Sweden 1661-GW 2 mark
This specimen was lot 11305 in Stack's Bowers Collectors Choice Online Auction (Costa Mesa, CA, February 2025), where it sold for €1,800 (about US$1,876). The catalog description[1] noted, "SWEDEN. 2 Mark, 1661 - GW. Stockholm Mint. Karl XI. NGC AU Details--Cleaned. Though cleaned still a magnificent coin with sharp details and an alluring toning. From the L. E. Bruun Collection." This type was struck 1661-64. Eight öre made a mark and six mark made a riksdaler.
Karl XI succeeded to the throne in 1660 at the age of four. He was not crowned until 1672, being under the regency of his mother and the Estates. In 1675, he found himself embroiled in war with Denmark which, by firm leadership and good luck, he won. The treaty of Fontainebleau of 1679 ended his last foreign war and he spent the rest of his reign reforming the army and restoring the royal finances. He died of cancer in 1697, aged 41 years.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specifications: 10.40 g, 0.750 fine silver, 30.7 mm diameter, this specimen 10.45 g.
Catalog reference: KM-236; Delzanno-64; SM-91; Bruun-12140.
- Bjorne Ahlström, Yngve Almer and Bengt Hemmingson, Sveriges Mynt, 1521-1977, the Coinage of Sweden. Stockholm: Numismatika Bokforlaget AB, 1976.
- Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
- Delzanno, Roberto, Myntårsboken 2022, Sveriges Mynt 995-2021, 1:a upplagen, Stockholm, 2021.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, February 2025 World Collectors Choice Online Auction - Ancients, World Coins & World Paper Money, David B. Simpson Medals & World Coins Part 1, Selections from the Richard Margolis Collection, and Selections from the L. E. Bruun Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2025.
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