Austrian Netherlands 1778(a) 14 liards
This specimen was lot 837 in Jean Elsen sale 149 (Brussels, December 2021), where it sold for €1,000 (about US$1,354 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"BRABANT, Duché, Marie-Thérèse (1740-1780), AR plaquette (14 liards), 1778, Bruxelles. D/ Croix de Bourgogne sous une couronne, accostée de la valeur. R/ Aigle impériale couronnée. Légère faiblesse de frappe. Petit coup sur la tranche. Très Beau à Superbe. (duchy of Brabant, Maria Theresia, 1740-80, silver plaquette of 14 liards of 1778, Brussels mint. Obverse: Burgundian cross under a crown divides the value; reverse: crowned imperial eagle. Slightly weakly struck, edge nick, Very Fine - Extremely Fine.)"
Belgium, long a part of Hapsburg Spain, was awarded to Charles VI of Austria by the Treaty of Utrecht which ended the War of the Spanish Succession. Fortified by the Dutch and constantly menaced by the French, the Austrians quickly discovered Belgium to be a worthless addition to their domain. Charles neglected it and it was left to Maria Theresia to provide new coinage for it the late 1740's. This type was struck in large quantities at Antwerp and Brussels 1755-63, 1772-78. Four liards = one sol, 54 sols = one kronenthaler.
Recorded mintage: 868,000.
Specification: billon, this specimen 2,82 g
Catalog reference: KM 18, W. 1144; V.H. 826.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 149: Monnaies, Médailles et Décorations, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2021.
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