Mainz 1743 1/8 thaler
This specimen was lot 4789 in Künker sale 386 (Osnabrück, March 2023), where it sold for €300 (about US$388 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"MAINZ, ERZBISTUM, Philipp Karl von Eltz-Kempenich, 1732-1743. 1/8 Reichstaler 1743, unbestimmte Münzstätte, auf seinen Tod. RR Vorzüglich. (archbishopric of Mainz, Philip Charles of Eltz-Kempenich, 1732-43, one eighth thaler of 1743, unknown mint, on his death. Very rare, extremely 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 type, a death commemorative, was accompanied by a quarter thaler (KM 278) and a groschen (KM 275). A sede vacante ("vacant seat") half thaler and thaler were also struck in 1743, pending the election of his successor.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, this specimen 3,66 g.
Catalog reference: KM 276, Slg. Walther 506; Slg. Pick 652.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- [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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