Austria (1548-58) 1/2 thaler
This specimen was lot 4667 in Künker sale 441 (Osnabrück, March 2026), where it sold for €440 (about US$605 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"RÖMISCH-DEUTSCHES REICH, Ferdinand I., 1522-1558-1564. 1/2 Taler o. J., Wien. In US-Plastikholder der PCGS mit der Bewertung AU 53 (54802729). Attraktives Exemplar mit hübscher Patina, kl. Schrötlingsfehler, fast vorzüglich. (Holy Roman Empire, Ferdinand I, 1522-1558-1564, undated half thaler, Vienna mint. Graded PCGS AU-53. Attractive example with handsome patina, minor planchet defects, about extremely fine.)"
This type is not dated but can be narrowed down to after 1548, when Ferdinand adopted a beard, and before 1558, the year that he was promoted to emperor.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 14.3 g, silver, 32 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: Markl 171.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- [1]Künker, Fritz Rudolf, Horst-Rudiger Künker, Ulrich Künker and Andreas Kaiser, Frühjahrs-Auktion 441: Orders and Decorations from the Estate of Wilhelm, Duke of Bavaria (1752–1837), among others | Coins and Medals from the Middle Ages and Modern times, particularly Denmark, Habsburg, Norway, and Saxony, Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2026.
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