Anhalt-Kothen 1665-HPK 1/4 thaler
This specimen was lot 4096 in Künker sale 406 (Osnabrück, March 2024), where it sold for €2,200 (about US$2,887 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"ANHALT-KÖTHEN, FÜRSTENTUM, Lebrecht und Emanuel, 1665-1669. 1/4 Reichstaler 1665, Eisleben, auf den Tod ihres Vetters Wilhelm Ludwig. Von großer Seltenheit. Hübsche Patina, kl. Schrötlingsfehler, sehr schön. (principality of Anhalt-Kothen, Lebrecht and Emanuel, 1665-69, quarter thaler of 1665, Eisleben mint, on the death of their brother William Louis. Extremely rare, handsome patina, small planchet defects, very fine.)"
Joachim Ernst united all the splinters of Anhalt but died in 1586. His seven sons ruled Anhalt jointly until 1603, when the five surviving brothers partitioned it once again. The new principalities were Anhalt-Bernburg, Anhalt-Dessau, Anhalt-Kothen, Anhalt-Plötzkau and Anhalt-Zerbst. Anhalt-Dessau lasted the longest, surviving until 1918. Anhalt-Cothen was a state of utmost insignificance. The thaler (KM 19) and half thaler (KM 17) issued for this occasion are mentioned in the SCWC but not this quarter thaler.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, this specimen 7,04 g.
Catalog reference: KM unlisted, Mann 465.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- [1]Künker, Fritz Rudolf, Horst-Rudiger Künker, Ulrich Künker and Andreas Kaiser, Katalog 406: Gold Coins | Coins and Medals from the Medieval and Modern Times, a. o. Löwenstein-Wertheim | German Coins after 1871, a. o. Patterns from the Coenen Collection, Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2024.
Link to: