Denmark 1659 4 ducats Fr-126

from Heritage sale 3097, lot 30167

This specimen was lot 30167 in Heritage sale 3097 (New York, January 2022), where it sold for $57,600. The catalog description^[1] noted,

"Perhaps Only the Eighth Known Gold Striking of the Ebenezer Krone in This Weight, Denmark: Frederick III gold "Ebenezer" 4 Ducat 1659 UNC Details (Bent) NGC, Copenhagen mint. Variety with obverse legend reading DOMINVS PROVIDEBIT. There are very few occasions within numismatics where a type is so instantly recognized by a single word that it conjures up both immense historicity and fervent collector attention; within the Danish series, likely no other issue captures this phenomenon so well as the Ebenezer coinage minted by Frederick III in commemoration of the breaking of the Swedish Siege of Copenhagen on 11 February 1659. Likely better-known to Danish numismatists in silver, the motifs employed on this coin could hardly make more evident the Danes' belief (or at least their wish to proclaim publicly) that their salvation had come from the hand of God (Manus Dei) alone--Soli Deo Gloria, "To God, alone, be the glory"--rather than the aid of the Dutch relief force that played a critical role in saving the city. The forcefulness of this message is all the more evident through the iconic inscription on the reverse: Ebenezer, juxtaposing Frederick III's monogram with a stone, and drawing on the imagery of the Old Testament, where (in 1 Samuel 7:12), Samuel had erected a "stone of help" between Mizpah and Shen to commemorate the Lord's aid and to serve as a reminder to the nation of Israel that God had protected and led them to victory.

While the silver Krone (4 Mark) of this same design may already be considered a challenging issue, particularly to find in any sort of meaningful condition without conditional issues (indeed, only 2 Mint State Krones have been certified to date), the type enters into an entirely new tier of conditional rarity when located in gold. Known in weights of 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, and 20 Ducats, while none of these denominations become available with any regularity (the 20 being unique), the 4 occupies a special status as among the most challenging that the most dedicated collectors can ever hope to acquire. Though records of the 1659 coinage had been made at least as early as Oliger Jacobeaus' Museum regium, seu, Catalogus rerum tam naturalium, quam artificialium, quae in basilica bibliothecae augustissimi Daniae Norvegiaeq[ue] monarchae Christiani Quinti, Hafniae asservantur, published in 1696, most early scholars appear to have been unaware of the existence of strikings in 4 Ducat-weight. In his 1703 work, Biblia in Nummis, Christian Schlegel stated that only 2 and 6 Ducat-weight examples were then known. The earliest scholar we are aware of who pointed out the existence of the 4 Ducat was Johann Tobias Köhler, who made record of 2, 4, and 6 Ducat-weight specimens in volume 1 of his Vollständiges Ducaten-Cabinet in 1759 (see pg. 195)--one century after the date the coins bear. His findings, however, seem to have gone overlooked by later scholars such as Maillet, who only notes 6 and 20 Ducats (see Maillet pg. 101). Even as late as 1976, Peter Flensborg still did not mention the existence of a 4 Ducat in his Mønt årbogen. Today, we have only been able to trace the following examples, with none present in such famed cabinets as Hauberg, Hede, Bruun, Ragoczy, Schou, Pedersen, Wilmersdörffer, Antoine-Feill, Reichel, Brand, or, most recently, our sale of the Paramount Collection:

1) The Royal Coin Collection, Copenhagen specimen (372, B. K.P. 1599)

2) The Geheimrat Hermann Vogel specimen. Adolph Hess (November 1927, Lot 1196)

3) Schweizerischer Bankverein-Galerie des Monnaies, Geneva (May 1974, Lot 47)

4) Thomas Høiland Auction 6 (October 1999, Lot 231); Helge Reff Collection

5) The Zinck specimen. Bruun Rasmussen Auction 844 (November 2013, Lot 18); Purchased from a Dansk Numismatisk Forening auction in 1956

6) Bruun Rasmussen Auction 897 (November 2020, Lot 269)

Currently the only certified example, this piece displays an incredible sharpness preserved throughout the features, mint-fresh luster gliding freely over the coin's mildly uneven surfaces. Though unfortunately bent, we would note that virtually all specimens from this issue show wrinkled or uneven flans. Perhaps only the eighth known specimen, and the sixth in private hands, it is hardly an exaggeration to state that the coin on offer here presents an incredibly singular opportunity for all connoisseurs of Scandinavian coinage, and one which few are likely to see again in their lifetimes.

Though the Swedish king, Carl X Gustav, had achieved a crushing victory against the Danes during his February 1658 invasion of the kingdom as part of the Northern Wars, leading to the Treaty of Roskilde that gave Sweden huge territorial gains, he nonetheless resolved to wipe his rival from the map of Europe. In the ensuing attack, the Swedish armies, which had never left Denmark after the peace treaty was concluded, laid siege to Copenhagen. After withstanding the siege for six months, the Danes were able to make use of the Swedes' impatience, aided by spy intel and the help of 600 Dutch marines, and ambushed the Swedish army during their hastily planned assault of Christianhavn and Slotsholmen, resulting in a crushing Swedish defeat that led to long-term peace between Denmark, Sweden, and Norway. It is quite likely that pieces such as this were minted as tokens of appreciation, distributed by the King himself to the officers involved in defending the city."

Friedberg also mentions a double portugaloser (20 ducats, Fr-122), a single portugaloser (10 ducats, Fr-123), six ducats (Fr-125), five ducats (Fr-124) and three ducats (Fr-127) for 1659. All are rare and Fr-122 is unique. This specimen was offered again as lot 1616 in Sincona sale 94 (Zürich, October 2024), where it sold for 24,000 CHF (about US$33,264 including buyer's fees).

Recorded mintage: unknown.

Specification: 14 g, 0.986 fine gold, this specimen 13.85 g.

Catalog reference: KM PnD16, Fr-126 (Rare), Köhler-589, Schou-7, Hede-98 (RRR), Sieg-51 (RRR), Aagaard-74.

Source:

• 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.
• Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
• Siegs Møntcatalog 2016: Danmark med Omrader, 48 ed., Frederikssund, Siegs Forlag ApS, 2015.
• ^[1]Cristiano Bierrenbach, Warren Tucker and Sam Spiegel, NYINC World Coins Platinum Night Auction 3097, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2021.

Link to:

• Denmark-Gluckstadt 1659-IS sosling
• Denmark-Gluckstadt 1659-IS 1/16 speciedaler
• Denmark-Gluckstadt 1659-IS krone Dav-3675
• 1659 2 mark
• 1659 krone, shield reverse
• 1659 krone, sword smiting hand, "*IIII*MARCK*DANSKE*"
• 1659 krone, sword smiting hand, "DOMINVS PROVIDEBIT"
• 1659 half ducat
• 1659 "Ebenezer" triple ducat
• 1659 "Ebenezer" 5 ducats
• 1659 "Ebenezer" 10 ducats (portugaloser)
• 1660-IS krone
• Coins and currency dated 1659