Denmark-Gluckstadt (1)623 10 ducats Fr-66

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Stack's Bowers sale of the L. E. Bruun Collection, lot 1029
SB924-1029r.jpg

This specimen was lot 1029 in Stack's Bowers sale of the L. E. Bruun Collection (Copenhagen, September 2024), where it sold for €504,000 (about US$558,533 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,

"Powerfully Struck Portugaloser with Assayer's 'Melting Pot' Countermark, One of Only Four Believed to Have Survived -- Considered Unique in Private Hands, DENMARK. Portugaloser (10 Ducats), 1623. Gluckstadt Mint; Assayer's Mark: Melting Pot. Christian IV. NGC AU-53. Mintmaster: Albert Dionis. Of the mere 237 examples originally minted, only four are believed to have survived. Namely two in the National Museum of Denmark, one in the Hermitage, St. Petersburg, and the present example, which is the only one in private hands. A minor edge split does not deter from the fact that this is an absolutely gorgeous example of one of the most spectacular issues from Christian IV's entire reign.

Dionis' mintmark, the melting pot, was also used on the reverse as a countermark or rather an official assayer's mark guaranteeing the purity of the gold. The beautiful reverse motif showing Lady Luck (Fortuna) on a globe is an allegory on the name of the mint."

Portugalosers, or ten ducat pieces, were struck for presentation and not circulation. These dies were also used to strike speciedalers (Dav-3668). We don't know why the engraver felt it necessary to abbreviate the date. Christian IV (r. 1588-1648) had a long but not particularly successful reign. His war with Sweden and his intervention in the Thirty Years War were costly and brought little gain.

Recorded mintage: 237.

Specification: 35 g, 0.986 fine gold, this specimen 34.71 g.

Catalog reference: Fr-66; KM-15 (silver speciedaler); Hede-156; Sieg-cf.183.1 (silver); Schou-3; Bruun-5326.

Source:

  • Cuhaj, George S., and Thomas Michael, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, 6th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2014.
  • 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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