Anhalt 1567 1/2 thaler
This specimen was lot 4089 in Künker sale 406 (Osnabrück, March 2024), where it sold for €1,500 (about US$1,968 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"ANHALT, FÜRSTENTUM, Joachim Ernst und Bernhard, 1566-1570. 1/2 Taler 1567, Bernburg. Von größter Seltenheit. Mehrere kl. Kratzer im Feld der Rückseite, schön-sehr schön. (principality of Anhalt, Joachim Ernest and Bernard, 1566-70, half thaler of 1567, Bernburg mint. Extremely rare, several scratches on the reverse, fine to very fine.)"
This type was struck 1567-68 along with a thaler. The principality of Anhalt was partitioned in the Middle Ages but many of the lines lapsed over time. Anhalt-Bernburg was united with Anhalt-Dessau in 1468 then Anhalt-Dessau was united with Anhalt-Zerbst in 1561, leaving Joachim Ernst and Bernhard as sole rulers. Bernhard died without issue in 1570 and Joachim Ernst followed him 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.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, this specimen 13.98 g.
Catalog reference: KM MB18, Mann 48.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- Nicol, N. Douglas, Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of German Coins, 1501-Present, 3rd ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2011.
- [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.
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