Denmark 1593 2-1/2 ducats Fr-64
This specimen was lot 1011 in Stack's Bowers sale of the L. E. Bruun Collection (Copenhagen, September 2024), where it sold for €78,000 (about US$86,440 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"Only One Other Example Known to Exist and Permanently Impounded, DENMARK. 1/4 Portugaloser (2-1/2 Ducats), 1593. Haderslev Mint; mm: Crescent. Christian IV. NGC AU Details--Bent. Mintmaster: Andreas Metzner. Only two examples known to exist, the present and the one in the National Museum of Denmark. Although the flan is slightly wavy, the overall condition is appealing with exquisite details and traces of original luster.
This interesting and otherwise completely unobtainable issue was struck on the orders of the dowager queen Sophia on behalf of her son, who was only 16 at the time and had not yet been crowned. The design is a relatively close copy of the original Portuguese gold coins that gave their name to this popular trade coin. Before entering the collection of count Bille-Brahe, it was owned by Peter Frederik Suhm (1728-1798). Suhm was out of a Danish noble family and a career at court would have been the obvious choice. He was however keenly interested in history and studied at the University of Copenhagen where he was fortunate enough to have the famous author, Ludvig Holberg as a teacher. He went on to write a number of important historical works and became chairman of the Danish Academy of Sciences. He was also a phenomenal book collector and his collection of about 100,000 books are now in the Danish Royal Library."
This type was also struck in 1592. Christian IV (r. 1588-1648) had a long but only moderately successful reign. His war with Sweden and his intervention in the Thirty Years War were costly and brought little gain.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 8.75 g, 0.986 fine gold, this specimen 8.75 g.
Catalog reference: Fr-64; Hede-7B; Sieg-156.2; Schou 2; Harck-8.2; Bruun-4601.
- 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.
- Siegs Møntcatalog 2016: Danmark med Omrader, 48 ed., Frederikssund, Siegs Forlag ApS, 2015.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio, Jeremy Bostwick and Henrik Holt Christensen, The L. E. Bruun Collection - A Corpus of Scandinavian Monetary History Part I, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2024.
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