Agnel "Mouton d'Or" - Louis II de Male

The Agnel d'or, or 'Gold Lamb,' was minted under the authority of Louis II de Male, Count of Flanders, during a period of significant economic volatility in the mid-14th century. Louis II introduced this coinage to align Flemish currency with the prestige and trade standards of the French royal mints, which had popularized the 'agnel' type—featuring the Agnus Dei, or Lamb of God—as a symbol of divine favor and commercial stability. Its creation served both as a practical tool for international trade and as a political statement of the Count’s sovereign right to issue high-purity gold currency within his territories.

The design draws directly from the iconography of the French royal coinage, depicting the Lamb of God carrying a cross with a pennon, framed by a gothic tressure. This imagery was intended to project a sense of moral and financial security, a necessary messaging strategy during the tumult of the Hundred Years' War. While the design is conservative, following the established heraldic patterns of the Valois influence, it remains a celebrated example of Flemish medieval numismatics, valued by historians for what it reveals about the complex political entanglements between the County of Flanders and the French crown during the late Middle Ages.