. 12.

Course gold or Silver is where the ☉ or ☾. p. 16.

Standard Gold 22 carats & standard Silver 11 deniers in France p 21, 23, 24, 27, 28

The Remedy of allay for gold is $\frac{1}{4}$ of a Carat & for silver 2 grains. p. 24, 27, 28

The Remedy is first mentioned in the reign of S^t Lewis 1253 & has been ever since in use. p. 25.

The Ecus d'or & demy Louïs d'or are 72 $\frac{1}{2}$ pieces to the Marc, & the Louïs d'or 36 $\frac{1}{4}$ pieces. And the Louis d'argent (of 3 livres 6 sols) are 8 $\frac{11}{12}$ pieces to the Marc. & the $\frac{1}{2}$ & $\frac{1}{4}$ & $\frac{1}{12}$ Louïs's in proportion. p 32, 38, 39.

The Marc is 8 ounces of the same weight with the Marc in England Germany &c p 32.

The remedy of weight for gold is 2 felins (or 14 $\frac{2}{5}$ grains) per Marc. That for silver is 5 $\frac{1}{2}$ sols or 43 $\frac{7}{107}$ grains per Marc. p. 34.

The proportion of fine Gold to fine Silver anno 1679 in France was 15 to 1. viz^t fine ☉ = 437 Livres per Marc & fine silver 29^liv.. 6^sol.. 11 $\frac{1}{2}$ ^deniers. The King varied the proportion several times & anno 1690 the Marc of fine ☉ was valued at 457^liv. 16^sols & that of silver at 30 livres which is 15 $\frac{13}{50}$ to 1. p 49, 50.

The Seigniorage in the reign of Lewis 13 was 6 Livres per Marc d'or & 10 $\frac{1}{2}$ sols per Marc d'argent. In March 28 1679 it ceased but was reestablished Dec. 15 1689. p 58

The Brassage or charge of coyning is paid one half for the melting & other ordinary charges, the other half is paid to the Officers & Workers for their ministrie in the fabrication of the monies. It was paid by the Romans & anciently in France by a oublic tax upon the people whereby the Gold & Silver was of the same price coynd or uncoynd. And this were still to be wisht but at length the contrary has prevailed above the publick utility & the Brassage has been established. In the year 1676 it was 3 livres per Mark of Gold & 18 sols per Marc of silver, at which time by the Kings Declaration of March 28 it ceased but was reestablished Dec 15 1689. The reasons for reestablishing the seigniorage & Brassage were 1 to prevent the exportation of the money 2 to prevent the melting it down for Goldsmiths uses. p 58, 59, 60, 61.

The Ordinance of 1586 appoints the Goldsmiths work in silver to be 11^den $\frac{1}{2}$ fine with a remedy of two grains & in Gold 22 Karats with a remedy of $\frac{1}{4}$ Karats. And this continued till Decem 1679. The Goldbeaters & Wyerdrawers by the same Ordinance of 1586 use Gold of 24 Karats with a remedy of $\frac{1}{4}$ Karats & Silver of 12 denar. with a remedy of 4^gr. But by an Ordonnance of 1657 the Drawers in Lyons use a remedy of 6 grains in silver. By an Ordnance of Octob. 1689 the Refiners & Departers make silver at least 11^denar. 18 grains fine & gold at least 23 $\frac{26}{32}$ Karats p 61, 62, 63

The Goldsmiths that melt or abuse the money forfeit body & goods & by an Ordonnance of 1689 are condemned to the Galleys for ever. p 63.

Rendage is what's rendred to the King & signifies the Seigniorage & Brassage together Traite is still more general & comprehends the Rendage & remedies of weight & allay together. p. 64

Dernier fort or Pied-fort is a piece of money perfect in weight & fineness without any remedy, made for a pattern. It has usually this inscription Exemplar probatœ monetæ <138v> or Exemplum probati numismatis, p. 69, 70.

To transport the money is confiscation of body & goods & has been sometimes dea{illeg} p. 75.

Several laws for limiting the weight of vessels of gold & silver. A pag 73 ad p. 87

The places of the fabrication of the money are thus markt

Paris	A	Burdeaux	K	Nantes	T
Roüen	B	Bayonne	L	Amiens	V
Saint Lo	C	Tholose	M	Aix	X
Lyon	D	Montpelier	N	Bourges	Y
Tours	E	Rione	O	Grenoble	Z	p. 91, 92.
Angers	F	Dijon	P	Rennes	9
Poitiers	G	Narbonne	Q	Arras	AR
La Rochelle	H	Villeneuve-les-Avignon	R	Lisle en Flanders	L
Limoges	I	Rheims	S	Troyes	S

Before deliverance of the money they put into the Pix one piece of 400 of Gold & one out of 72 Marcs of silver & the Pix is kept under the keys of the Warde{n} Master & Assayer till tryal at the end of every year. These are Deniers de Boete. The rest are Deniers courant p 97, 98, 99

The Marking Engin invented by Castaing 1685 who receives 1 Sol per Mark of gold & six Deniers per Mark of silver p. 42.