Friedland 1627 thaler Dav-3441
This specimen was lot 4424 in Künker sale 335 (Osnabrück, Germany, March 2020), where it sold for €42,000 (about US$54,961 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"WALLENSTEIN, Albrecht, 1623-1634, Herzog von Friedland. Reichstaler 1627, Jitschin. Stempelschneider Hans Rieger. * ALBERTVS · DEI · GRA : - DVX · FRIDLANDIAE · Geharnischtes Brustbild fast v. v. mit großem Kragen und umgelegtem Mantel, unten in der Umschrift das Münzmeisterzeichen Sonne mit Gesicht in runder Einfassung (Georg Reick, Münzmeister in Jitschin 1626-1630)//· SACRI · ROMANI · IMPERŸ · PRINCEPS · 1627 · Mit dem Herzogshut bedeckter, mit Rollwerk versehener Schild, darin gekrönter Adler, auf der Brust vierfeldiges Wappen. RR Attraktives Exemplar mit hübscher Patina, sehr schön +. Aus der Sammlung Dr. Karl Walter Bach, München. Exemplar der Auktion Westfälische Auktionsgesellschaft 8, Dortmund 1997, Nr. 1836. (Germany, WALLENSTEIN, Albrecht, 1623-1634, Duke of Friedland, thaler of 1627, Jitschin mint. Dies by Hans Rieger. Obverse: armored, mantled bust almost facing with a large collar, privy mark below; reverse: capped arms with a crowned eagle supporting quartered arms, scrollwork at the sides of the shield. Rare, attractive example with handsome patina, very fine or better.)"
Wallenstein was born into the minor Protestant nobility of Bohemia but converted to Catholicism while attending university in Italy. Seeking glory, he pursued a military career and eventually became the commander of the imperial troops during the Thirty Years War. His successes against the Protestants aroused the suspicion of the emperor and he was dismissed in 1630. He retired to his duchy of Friedland in northern Bohemia. Imperial defeats at the hands of Gustavus Adolphus forced the emperor to recall him but distrust of his loyalty remained. He was assassinated by his officers with the emperor's connivance in 1634. He issued thalers 1626-33, all rare. After Wallenstein's death, the duchy subsided into insignificance and no more coins were issued.
Recorded mintage: unknown but rare.
Specification: silver, this specimen 28.85 g.
Catalog reference: KM 14, Dav-3441 var.; Poley 46 (plate coin).
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- [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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