Schlick 1638-IC 3 kreuzer
This specimen was lot 3555 in Sincona Auction 101 (Zürich, October 2025), where it sold for 150 CHF (about US$226 including buyers' fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"RDR / ÖSTERREICH Schlick, Grafschaft, Heinrich IV. 1612-1650. 3 Kreuzer 1638, Plan. Mit Titel Ferdinands III. Vorzüglich. (Austria, county of Schlick, Henry IV, 1612-50, three kreuzer of 1638, Plan mint, struck in the name of Ferdinand III. Extremely Fine.)"
The counts of Schlick in Bohemia were the original proprietors of the mint at Joachimsthal, where the first "thalers" were struck. However, by the seventeenth century the counts had long since lost the mine and only a few scarce pieces were struck. This type was struck 1628, 1631-32, 1635-38, and is common. Wikipedia comments,
"Count Heinrich von Schlick zu Bassano und Weißkirchen (1580 – 5 January 1650, Vienna) was an Imperial Field Marshal and president of the Hofkriegsrat. As a young man, he fought in Hungary under Giorgio Basta for Rudolf II against Stephen Bocskay's revolt until 1604. As a Lutheran, he sided with the Protestant Bohemians at the beginning of the Bohemian phase of the Thirty Years War, when the province was overrun by Imperial forces. As a competent officer his advice was often overlooked, especially at the Battle of White Mountain that took place on November 8, 1620. The battle was a defeat for the Protestant Bohemians. After the defeat he changed to the Imperial side."
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: silver, this specimen 1.78 g.
Catalog reference: KM 6, Smetana/Jakymenkova C 49 c.
- 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.
- [1]Richter, Jurg, SINCONA Auction 101: World Coins, Medals and Banknotes, Swiss Confederate Coins, Medals and Banknotes, Shooting Coins and Medals, Zurich: SINCONA AG, 2025.
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