Hungary 1591-KB ducat Fr-63
This specimen was lot 1939 in SINCONA Auction 97 (Zürich, May 2025), where it sold for 1,100 CHF (about US$1,596 including buyers' fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"RDR / ÖSTERREICH, Rudolf II. 1576-1612. Goldgulden 1591, Kremnitz. Sehr schön. (Holy Roman Empire, Rudolf II, 1576-1612, Very Fine.)"
Ludwig II, the last king of Hungary, was killed at the battle of Mohacs in 1526, leaving his beleaguered domain to be partitioned between the Turks and the Hapsburgs. Ferdinand I was emperor at the time and claimed all of Hungary but had to content himself with a small slice in the west. The Hapsburgs would not conquer the rest of Hungary and Transylvania until the end of the seventeenth century. This goldgulden or ducat or florin was struck at Hermannstadt (mintmark HS) and Kremnitz (shown here) 1578-1608. The armored standing figure is not the emperor but of St. Ladislas holding a pike. It is the most common Hungarian ducat of Rudolf's reign.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specifications: 3.50 g, 0.986 fine gold, this specimen 3.50 g.
Catalog reference: KM MB258, Huszar 1002. Fr-63.
- 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.
- Nicol, N. Douglas, Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of German Coins, 1501-Present, 3rd ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2011.
- [1]Richter, Jurg, SINCONA Auction 97: World and Swiss Coins and Medals, SINCONA Bullion Auction, Zürich: SINCONA AG, 2025.
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