Cavallo Pubblico Deposited
A copper coin issued by Fer- dinand I of Aragon while ruler of Naples and Sicily (1458-1494), which obtains its name from the figure of a horse on the re- verse. This device was abandoned in the sixteenth century, but the coin neverthe- less retained its name.
An idea of the small value of the coin can be readily obtained when we consider that 1200 went to the Ducato (q.v.) and that it was the twelfth part of a Grano, as the issues under Ferdinand IV dated 1786 to 1797 state.
The coin was consequently largely struck in multiples, and pieces of 2, 3, 4, 6, and 9 Cavalli are common.
- Frey's Dictionary (American Journal of Numismatics, Vol. 50, 1916)