Baden-Durlach 1610 6 ducats Fr-124
This specimen was lot 30199 in Heritage auction 3096 (Dallas, TX, March 2021), where it sold for $132,000. The catalog description[1] noted,
"German States: Baden. Exceptionally Heraldic and Unique 6 Ducat of Margrave Georg Friedrich. Baden. Georg Friedrich gold 6 Ducat 1610 AU58 NGC, Pforzheim mint. Struck from Taler dies (cf. KM 6.2). A type evocative of Baroque artistry, to a much greater extent than any other emission from Georg Friedrich's margraviate, featuring his portrait in full armor, brandishing a sword. The largest gold multiple produced in Baden-Durlach, and among its first gold coinage, this offering possesses a visual appeal that is truly all its own--a red-orange patina has taken to the surfaces, beautifying the fields and lending an aged, russet appearance to the gold. Minted from taler dies known to have only been employed in 1609 and 1610, we can speculate that the occasion for this design--and maybe this particular gold striking--may have been tied to Georg Friedrich's approaching completion of the Castle Church in Sulzburg around 1610, an embodiment of his Lutheran faith, which would continue to dominate Baden-Durlach thanks to his outliving his brothers. We are aware of only a single auction record for this piece, which Friedberg records as having sold for 83,000 CHF in Basel in 1998. From the Paramount Collection."
This prince also issued a double ducat (Fr-125) and a goldgulden (Fr-126), also rare. The margraviate of Baden was divided into Baden-Baden and Baden-Durlach in 1515 and was not reunited until 1771. Badener issues are generally scanty prior to the Napoleonic period.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 21 g, 0.986 fine gold, this specimen 20.46 g.
Catalog reference: KM-B12 (Rare; this coin), Fr-124 (Unique), Reimmann-Unl., von Schluthess-Rechberg Collection-Unl., von Berstett-Unl., Goppel-Unl.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- 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.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- [1]Bierrenbach, Cristiano and Warren Tucker, Heritage World and Ancient Coins Auction 3096, featuring the Paramount Collection of World & Ancient Coins, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2021.
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