Brabant (1555-76) 1/2 real d'or Fr-68

Künker sale 264, lot 3008

Sincona sale 54, lot 56

Jean Elsen sale 158, lot 487

Jean Elsen sale 161, lot 1492

Brabant in 1559, from Shepherd's atlas

The first specimen was lot 3008 in Künker sale 264 (Osnabrück, June 2015), where it sold for €400 (about US$517 including buyer's fees). The catalog description^[1] noted,

"BRABANT Philipp II. von Spanien, 1555-1598. 1/2 Real d'or o. J. Antwerpen. GOLD. Sehr schön. (duchy of Brabant, Philip II of Spain, 1555-98, undated half real d'or, Antwerp mint. Very fine.)"

The second specimen was lot 56 in Sincona sale 54 (Zürich, May 2019), where it sold for 1,000 CHF (about US$1,190 including buyer's fees). The catalog description^[2] noted,

"Brabant, Herzogtum, Philipp II. 1555-1598. 1/2 Real dor o. J. (1. Emission, 1560-1567), Antwerpen. Vanhoudt 263AN. Delmonte 113. Fr-81. Selten. Fast vorzüglich. Überdurchschnittliche Erhaltung. (duchy of Brabant, Philip II, 1555-98, undated gold half real, first emission, Antwerp mint. Rare, About extremely fine, Extraordinary condition.)"

The third specimen was lot 487 in Jean Elsen sale 158 (Brussels, March 2024), where it sold for €800 (about US$1,040 including buyer's fees). The catalog description^[3] noted,

"BRABANT, Duché, Philippe II (1555-1598), AV demi-réal d'or, s.d. (1560-1573), Anvers. Avec main sous le buste. D/ B. cuir. à d. R/ Ecu couronné. Avec DUX· BRA au revers. Légère double frappe au droit. Très Beau à Superbe. (duchy of Brabant, Philip II, 1555-98, undated gold half real, Antwerp mint, with a hand under the bust. Obverse: armored bust right; reverse: crowned arms. With "DUX· BRA" on the reverse, lightly doubled on the obverse, Very Fine - Extremely Fine.)"

The fourth specimen was lot 1492 in Jean Elsen sale 161 (Brussels, March 2025), where it sold for €2,400 (about US$3,125 including buyer's fees). The catalog description^[4] noted,

"NEDERLAND, HOLLAND, De Staten in opstand (1572-1581), AV halve gouden reaal van Brabant, z.j. (1573-1574), Antwerpen. Met klop Hollandse leeuw in parelrand. Zeer zeldzaam. Barstjes. (Netherlands, Holland, States Revolt, 1572-81, gold half real of Brabant counterstamped with the Dutch lion. Very rare, cracks, Very Fine.)

In 1573 werd bij verordening van de Staten van Holland en Zeeland de waarde van de buitenlandse munten als oorlogsbelasting met 1/8 verhoogd. Slechts de munten met een Hollandse of Zeeuwse klop mochten in omloop blijven. Het waren overwegend munten uit de Zuidelijke Nederlanden die werden voorzien van een klop. (In 1573, by decree of the States of Holland and Zeeland, the value of foreign coins was increased by one eighth as a war tax. Only coins with a Dutch or Zeelandic origin were allowed to remain in circulation. It was mainly coins from the Southern Netherlands that were counterstamped.)"

Brabant, originally part of the Burgundian inheritance, fell to the Hapsburgs on the death of the last duke of Burgundy in 1477. On the emperor Charles's abdication in 1555, the Hapsburg inheritance was divided between the Austrian and Spanish branches, and the Netherlands passed to Philip II, a dour and unbending Catholic. His attempts to extirpate heresy caused the northern provinces to rise in revolt and, after many years of struggle, secure their independence as the United Provinces. The southern provinces, including Brabant, remained Catholic and loyal to king Philip. The larger real d'or is known with and without "ANG REX" in the obverse legend, marking the king's brief marriage to Mary of England. It was struck at Antwerp (shown here) and Maastricht (Fr-69). The Spanish Hapsburgs ruled Brabant until 1700, fending off repeated attempts by the king of France to annex it. The area is now part of Belgium.

Recorded mintage: unknown but somewhat common.

Specification: gold; the first specimen 3.47 g; the second specimen 3.43 g, the third specimen 3,46 g, the fourth specimen 3,40 g.

Catalog reference: Delm-135 (R4); Fr-68. the third specimen is G.H. 207-1b; Delm-113; W. 701; VH 263, the fourth specimen Delm. 770B; van Gelder, JMP 67 (1980), H2.

Source:

• Delmonte, A., Le Bénélux D'or, Amsterdam: Jacques Schulman N.V., 1964, with supplements to 1977.
• 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.
• van Gelder, H. Enno, and Marcel Hoc, Les Monnaies des pays-Bas Bourguignons et Espagnols, 1434-1713, Amsterdam, J. Schulman, 1960, with supplement of 1964.
• ^[1]Künker Münzauktionen und Goldhandel, Catalog 264, Gold coins | Russian Coins and Medals | German Coins after 1871, Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2015.
• ^[2]Richter, Jürg, Sincona Auction 54: Gold Coins and Medals, Zürich: SINCONA AG, 2019.
• ^[3]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 158, Monnaies de la Principauté de Liège, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2024.
• ^[4]Elsen, Philippe, et al., Vente Publique 161, Brussels: Jean Elsen et ses Fils S.A., 2025.

Link to:

• (1521-52) demi-réal d'or, Charles V, Antwerp mint
• Flanders (1555-98) 1/2 real d'or Fr-213
• Gelderland (1555-76) 1/2 real d'or Fr-76
• Overijssel (1555-81) 1/2 real d'or Fr-173
• (1557-60) réal d'or, Antwerp mint
• (1558-60) réal d'or, Maastricht mint
• (1560-77) real d'or, Antwerp mint
• Holland (1560-62) halve gouden reaal
• (1576-77)-B demi-réal d'or, Brussels mint
• Zeeland (1578) 1/2 real d'or with counterstamp
• Coins and currency dated 1555
• return to coins of Netherlands, Spanish