Austrian Netherlands 1787(a) kronenthaler Dav-1284
This specimen was lot 1141 in Jean Elsen sale 164 (Brussels, March 2026), where it sold for €180 (about US$251 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"BRABANT, Duché, Joseph II (1780-1790), AR couronne, 1787, Bruxelles. D/ T. laurée à d. R/ Croix de Bourgogne entre trois couronnes, ornée du bijou de la Toison d'or. Fines griffes au droit. Belle patine. Très Beau à Superbe/Superbe. (duchy of Brabant, Joseph II, 1780-90, silver kronenthaler of 1787, Brussels mint. Obverse: laureate bust right; reverse: Burgundian cross between three crowns, the jewel of the Golden Fleece below. Hairlines on the obverse, nice patina, Very Fine - Extremely Fine/Extremely Fine.)"
This type was struck in 1781-90 during the reign of Joseph II, reforming son of Maria Theresia. It replaced the Maria Theresia's kronenthaler (Dav-1282) with a more conventional portrait type. This date was also struck at Vienna (mintmark "A", Dav-1170); the Vienna and Brussels issue are about equally common. The Austrians lost Belgium to Revolutionary France in 1797. After the fall of Napoleon in 1815, Belgium passed to the king of the Netherlands.
Recorded mintage: 256,458.
Specification: 29.44 g, 0.873 fine silver, 39 mm diameter, lettered edge, engraved by Théodore Van Berckel; this specimen 29,35 g.
Catalog reference: KM 32, Dav-1284; W. 1149; Delm. 393; VH 852.
- Davenport, John S., European Crowns, 1700-1800, 2nd Ed., London: Spink & Son, 1964.
- Herinek, Gerhard, Austria Münzkatalog: Munzen ab 1745 und Banknoten ab 1759, 49. Auflage, Vienna: Christine Steyrer Verlag, 2022.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 164: Monnaies du duché de Brabant et du royaume de Belgique, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2026.
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