Pfalz 1578 1/2 thaler
This specimen was lot 5361 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,
"PFALZ, KURFÜRSTENTUM, Johann Kasimir, 1576-1592. 1/2 Reichstaler 1578, Heidelberg. Sehr selten in dieser Erhaltung. Attraktives Exemplar mit hübscher Patina, fast vorzüglich/vorzüglich. (electorate of the Palatinate, John Casimir, 1576-92, half thaler of 1578, Heidelberg mint. Very scarce in this quality, attractive example with handsome patina, about extremely fine to extremely fine.)"
Friedrich III succeeded to the duchy of Pfalz-Simmern in 1557 and to the electorate of Pfalz in 1559. Born a Catholic, he followed the Lutherans in the 1530's then switched to Calvinism in 1559-60, becoming one the first German princes to do so. This one year type is listed as rare.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, this specimen 14.41 g.
Catalog reference: KM MB166, Slg. Memmesh. 2218; Slg. Kömmerling (Auktion UBS 65) 143.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- Nicol, N. Douglas, Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of German Coins, 1501-Present, 3rd ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2011.
- [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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