Bavaria 1853 ducat Fr-277
This specimen was lot 2371 in Künker sale 439 (Osnabrück, March 2026), where it sold for €3,000 (about US$4,127 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"BAYERN, HERZOGTUM, SEIT 1623 KURFÜRSTENTUM, SEIT 1806 KÖNIGREICH Maximilian II., 1848-1864. Dukat 1853. 3,49 g GOLD. Prachtexemplar. Fast Stempelglanz/Stempelglanz. (kingdom of Bavaria, Maximilian II, 1848-64, ducat of 1853. Cabinet example, about uncirculated to uncirculated.)"
Two types of ducat were issued in the 1850's; this type, with a conventional coat of arms on the reverse, and Fr-278, with a city view and the legend "EX AURO RHENI" (from Rhenish gold). Both are scarce. No ducats were struck after 1863. King Maximilian II ruled 1848-64.
Recorded mintage: 5,603, highest mintage date.
Specification: 3.49 g, 0.937 fine gold, 21 mm diameter, reeded edge.
Catalog reference: KM 839, Divo/S. 33; Fr-277; Schl. 108.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- 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, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Künker, Fritz Rudolf, Horst-Rudiger Künker, Ulrich Künker and Andreas Kaiser, Frühjahrs-Auktion 439: Gold Coins from around the world, particularly Denmark, Habsburg, Malta and Saxony | German Coins after 1871 including Coins from the Collection of Jürgen and Erika Schmidt, Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2026.
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