Lithuania 1622 5 ducats Fr-6
This specimen was lot 21280 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2020), where it sold for $72,000.
"Extremely Rare Half Portugaloeser of Sigismund III. POLAND. Lithuania. 5 Ducats, 1622. Vilnius Mint. Sigismund III. PCGS Genuine--Mount Removed, AU Details Gold Shield. Crowned bust wearing the order of the golden fleece within double boarder, legend around; Reverse: Crowned ornate arms of the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth consisting of the insignias of Poland (upper left quadrant), Sweden (Kalmar Union) (upper right quadrant), Lithuania (lower left quadrant), Folkung Lion (lower right quadrant), with the seal of the house of Vasa superimposed in the center, all encompassed with the order of the golden fleece; date and denomination above the arms just below the crown 16.V.22; legend around. An EXTREMELY RARE type and denomination that very seldom appears in the marketplace. Like many multiple denominations from this time period, a small unobtrusive flat area near the rim is present from where a suspension loop once was, long since removed and indicated on the PCGS insert. Despite its shortcomings a highly interesting and desirable type sure to pique the interest of even the most advanced of collectors. Overall an attractive wholesome survivor with a nice look exhibiting a nice skin with hints of orange tone in the protected areas.
Interesting to note is that the multiple Ducats from this series are denominated with either a "V" or an "X" indicating the value of five or ten Ducats. This is a feature not normally encountered on coins of this nature and in fact are usually engraved after the fact as in many instances they were struck with Taler dies."
This rare type is listed for 1622-23 along with KM 29 (10 ducats).
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: gold, this specimen 17.20 g.
Catalog reference: Fr-6; KM-27; Kop-3561; Kam-2184; HCz-1432(R6); Ivanauskas/Douchis-1101:229(RRRR); Ivanauskas-8SV2-2(RRRR).
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- 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.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Richard Ponterio and Kyle Ponterio, The January 2020 NYINC Sale: Ancient Coins, World Coins & Paper Money, Santa Ana, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2019.
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