NETHERLANDS, Ferdinando Álvarez de Toledo, Duke of Alba, Governor of the Spanish Netherlands, 1571, a cast silver medal by G. Giannini, bearded bust right, wearing ruff collar over armour, rev. altar and lion passant between two storks, 39mm (v. L. I, 136, 1). PROBABLY AN EARLY (17TH CENTURY) cast, sometime cleaned and now re-toned, otherwise about extremely fine, rare £300-400

Fernando Álvarez de Toledo was nicknamed the ‘Iron Duke’ by Dutch Protestants because of his harsh rule and the atrocities committed during his military operations in Flanders