Breslau 1796-K 1/2 thaler KM-231
This specimen was lot 52083 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2024), where it sold for $2,280. The catalog description[1] noted, "GERMANY. Silesia (Breslau). Octagonal 1/2 Taler Klippe, 1796-K. Breslau Mint. Joseph Christian. PCGS EF-40. An extremely interesting and highly SCARCE one-year issue, this charmingly shaped minor also possesses problem-free and attractively toned surfaces." Joseph Christian Franz zu Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Bartenstein (r. 1795-1817) was the coadjutor of bishopric of Breslau, which lay in the Prussian portion of Silesia, which Frederick the Great had seized from Maria Theresia in 1742. Joseph's predecessor, Philipp Gotthard von Schaffgotsch, fled Breslau during the Seven Years War (1757-63) and refused to return, prompting Frederick to appoint an auxiliary bishop. Two other half thalers (KM 229, KM 230) and a ducat were struck in 1796 using the conventional round format. The bishops lost their mint right during the Napoleonic Wars. The region is now part of Poland and the episcopal seat is called Wroclaw.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver.
Catalog reference: KM-231; F&S-2790.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, January 2024 NYINC Auction, featuring the Emilio M Ortiz Collection and a Symphony of Russian Rarities, the Rothschild-Piatigorsky Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2023.
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