Mainz 1602 thaler Dav-5531
This specimen was lot 4704 in Künker sale 386 (Osnabrück, March 2023), where it sold for €3,200 (about US$4,135 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"MAINZ, ERZBISTUM, Johann Adam von Bicken, 1601-1604. Reichstaler 1602, Mainz. Bettlertaler. Dreifach behelmtes Wappen//Der n. l. reitende Hl. Martin teilt seinen Mantel mit dem Bettler auf der Erde, unten Wappen von Mainz. RR Schöne Patina, sehr schön +. (archbishopric of Mainz, John Adam of Bicken, 1601-04, "beggar's" thaler of 1602, Mainz mint. Obverse: triple helmeted arms; reverse: St. Martin, mounted, divides his cloak with a beggar on the ground, arms of Mainz below. Very rare, choice very fine.)"
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 rare type was struck 1602 only along with another (Dav-5533) showing the beggar to the side of St. Martin's horse. The archbishop also struck double thalers in 1602.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, this specimen 28.78 g.
Catalog reference: KM 7, Dav-5531; Slg. Walther 219; Slg. Pick - (see 326, Double taler); Pr. Alex. 324.
- 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 Church and City Talers, 1600-1700, Galesburg, IL, 1967.
- [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.
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