Brandenburg 1611-MH thaler Dav-6119
This specimen was lot 3715 in Künker sale 335 (Osnabrück, Germany, March 2020), where it sold for €11,000 (about US$14,395 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"BRANDENBURG-PREUSSEN, BRANDENBURG, MARKGRAFSCHAFT, SEIT DEM 14. JAHRHUNDERT KURFÜRSTENTUM, Johann Sigismund, 1608-1619. Reichstaler 1611, Cöln. Geharnischtes Brustbild mit umgelegtem Mantel und geschultertem Zepter r. die Linke am Schwertgriff//Fünffach behelmtes, mehrfeldiges Wappen. RR Attraktives Exemplar mit feiner Tönung, winz. Schrötlingsfehler, fast vorzüglich. (Germany, electorate of Brandenburg, John Sigismund, 1608-19, thaler of 1611, Cöln mint. Obverse: mantled and armored half-length bust right bearing a sword and scepter; reverse: manifold arms. Rare, attractive example with fine toning, some hairlines, about extremely fine.)
Johann Sigismund, der am 8.11.1572 in Halle geborene Sohn des Kurfürsten Joachim Friedrich, heiratete am 30. Oktober 1594 Anna, Prinzessin in Preußen. Er führte im Herzogtum Preußen weitgehend die Regentschaft für seinen geisteskranken Schwiegervater Albrecht Friedrich und folgte nach dem Tode seines Vaters 1608 als Kurfürst von Brandenburg nach. 1614 gelang ihm im jülich-klevischen Erbfolgestreit der Erwerb von Kleve, Mark und Ravensberg, und 1618 wurde er trotz Widerstandes der lutherischen Stände Herzog von Preußen. Die Lutheraner waren dem Kurfürsten gegenüber misstrauisch, da er 1513 entgegen dem seinen Großvater Johann Georg geleisteten Versprechen zum Calvinismus übergetreten war und als oberste geistliche Behörde in Brandenburg einen reformierten Kirchenrat eingerichtet hatte. Die elfjährige Regierungszeit des Kurfürsten Johann Sigismund, der am 23.12.1619 in Berlin im Alter von 47 Jahren starb, war wegen der territorialen Erwerbungen und wegen des Konfessionswechsels für das Land von entscheidender Bedeutung. (John Sigismund, born November 1572, was the son of elector John Frederick and married Anna, princess of Prussia in October 1594. He was regent for his mentally ill father-in-law Albrecht Friedrich in the Duchy of Prussia and succeeded him as elector of Brandenburg after his father's death in 1608. In 1614 he succeeded in acquiring Kleve, Mark and Ravensberg in the Jülich-Klevian succession dispute, and in 1618 he became Duke of Prussia despite opposition from the Lutheran estates. The Lutherans were suspicious of the elector, since in 1513, contrary to his grandfather Johann Georg's promise to maintain Calvinism, he had set up a reformed church council as the highest spiritual authority in Brandenburg. The eleven-year reign of Elector Johann Sigismund, who died on December 23, 1619 in Berlin at the age of 47, was of decisive importance for the country due to the territorial acquisitions and the change of confession.)"
This type was issued 1611 and 1614. In this decade, the thalers issued from the bishopric of Magdeburg, such as Dav-5475A, ruled by a cousin of the elector, are more common. The thalers of Brandenburg and its successor state Prussia are generally scarce prior to the reign of Frederick the Great. The intense interest in the history of that state increases collector demand, further raising the price. The Cöln mint noted here is not the city on the Rhine but a small town on the Spree.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, this specimen 28.82 g.
Catalog reference: KM 35.1, Dav-6119; Bahrf. 566 e.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- Davenport, John S., German Secular Talers, 1600-1700, Frankfurt: Numismatischer Verlag, 1976.
- [1]Künker Münzauktionen und Goldhandel, Catalog 335: Bracteates from Upper Swabia and the area of the Lake Constance | Coins and Medals from Medieval and Modern Times, a. o. the Dr. Karl Walter Bach Collection of coins of the Austrian nobility, Special collections of Bavaria, Lubeck, Wurttemberg as well as siege coins from the Eberhard Link Collection. Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2020.
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