Wurzburg 1735 1/4 carolin Fr-3706
This specimen was lot 2181 in Künker sale 352 (Osnabrück, Germany, September 2021), where it sold for €4,000 (about US$5,567 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"WÜRZBURG, BISTUM, Friedrich Karl von Schönborn, 1729-1746. 2 1/2 Gulden (1/4 Karolin) 1735. GOLD. RR Vorzüglich. (Germany, bishopric of Würzburg, Frederick Charles of Schönborn, 1729-46, quarter carolin d'or of 1735. Very rare, extremely fine.)"
There was a brief fad in the 1730's for the carolin d'or or ten gulden. This denomination (along with the half and quarter) was struck in Wurzburg (shown here), Fulda, Wurttemberg, Baden, Bavaria, Pfalz and Hesse. We don't know why it faded away; perhaps merchants preferred the higher purity of the ducat.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 2.43 g, .770 fine gold, this specimen 2.33 g.
Catalog reference: KM 309, Fr-3706; Helmschrott 631.
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- 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, Künker Auktion 352: Die Sammlung Hermann Schwarz: Faszination des gepragten Goldes. Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2021.
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