Liege (1636-40) liard KM-34
This specimen was lot 1148 in Jean Elsen sale 156 (Brussels, September 2023), where it sold for €130 (about US$167 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"LIEGE, Principauté, Ferdinand de Bavière (1612-1650), Cu liard, s.d. (1636/1640), Bouillon. Différent: rosette. D/ B. à g., en costume électoral. R/ Ecu écartelé de Bavière-Palatinat, avec l'écu de Bouillon sur le tout. Défauts de flan. Beau portrait. Rare dans cette qualité. Très Beau à Superbe. (principality of Liège, Ferdinand of Bavaria, 1612-50, undated copper liard, circa 1636-40, Bouillon mint, rosette privy mark. Obverse: bust left in electoral costume; reverse: crowned and quartered arms of Bavaria and the Palatinate surcharged with the arms of Bouillon. Planchet defects, nice portrait, rare in this quality, Very Fine - Extremely Fine.)"
The bishopric of Liège was an ecclesiastical state in central Belgium. The surrounding territory was ruled by the Spanish Hapsburgs from about 1500 until 1699 and the Austrian Hapsburgs 1714-97. Liards of Ferdinand also come with his head interrupting the legend (KM 33).
Ferdinand was the second of four prince-bishops from Bavaria. They were also dukes of Bouillon, archbishops of Cologne and electors of the Empire, all of which titles appeared in various combinations on their coins. They are as follows:
- Ernest, r. 1581-1612, archbishop of Cologne (1583-1612), bishop of Münster (1584-1612), Freising, Hildesheim and Liège.
- Ferdinand, r. 1612-50, archbishop of Cologne, bishop of Münster, Hildesheim, Paderborn (1618-50) and Liège. Never ordained as a priest.
- Maximilian Henry, r. 1650-88, archbishop of Cologne, bishop of Münster, Hildesheim and Liège. Lost the duchy of Bouillon to Louis XIV.
- Joseph Clement, r. 1688-1723, bishop of Regensburg and Freising (1685-94) and archbishop of Cologne, bishop of Hildesheim (1702-23) and Liège (1694-1723).
- Clemens August, r. 1723-61, bishop of Regensburg (1716-19) and then archbishop of Cologne, bishop of Münster, Hildesheim, Osnabrück and Paderborn but never ruled in Liège. His incompetence and extravagance ended Wittelsbach rule in Cologne.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: copper, this specimen is 3,98 g.
Catalog reference: KM 34, Chestret 619; Dengis 1023A.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- [1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 156, Collection de Monnaies de la Principauté de Liège, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2023.
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