Austrian Netherlands 1750(h)R 1/2 souverain d'or Fr-132
This specimen was lot 4261 in Sincona sale 4 (Zürich, October 2011) where it sold for 625 CHF (about US$831 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"BELGIEN Brabant, Herzogtum Maria Theresia, 1740-1780. Souverain d'or 1750, Antwerpen. Gekröntes, drapiertes Brustbild nach rechts. Rv. Gekröntes Wappen auf gekreuzten Stäben. Kl. Schrötlingsf. Gutes sehr schön. (Duchy of Brabant, Maria Theresia, 1740-80, souverain d'or, Antwerp mint. Obverse: crowned, draped bust to right; reverse: crowned arms with two batons crossed behind. Cleaned, good very fine)."
The SCWC correctly catalogs this as a half souverain d'or, as is clear by the weight. Friedberg is confusing, calling this a souverain d'or with a small diameter so the cataloguers at Sincona can be forgiven for the error. The "(h)" in the page title refers to the hand mintmark on the reverse, signifying Antwerp; a lion was used for Brussels. On the death of Charles VI in 1740, the redoubtable Maria Theresia was crowned Archduchess of Austria and queen of Hungary but, being a woman, could not be given the imperial crown. Therefore, after much debate and a war fomented by Frederick the Great of Prussia, her husband Francis of Lorraine was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 1745. The souverain denomination was a holdover from Spanish rule in the seventeenth century and was struck until the collapse of the ancien regime.
Recorded mintage: 424,000.
Specification: 5.53 g, 0.919 fine gold, .163 troy oz AGW; this specimen is 5,56 g.
Catalog reference: KM 11, Delm-211. Fr-132.
- Delmonte, A., Le Bénélux D'or, Amsterdam: Jacques Schulman N.V., 1964, with supplements to 1977.
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- [1]Numismatic Coins, Medals & Banknotes: Auction 4, Zürich: SINCONA AG, 2011.
Link to:
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- 1751 20 liards, Bruges mint = 5 sols
- 1751 1/8 ducaton
- 1751 demi-ducaton, Antwerp mint
- 1751 ducaton, Antwerp mint
- 1751 demi-souverain d'or, Bruges mint
- Coins and currency dated 1750
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