Esslingen 1717 5 ducats Fr-934a
This specimen was lot 122 in Künker sale 400 (Berlin, February 2024), where it sold for €42,000 (about US$54,487 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"ESSLINGEN, STADT, 5 Dukaten 1717, von Chr. E. Müller, Augsburg, auf die 200-Jahrfeier der Reformation. * MEMOR · IVBILÆI · II · CELEBRATI IN S · R · I · CIVITATE ESSLINGA · D · 31 · OCT · 1717 / CONSERVET DOMINUS LUMEN IN URBE SUA Stadtansicht von Südwesten mit Pliensaubrücke, Frauenkirche, Stadtkirche und Dominikanerkirche, im Hintergrund "die Burg", oben Strahlenkranz//PAUL DE BURGERMEISTERO · LEREM · SPINDLERO · IEREM · GODELMANNO P · I · COSS : / MARTINVS LVTHERVS THEOLOGIÆ DOCT Brustbild Martin Luthers halbr. mit Bibel, darunter die Stempelschneidersignatur M (Müller). GOLD. Von größter Seltenheit. Prachtexemplar. Vorzüglich-Stempelglanz. Mit altem Unterlagszettel. (Germany, city of Esslingen, five ducats of 1717, dies by Chr. Muller of Augsburg, for the bicentennial of the Reformation. Obverse: city view from the southwest with Pliensau Bridge, Frauenkirche, Stadtkirche and Dominican Church, in the background "the castle", above a halo of rays; reverse: half-length portrait of Martin Luther with Bible. Extremely rare, choice example, with old collector's tag.)"
Esslingen lies southeast of Stuttgart. During the empire, it was a free city until 1803, when it was absorbed by Wurttemberg. Its issues are limited to commemoratives issued on this occasion in 1717.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 17.5 g, 0.986 fine gold, this specimen 17,38 g.
Catalog reference: KM 14, Klein/Raff 40 a; Slg. Whiting - (see 167, but in silver; Slg. Opitz - (see 2492, but in silver); Fr-934a.
- 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, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- [1]Künker, Fritz Rudolf, Horst-Rudiger Künker, Ulrich Künker and Andreas Kaiser, Katalog 400: Selected löser of the Dukes of Guelph from the Friedrich Popken Collection | Numismatic treasures from the Medieval and Modern Times, a. o. "multiple portraits" from a Westphalian private collection, Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2024.
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