Saxe-Old Gotha 1584 2 thaler Dav-9755
This specimen was lot 238 in Künker sale 400 (Berlin, February 2024), where it sold for €10,000 (about US$12,973 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"SACHSEN, HERZOGTUM (Ernestiner nach dem Verl, Johann Casimir und Johann Ernst, 1572-1633. Dicker doppelter Reichstaler 1584, Saalfeld. Beider Brustbilder einander gegenüber//Dreifach behelmtes Wappen. Von großer Seltenheit. Attraktives Exemplar mit hübscher Patina, sehr schön + (Germany, duchy of Saxony (Ernestine line), John Casimir and John Ernst, 1572-1633, double thaler of 1584, Saalfeld mint. Obverse: Both busts facing each other; reverse: Triple helmeted coat of arms. Very rare, attractive example with nice patina, very fine or better.)"
Wikipedia comments,
"John Casimir of Saxe-Coburg (Gotha, 12 June 1564 – Coburg, 16 July 1633) was the Duke of Saxe-Coburg. He was the descendant of the Ernestine branch of the House of Wettin. Under his rule, the residence town of Coburg prospered with many Renaissance buildings being erected that still remain today."
The duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Eisenach was one of the endless reshuffles of the Saxon duchies and likely lasted only for this set of brothers. This issue could equally be filed under Saxe-Gotha and Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach. The division of Erfurt in 1572 permanently splintered Ernestine Thuringia into fragments which were not reunited until the establishment of the Weimar Republic in 1920.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, this specimen 58.18 g.
Catalog reference: KM MB33, Dav-9755; Schnee 169; Kozinowski/Otto/Ruß 6.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- Davenport, John S., German Talers, 1500-1600, Frankfurt am Main, Numismatischer Verlag P. N. Schulten, 1979.
- Nicol, N. Douglas, Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of German Coins, 1501-Present, 3rd ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2011.
- Gernot Schnee, Sächsiche Taler, 1500-1800. Frankfurt Am Main, P. N. Schulten, 1982.
- [1]Künker, Fritz Rudolf, Horst-Rudiger Künker, Ulrich Künker and Andreas Kaiser, Katalog 400: Selected löser of the Dukes of Guelph from the Friedrich Popken Collection | Numismatic treasures from the Medieval and Modern Times, a. o. "multiple portraits" from a Westphalian private collection, Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2024.
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