Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg 1776 1/2 thaler
This specimen was part of lot 4534 in Künker sale 441 (Osnabrück, March 2026), where it sold for €850 (about US$1,169 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"SACHSEN-GOTHA, HERZOGTUM, AB 1672 SACHSEN-GOTHA-ALTENBURG Ernst II., 1772-1804. Lot. Kleine Sammlung von Münzen, geprägt unter der Regentschaft von Ernst II., vom 1/24 Taler bis zum Konv.-Taler. 5 Stück. Fein zaponiert (1x), fast vorzüglich-fast Stempelglanz. (duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Ernest II, 1772-1804, a small collection of coins struck under the rule of Ernest II, from 1/24 thaler up to one thaler. Five pieces, one lacquered, about extremely fine to about uncirculated.)"
Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg was created in 1672 when the duke of Saxe-Gotha inherited the duchy of Saxe-Altenburg, whose ruler had died without heirs. The two duchies were officially merged in 1680 and the new state remained intact until 1825. This half thaler was struck 1774 and 1776 and is somewhat available. It shows the duke with short hair, a style that would become fashionable twenty years later. A variety exists (KM 330) with initials "LCK" below the bust instead of the crane privy mark shown here.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 14.03 g, 0.833 fine silver.
Catalog reference: KM 331 (previously KM C38a), Dav-2725; Schnee 533; Steguweit 282.
- 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, Frühjahrs-Auktion 441: Orders and Decorations from the Estate of Wilhelm, Duke of Bavaria (1752–1837), among others | Coins and Medals from the Middle Ages and Modern times, particularly Denmark, Habsburg, Norway, and Saxony, Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2026.
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