Hannover 1866-B 1/2 krone
This specimen was lot 2428 in Künker sale 439 (Osnabrück, March 2026), where it sold for €2,200 (about US$3,027 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"BRAUNSCHWEIG-CALENBERG-HANNOVER, AB 1692 KURFÜRSTENTUM HANNOVER, AB 1815 KÖNIGREICH HANNOVER Georg V., 1851-1866. 1/2 Vereinskrone 1866 B. GOLD. Seltener Jahrgang. Nur 2.909 Exemplare geprägt. Fast vorzüglich. (kingdom of Hannover, George V, half union crown of 1866. Rare date, only 2,909 struck, about uncirculated.)"
The kingdom of Hannover was the old duchy of Brunswick-Luneburg prior to the Napoleonic invasions. It was separated from the British crown on William's death and absorbed by Prussia in 1866. This type was struck 1857-59, 1862-66 along with a gold krone in an unsuccessful attempt in the 1850's at unifying the gold coinage of Germany. Despite being minted in substantial numbers, none are common today, most likely having been melted to make ten and twenty mark after the reform of 1871.
Recorded mintage: 2,909.
Specification: 5.55 g, 0.900 fine gold, 20 mm diameter, lettered edge, this specimen 5,53 g.
Catalog reference: KM 231, Divo/S. 118; Fr-1184 (unlisted date); Schl. 444.
- 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.
Links: