Westphalia 1808-J franken
This specimen was lot 4429 in Künker sale 335 (Osnabruck, Germany, March 2020), where it sold for €3,000 (about US$3,926 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted,
"WESTPHALEN, KÖNIGREICH, Hieronymus Napoleon, 1807-1813. 1 Franken 1808, J. Äußerst selten in dieser Erhaltung. Herrliche Patina, fast Stempelglanz. (Germany, kingdom of Westphalia, Jerome Napoleon, 1807-13, one franken of 1808. Rare in this condition, beautiful patina, about uncirculated.)"
This type was struck in Hamburg 1808 only, as part of a series of decimal coinage that ranged from one centime to 40 franken. At the same time, traditional German denominations such as pfennig, mariengroschen and thalers were issued. At the Congress of Vienna, the area was restored to its former lords, Hannover and Prussia.
Recorded mintage: unknown but scarce.
Specification: 5 g, 0.900 fine silver, this specimen 5.01 g.
Catalog reference: KM 99, AKS 35; J. 36.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- [1]Künker Münzauktionen und Goldhandel, Catalog 335: Bracteates from Upper Swabia and the area of the Lake Constance | Coins and Medals from Medieval and Modern Times, a. o. the Dr. Karl Walter Bach Collection of coins of the Austrian nobility, Special collections of Bavaria, Lubeck, Wurttemberg as well as siege coins from the Eberhard Link Collection. Osnabrück: Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co., AG, 2020.
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