Mainz 1658-MF thaler Dav-5558
This specimen was lot 4728 in Künker sale 386 (Osnabrück, March 2023), where it sold for €4,200 (about US$5,427 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"MAINZ, ERZBISTUM, Johann Philipp von Schönborn, 1647-1673. Reichstaler 1658, MF, Mainz. RR Sehr schön +. (archbishopric of Mainz, John Philip of Schonborn, 1647-73, thaler of 1658, Mainz mint. Very rare, choice very fine.)"
The second specimen was lot 1023 in Künker sale 263 (Osnabrück, June 2015), where it sold for €2,800 (about US$3,617 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[2] noted,
"Magdeburg, ERZBISTUM Johann Philipp von Schönborn, 1647-1673. Reichstaler 1658, Mainz. R Attraktives, sehr schönes Exemplar mit schöner Patina. (Germany, archbishopric of Magdeburg, John Philip of Schonborn, 1647-73, thaler of 1658, Mainz mint. Attractive, very fine example with handsome patina.)"
The archbishops of Mainz were prolific issuers of gold coins in the late middle ages but output dropped in the late fifteenth century, never to recover. This type was struck 1658 only and is rare. Johann Philipp von Schönborn (1605–1673) was a committed pluralist, being the archbishop-elector of Mainz (1647–1673), the bishop of Würzburg (1642–1673), and the bishop of Worms (1663–1673). He was a principal negotiator of the Peace of Westphalia of 1648 which ended the Thirty Years War.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, the first specimen 28.66 g.
Catalog reference: KM 110, Dav-5558; Slg. Walther 310; Helmschrott 321; Slg. Pick 431.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- Davenport, John S., German Talers, 1500-1600, Frankfurt am Main, Numismatischer Verlag P. N. Schulten, 1979.
- [1]Künker, Fritz Rudolf, Horst-Rudiger Künker, Ulrich Künker and Andreas Kaiser, Katalog 386: Brakteaten | Mainz | Bibliothek Prof. Dr. Niklot Klüßendorf | Mittelalter und Neuzeit | Goldprägungen | Deutsche Münzen ab 1871, Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2023.
- [2]Künker Münzauktionen und Goldhandel, Catalog 263, The Friedrich Popken collection of gold and silver coinages | Coins and Medals from Medieval and Modern Times, a. o. the collection of Ernst Otto Horn, part III, Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2015.
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