Jean Foy-Vaillant in Paris
Jean Foy-Vaillant (1632–1706), played an essential role in building up the French royal numismatic collections, especially with regard to coins and medals from Greece, Syria, Egypt, and Persia. As a result of his antiquarian explorations he almost doubled the numismatic collection which Louis XIV (1638–1715), had inherited from his uncle Gaston (1608–60), Duc D’Orléans.[1] Foy-Vaillant was facilitated in this by the support of Jean Baptiste Colbert (1619–83), and Colbert’s successor François Le Tellier (1641–91), Marquis de Louvois, who saw the potential propaganda value of funding Foy-Vaillant’s antiquarian travels in Italy, Sicily, Greece and the Middle East. Foy-Vaillant was deeply committed to the task – despite being captured and held as a slave for a number of months on one of his journeys he continued to explore the numismatic ancient world – and on one occasion, when faced with potentially being captured again, he made sure some of the coins were protected by swallowing them![2]
Jean Foy-Vaillant, Seleucidarum imperium, sive Historia regum Syriae ad fidem numismatum accommodate … (Paris, 1681), title page.
Worth owned the third edition of Foy-Vaillant’s first work, Numismata imperatorum Romanorum praestantiora a Julio Caesare ad postumum et tyrannos (Paris, 1696), which had initially been published in 1674, to catalogue the coins in the French royal collection. Perhaps Worth’s most important work by Foy-Vaillant (and he had many), was the latter’s ground-breaking book on the coinage of the Seleucid kingdoms, which was, as De Callatay suggests, a hotly-debated topic in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.[3] Sixteenth-century collectors such as Hubert Goltzius (1526–83), while they travelled widely around Europe, had not had the opportunity to do so within the Ottoman empire and thus included few if any coins from the Seleucid period in their works. De Callatay notes that the first depiction of Seleucid coinage was in 1606, when Johannes Faber (1570–1640), published depictions of a small number of Seleucid coins from both the Farnese and Orsini’s own collection in his edition of the Imagines illustrium of Fulvio Orsini (1529–1600) – a work which Edward Worth (1676–1733), acquired.[4] Worth also owned a 1706 edition of the Dissertationes de praestantia et usu numismatum antiquorum (London, 1706), of Ezechiel Spanheim (1629–1710), which ‘paved the way’ for Foy-Vaillant’s ground-breaking studies.[5] Foy-Vaillant himself not only referred to Faber, Goltzius and Spanheim, he also noted comments by his fellow French numismatist, Charles Patin (1633–93).
Jean Foy-Vaillant, Seleucidarum imperium, sive Historia regum Syriae ad fidem numismatum accommodate … (Paris, 1681), p. 35, detail: coin of Seleucus I, Nicator, (d. 281 B.C.)
Worth clearly had an interest in Seleucid coinage for he acquired the first edition of Foy-Valllant’s Seleucidarum imperium, sive Historia regum Syriae ad fidem numismatum accommodate … (Paris, 1681). As the title suggests, Foy-Vaillant sought to use Seleucid coinage to tell the history of the Seleucid empire. As the French numismatist Louis Jobert (1637–1719), recorded admiringly in his The knowledge of medals, or, Instructions for those who apply themselves to the study of medals both ancient and modern from the French (London, 1697):
[Foy-Vaillant] One of the most Understanding men of our Age in the knowledge of Ancient Medals, has published some few years ago the Kings of Syria, whereof he has composed a History, embellished with a thousand Curious Remarks. He has collected an Entire Succession from Seleucus the First, called Nicator, down to Antiochus XIII. of that Name, called Epiphanes, Philopater, Callinicus, and known by the Title of Asiaticus, and Comagenus. That is, he has included the Reigns of 27 Kings, which amount to above 250 years. For Seleucus began his Reign about the Year 312. and the last Antiochus finish’d his about the Year 75. be-before the Birth of our Saviour. There are near 120 Medals in this Series engraven, and explained with a great deal of Acuracy, of which there is now a considerable number in our King’s Cabinet.[6]
Beginning with Seleucus I, Nicator, (d. 281 B.C.), Foy-Vaillant presented his readers with the coinage of 27 Seleucid kings, preceded by an account of their reign. At the beginning of each reign a large portrait coin, engraved by Pierre Giffart (1638–1723), introduced each king to readers. As De Callatay remarks, the very beauty and perfect circular nature of these initial depictions strongly suggest that they were idealised portraits of the monarchs. On the coinage at the end of each entry we are on firmer ground – most of the 116 coins depicted belonged to Foy-Vaillant himself, though a handful were, as Jobert notes, the property of Louis XIV (1638–1715).[7] The book proved to be a success and Foy-Vaillant intended to bring out an enlarged second edition, but was forestalled by his death in 1706.[8] His book on the coinage of the Seleucid empire became the standard text on the subject and inspired others, among them Lorenz Beger (1653–1705), who included a few coins of the Seleucids in some of his works.[9] Some discussion of Seleucid coinage may be also found in Worth’s copy of Christian Sigismund Liebe’s Gotha numaria, sistens thesauri Fridericiani numismata antiqua aurea, argentea, aerea, ea ratione descripta, ut generali eorum notitiae exempla singularia subiungantur, auctore Christiano Sigismundo Liebe. Accedunt ex Andreae Morellii Specimine uniuersae rei numariae antiquae excerpta, & Epistolae tres Ez. Spanhemii, quibus rariores eiusdem thesauri numi illustrantur (Amsterdam, 1730), but as De Callatay notes, Liebe (1687–1736). had little to add to what Foy-Vaillant had discovered.[10]
Jean Foy-Vaillant, Numismata aerea imperatorum, augustarum, et caesarum, in coloniis, municipiis, et urbibus jure latio donatis, ex omni modulo percussa. Auctore Jo. Foy-Vaillant … 2 vols (Paris, 1688), ii, p. 23: Coin of Julia Domna (d. 217), Empress consort of Lucius Septimius Severus (146–211), Emperor.
For his next work, Foy-Vaillant looked at coins somewhat closer to home, focusing on bronze coins from Roman colonies. He dedicated the work to his patron, Louis-Auguste (1670–1736), Duc de Maine, a son of Louis XIV and Madame de Montespan (1641–1707), and presented the young duke with an array of Roman emperors and empresses. Among them were this coin of Julia Domna (d. 217), Empress consort of Emperor Lucius Septimius Severus (146–211). Julia Domna had been the first empress of the Severan dynasty and proved to be one of its most powerful empresses. As Jobert notes, she ‘was the only Woman that durst call herself Pia, Faelix, Augusta’.[11]
Jean Foy-Vaillant, Numismata aerea imperatorum, augustarum, et caesarum, in coloniis, municipiis, et urbibus jure latio donatis, ex omni modulo percussa … (Paris, 1695), p. 230: coins from Damascus and ‘Heliopolis’ during the reign of Valerian (200–60), Emperor of Rome.
Worth also owned a 1695 edition and here we see Foy-Vaillant’s interest in displaying coins from the Middle East – in this case coins from Damascus and ‘Heliopolis’, a city which Foy-Vaillant thought was a Phoenician city, not founded by Severus (as other antiquarians had argued), but by Julius Caesar (d. 43 B.C.). While staying within the imperial theme, Foy-Vaillant also extended his researches to include Greek colonies in his Numismata imperatorum, Augustarum et Cæsarum, a populis, Romanæ ditionis, Græcè loquentibus, ex omni modulo percussa (Paris, 1698) – Worth bought the second edition: Numismata imperatorum, Augustarum et Cæsarum, a populis, Romanæ ditionis, Græcè loquentibus, ex omni modulo percussa : quibus urbium nomina, dignitates, prærogativæ, societates, epochæ, numina, illustres magistratus, festa, ludi, certamina, & alia plurima ad eas spectantia consignantur (Amsterdam 1700). As the title of this work suggests, the focus here was on the Greek-speaking peoples within the Roman empire and Foy-Vaillant used their coinage to shed light on not only the names of cities, but also their ranks, privileges, alliances, eras, deities, distinguished magistrates, festivals, games, contests, and many other matters pertaining to them.
Worth also purchased a less well-known publication of Foy-Vaillant – his 1695 study of the medal collection of the Amiens antiquarian François de Camps (1643–1723), Abbé de Signy: Selectiora numismata in aere maximi moduli e museo … Francisci de Camps …, concisis interpretationibus per D. Vaillant (Paris, 1695). As Levy notes, De Camps was primarily interested in the history of French institutions so, though he amassed a sizeable medal collection, he decided to ask Foy-Vaillant to issue a catalogue.[12] The engravings of the coins were done by a Dutch engraver, Adriaen Schoonebeek (c. 1657–1714), who was at that time working in Paris – he subsequently moved to Moscow to work for Peter the Great (1672–1725), Emperor of Russia.
Jean Foy-Vaillant, Historia Ptolemaeorum Aegypti regum, ad fidem numismatum accommodate (Amsterdam, 1701), p. 1, detail: Ptolemy I Soter (d. 283 B.C.), King of Egypt.
In 1697 Jobert announced that Foy-Vaillant was at work on the coinage of the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt: ‘The same M. Vaillant is ready to give us the Aegyptian Kings, of whom he has made a most Admirable Collection. He has besides these a considerable number of particular Kings Heads, whose Medals he has found, and designs to make a separate Work of them, which will be very entertaining’.[13] The work appeared in 1701 – and Worth duly bought a copy. Again, it was a ground-breaking work for Foy-Vaillant used the coinage of the Greek kings of Egypt to deduce the length of their reigns.[14] Unlike his earlier works, this work was dedicated to Cosimo III (1642–1723), Grand Duke of Tuscany – though there was a French connection since Cosimo III’s wife was Marguerite Louise d’Orléans (1647–1721), a cousin of Louis XIV. As the above image demonstrates, this depiction was based on a coin in Foy-Vaillant’s own collection.
Jean Foy-Vaillant, Historia Ptolemaeorum Aegypti regum, ad fidem numismatum accommodate (Amsterdam, 1701), p. 191, detail: coins of Marcus Antonius (83 B.C?–30 B.C.) and Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt (d. 30 B.C.), the last Ptolemaic ruler of Egypt.
Foy-Vaillant started with Ptolemy I Soter, King of Egypt (d. 283 B.C.) and ended with Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt (d. 30 B.C.), the last Ptolemaic ruler of Egypt. In the above image we see Cleopatra, Marcus Antonius (Mark Antony), and one of their warships, a trireme – similar to the ones which he would later command at the fateful Battle of Actium on 2 September 31 B.C. In Jobert’s view the fact that medals coins bore two heads made them more valuable:
I will conclude this Instruction with saying, That when several Heads are found on the same side of the Medal, it becomes then much more Rare and Curious, be they either placed Face to Face, as those of M. Aurelius and Verus, of Macrinus and Diadumenianus, and the like; or be they joyned Neck to Neck, as that of Nero and Agrippina; Mark Antony and Cleopatra, &c. But they are yet much Rarer when they have three Heads on them, as those of Valerian betwixt his two Sons, Gallienus, and Valerian the younger. That of Otacilla with her Husband and Son, &c.[15]
Foy-Vaillant notes that the coins in the above image came from the collection of Charles Patin.
Jean Foy-Vaillant, Arsacidarum imperium, sive Regum Parthorum historia. Ad finem numismatum accommodate, 2 vols (Paris, 1725), ii, p. 181, detail: coinage of Mithridates VI Eupator (132–63 B.C.), King of Pontus.
Worth’s final book by Foy-Vaillant, published posthumously in 1725, extended his studies of the coinage of the Middle East, for this time his focus was on the empires of Parthia. Foy-Vaillant had travelled to Iran in 1679 and this was the fruit of his studies there. As McKee states, the second volume also covered the coinage of the kingdoms of Pontus, Bosphorus, and Bithynia.[16] The two-volume work was, like his publications on the Seleucid kings, innovative, and McKee rightly states that Foy-Vaillant’s Arsacidarum imperium, sive Regum Parthorum historia. Ad finem numismatum accommodate (Paris, 1725), was ‘the first complete and systematic catalogue of Arsacid coins organized on a historical basis’.[17] Foy-Vaillant notes that the above coin was in the French royal collection. Worth’s decision to purchase all these publication by Foy-Vaillant not only tells us of his own interest in the ancient coinage of ancient near east – it is also testament to the importance of Foy-Vaillant in the history of numismatic studies.
Text: Dr Elizabethanne Boran, Librarian of the Edward Worth Library, Dublin.
Sources
Anon., ‘Jean Foy Vaillant’, American Journal of Numismatics and Bulletin of the American Numismatic and Archaeological Society, 12, no. 2 (1877), 38–42.
Callatay, François de, ‘Vaillant, Frölich and the others (Spanheim, Beger, Haym, Liebe, Pellerin, Eckhel, Duane, etc): The remarkable interest in Seleucid coinages in the 18th century’, in Winter, Heinz, and Bernhard Woytek (eds), Numismatik und Geldgeschichte in Zeitalter der Aufklärung: Beiträge zum Symposium in Residenszschloss Dresden, 4–9. Mai 2009 (Vienna, 2015), pp 43–77.
Jobert, Louis, The knowledge of medals, or, Instructions for those who apply themselves to the study of medals both ancient and modern from the French (London, 1697).
Levy, Brooks, ‘Cover note’, The Princeton University Library Chronicle, 55, no. 1 (1993), 149–51.
McKee, Gabriel, ‘Jean Foy-Vaillant’s Arsacidarum Imperium and Achaemenidarum Imperium’, Institute for the Study of the Ancient World Library Blog [accessed 28 July 2026].
Mulsow, Martin, ‘Numismatic Antiquarianism: Coins from the Ancient East in Early Modern Europe’, in Callatay, François de (ed.), Numismatic Antiquarianism through Correspondence (16th–18th c.): In the Margins of the Project Fontes Inediti Numismaticae Antiquae (FINA) (New York, 2023), pp 137–50.
Morgan Zarucchi, Jeanne, ‘Medals Catalogues of Louis XIV : Art and Propaganda’, Source: Notes in the History of Art, 18, no. 4 (1998), 26–34.
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[1] Anon., ‘Jean Foy Vaillant’, American Journal of Numismatics and Bulletin of the American Numismatic and Archaeological Society, 12, no. 2 (1877), 38.
[2] Ibid., 39.
[3] Callatay, François de, ‘Vaillant, Frölich and the others (Spanheim, Beger, Haym, Liebe, Pellerin, Eckhel, Duane, etc): The remarkable interest in Seleucid coinages in the 18th century’, in Winter, Heinz, and Bernhard Woytek (eds), Numismatik und Geldgeschichte in Zeitalter der Aufklärung: Beiträge zum Symposium in Residenszschloss Dresden, 4–9. Mai 2009 (Vienna, 2015), 43.
[4] Ibid., p. 44.
[5] Ibid., p. 45. De Callatay notes that Foy-Vaillant quoted both Goltzius and Spanheim in his work: p. 47.
[6] Jobert, Louis, The knowledge of medals, or, Instructions for those who apply themselves to the study of medals both ancient and modern from the French (London, 1697), pp 34–5.
[7] Callatay, ‘Vaillant, Frölich and the others (Spanheim, Beger, Haym, Liebe, Pellerin, Eckhel, Duane, etc): The remarkable interest in Seleucid coinages in the 18th century’, pp 47 and 57.
[8] Ibid., p. 47. De Callatay notes that the second edition was printed in Amsterdam in 1731.
[9] Worth did not own the relevant editions.
[10] Callatay, ‘Vaillant, Frölich and the others (Spanheim, Beger, Haym, Liebe, Pellerin, Eckhel, Duane, etc): The remarkable interest in Seleucid coinages in the 18th century’, p. 49.
[11] Jobert, The knowledge of metals, p. 105.
[12] Levy, Brooks, ‘Cover note’, The Princeton University Library Chronicle, 55, no. 1 (1993), 150.
[13] Jobert, The knowledge of metals, p. 35.
[14] Anon., ‘Jean Foy Vaillant’, 41.
[15] Jobert, The knowledge of metals, p. 47.
[16] McKee, Gabriel, ‘Jean Foy-Vaillant’s Arsacidarum Imperium and Achaemenidarum Imperium’, Institute for the Study of the Ancient World Library Blog [accessed 28 July 2026].
[17] Ibid.