Sweden 1591 mark
This specimen was lot 11022 in Stack's Bowers June 2026 World Premier Collectors Choice Auction (Copenhagen, June 2026), where it sold for €244 (about US$281). The catalog description[1] noted, "SWEDEN. Mark, 1591. Stockholm Mint. Johan III. NGC VF Details--Environmental Damage. Variation with lines ascending from left to right on the obverse, and with five-leafed flowers on the reverse legend. From the L.E. Bruun Collection. Ex: Countship of Brahesminde Collection (Private Sale - 1922)." Johan III was the second son of Gustaf Vasa and was Duke of Finland from 1556-1563 when he was imprisoned for opposing his brother, Eric XIV. After the demise of Erik, Johan III became King in 1568 and ruled until his death in 1592. Johan III attempted to bridge the widening gap between the Catholics and the Lutherans, raising his son Sigismund as a Catholic but gradually siding with the Lutherans under the influence of his second queen, Gunilla Bielke (1568-97). This type was struck 1590-92. This example shows the diagonal lines behind the sheaf of wheat going from lower left to upper right; others have the lines going from upper left to lower right. One daler was 32 öre or four mark.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 7.15 g, 0.484 fine silver, 31-32 mm diameter, this specimen 6.23 g.
Catalog reference: KM MB196, SM-62a; Delzanno-49; Bruun-11629.
- Bjorne Ahlstrom, Yngve Almer and Bengt Hemmingson, Sveriges Mynt, 1521-1977, the Coinage of Sweden. Stockholm: Numismatika Bokforlaget AB, 1976.
- Delzanno, Roberto, Myntårsboken 2022, Sveriges Mynt 995-2021, 1:a upplagen, Stockholm, 2021.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, June 2026 World Premier Collectors Choice Auction - Selections from the L.E. Bruun Collection, the Richard Margolis Collection and the Kirk Menczer Collection of Republican Reales Minors, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2026.
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