Austrian Netherlands 1749(h) 2 liards

Jean Elsen sale 136, lot 955

This specimen was lot 955 in Jean Elsen sale 136 (Brussels, March 2018), where it sold for €80 (about US$118 including buyer's fees). The catalog description^[1] noted,

" BRABANT, Duché, Marie-Thérèse (1740-1780), Cu double liard, 1749, Anvers. D/ B. diad. à d., avec collier de perles. R/ Inscription dans une couronne. Minuscules défauts de flan. Superbe. (duchy of Brabant, Maria Theresia, 1740-80, copper double liard of 1749. Obverse: diademed bust to right with pearl necklace; reverse: inscription below crown. Minor flan defects, extremely fine.)"

This double liard was struck 1749-53. The "(h)" in the page title refers to the hand mintmark on the reverse, signifying Antwerp; a lion was used for Bruges. On the death of Charles VI in 1740, the redoubtable Maria Theresia was crowned Archduchess of Austria and queen of Hungary but, being a woman, could not be given the imperial crown. Therefore, after much debate and a war fomented by Frederick the Great of Prussia, her husband Francis of Lorraine was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 1745.

Recorded mintage: 2,473,000.

Specification: copper; this specimen is 7,23 g.

Catalog reference: KM 3, W. 1133; V.K. 223.

Source:

• Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
• ^[1]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 136: Collection Martiny, Collection Nef, Collection Casterman, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils, S.A., 2018.

Link to:

• 1749 escalin, Antwerp mint
• 1749 huitième de ducaton, Antwerp mint
• 1749 demi-ducaton, Antwerp mint
• 1749 ducaton, Antwerp mint
• 1749 demi-souverain d'or
• 1749 souverain d'or, Antwerp mint
• Coins and currency dated 1749
• return to coins of Austria, Austria-Netherlands