The tornesel, tornesol, or was a silver coin of Europe in the Late Middle Ages and the early modern era.
History
It took its name from the , the of Tours. Marco Polo referred to the tornesel in recounts of his travels to East Asia when describing the currencies of the Yuan Empire.Henry Yule. The Travels of Marco Polo: The Complete Yule-Cordier Edition. Third edition (1903), revised and updated by Henri Cordier. Plain Label Books. p. 1226-27. () His descriptions were based on the conversion of 1 bezant = 20 groats = 133⅓ tornesel.
The was a subunit of the Neapolitan, Sicilian, and Two Sicilies ducats.
See also History of coins in Italy
References