Coins 1000-1775
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : British coins Japanese coins Russia 1700-1900
See also : British coins Japanese coins Russia 1700-1900
1496 Danish Noble
2024 SOLD for € 1.2M by Stack's Bowers
Minted in 1496 in Malmö or Copenhagen, the noble of King Hans is the earliest Danish gold coin. Its gold may come from a tax of one English noble applied to foreign ships intending to enter the strait between Zeeland and Denmark.
The obverse tells Hans, by the Grace of God King of the Danes, ordered me struck in the year 1496. It is the earliest Danish coin struck with a date. The reverse inscription is a line from the Psalms.
The only example in private hands is graded AU-55 by NGC and weighs 14.67 grams. This high relief coin has a beautiful strike with many intricate details, an even flan and many traces of original luster.
It was sold for € 1.2M from a lower estimate of € 300K by Stack's Bowers on September 14, 2024, lot 1001 in the sale of the Bruun collection. Please watch the Coin in motion video shared by the auction house.
The obverse tells Hans, by the Grace of God King of the Danes, ordered me struck in the year 1496. It is the earliest Danish coin struck with a date. The reverse inscription is a line from the Psalms.
The only example in private hands is graded AU-55 by NGC and weighs 14.67 grams. This high relief coin has a beautiful strike with many intricate details, an even flan and many traces of original luster.
It was sold for € 1.2M from a lower estimate of € 300K by Stack's Bowers on September 14, 2024, lot 1001 in the sale of the Bruun collection. Please watch the Coin in motion video shared by the auction house.
1588 Tensho Hishi Oban
Intro
During the Tensho period, the weakness of the emperors brought absolute power to the regent Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who set out to unify and pacify Japan.
To develop trade, Hideyoshi needs a gold coin. The very first, in the 16th year of Tensho corresponding to 1588 CE, is the oban defined by a weight of 10 ryo, of the variety Tensho hishi oban. Six examples have survived.
This coin is a 146 x 85 mm oval plaque weighing 165 grams. It is molded but not struck, and the weight is adjusted by plugs. It has ink inscriptions on both sides. On the obverse, the hallmarks feature the ornamental paulownia tree which is Hideyoshi's heraldic symbol, some inside a hishi lozenge and others inside a circle. The ink inscriptions include the identification of the date and of the Goto family of goldmiths, and the guaranteed weight of 10 ryo.
In 1595 the first attempt at mass production, around 10,000 pieces per year for five years, is the variety Tensho naga oban, so named because it is longer, 170 mm. The hishi is replaced by a hexagon. It is worth 10 ryo.
An example authenticated by PCGS with graffiti was sold for US $ 350K by Stack's Bowers on April 6, 2021, lot 50022.
Hideyoshi's successor, Tokugawa Ieyasu, generalizes this monetary system by adding silver and bronze denominations. The gold coin weighing 1 ryo is the koban. The goryoban will be the 5 ryo coin.
To develop trade, Hideyoshi needs a gold coin. The very first, in the 16th year of Tensho corresponding to 1588 CE, is the oban defined by a weight of 10 ryo, of the variety Tensho hishi oban. Six examples have survived.
This coin is a 146 x 85 mm oval plaque weighing 165 grams. It is molded but not struck, and the weight is adjusted by plugs. It has ink inscriptions on both sides. On the obverse, the hallmarks feature the ornamental paulownia tree which is Hideyoshi's heraldic symbol, some inside a hishi lozenge and others inside a circle. The ink inscriptions include the identification of the date and of the Goto family of goldmiths, and the guaranteed weight of 10 ryo.
In 1595 the first attempt at mass production, around 10,000 pieces per year for five years, is the variety Tensho naga oban, so named because it is longer, 170 mm. The hishi is replaced by a hexagon. It is worth 10 ryo.
An example authenticated by PCGS with graffiti was sold for US $ 350K by Stack's Bowers on April 6, 2021, lot 50022.
Hideyoshi's successor, Tokugawa Ieyasu, generalizes this monetary system by adding silver and bronze denominations. The gold coin weighing 1 ryo is the koban. The goryoban will be the 5 ryo coin.
1
2021 SOLD for $ 1.92M by Stack's Bowers
On April 6, 2021, Stack's Bowers dispersed a highly rare collection of 22 Japanese oval gold coins from the origins until the abolition of the Tokugawa system in the Meiji era..
Lot 50021 was a Tensho hishi oban graded MS 60 by PCGS, sold for $ 1.92M from a lower estimate of $ 700K.
Lot 50021 was a Tensho hishi oban graded MS 60 by PCGS, sold for $ 1.92M from a lower estimate of $ 700K.
2
2015 SOLD for CHF 1.1M before fees par Hess Divo
A Tensho hishi oban graded Extremely Fine was sold for CHF 1.1M before fees by Hess Divo on May 22, 2015, lot 1226.
1621 Sigismund 100 Dukat
2018 SOLD for $ 2.16M by CNG
One of the six known original copies of the 100 Dukat gold coin dated 1621 with the effigy of King Sigismund III was sold for $ 1.38M by Stack's on January 14, 2008. This piece in extremely fine condition was sold for $ 2.16M by CNG (Classical Numismatic Group, Inc.) on January 10, 2018, lot 1127.
The sharpness of the strike on such a large item is exceptional for its time. The rim circle and the centering of the unit for sale are almost perfect : 69.4 x 69.1 cm. It is 4.9 mm thick and weighs 349.49 grams. Tiny hairlines subsequent from handling are inevitable because of the malleability of gold. The coin is signed I.I. and S.A. It could only be used for presentation.
No previous edition is comparable. The 100 ducats coin issued in 1629 for King Ferdinand of Hungary and Bohemia, later the Emperor Ferdinand III, is of similar design with the portrait of the monarch on one side and royal shields on the other.
The coin lists the titles of Sigismund III Vasa as King of Poland and Sweden and Grand Duke of Lithuania, Russia, Prussia, Masuria, Samogitia and Livonia. The king is decorated with the Order of the Golden Fleece as a sign of allegiance to the Habsburgs.
Sigismund was a fervent Catholic born in a Protestant dynasty. He wanted to take over the throne of Sweden which he had lost for that reason in 1599 and was unpopular in Poland. At the beginning of the Thirty Years War, Poland was threatened with an invasion by the Turks but he did not participate directly in the resistance of the Khotyn Fortress in Moldavia against the Ottoman army in 1621. The conjunction of date of the 100 ducats coin with this heroic event is a mere coincidence or an opportunity.
Jacob Jacobson van Emden who signed with his Latinized initials II-VE was since 1616 the mint master in Bydgoszcz (Bromberg). The 100 ducats coin is a demonstration of his know-how which undoubtedly helped him to obtain from 1623 a direct or indirect responsibility over six other royal mints. The initials SA designate the Swiss born engraver Samuel Ammon.
The 80 Dukat gold coin of King Sigismund was struck with the same dies as the full weight 100 Dukat on a thinner planchet, being somehow an antonym of a piedfort. Other thin coins from 30 to 90 Dukat had also been referred in numismatic history. They were probably used as presentation medals.
Only one 80 Dukat is known. It weighs 282.54 grams and is graded AU50 by PCGS. It was sold for $ 900K by Stack's Bowers on January 14, 2022, lot 1497. The date 1621 is punched in three different places on the obverse and twice on the reverse of the coin. The dies were probably prepared in 1621 with the terminus ante quem at the death of Ammon in March 1622. The strike may be later.
The sharpness of the strike on such a large item is exceptional for its time. The rim circle and the centering of the unit for sale are almost perfect : 69.4 x 69.1 cm. It is 4.9 mm thick and weighs 349.49 grams. Tiny hairlines subsequent from handling are inevitable because of the malleability of gold. The coin is signed I.I. and S.A. It could only be used for presentation.
No previous edition is comparable. The 100 ducats coin issued in 1629 for King Ferdinand of Hungary and Bohemia, later the Emperor Ferdinand III, is of similar design with the portrait of the monarch on one side and royal shields on the other.
The coin lists the titles of Sigismund III Vasa as King of Poland and Sweden and Grand Duke of Lithuania, Russia, Prussia, Masuria, Samogitia and Livonia. The king is decorated with the Order of the Golden Fleece as a sign of allegiance to the Habsburgs.
Sigismund was a fervent Catholic born in a Protestant dynasty. He wanted to take over the throne of Sweden which he had lost for that reason in 1599 and was unpopular in Poland. At the beginning of the Thirty Years War, Poland was threatened with an invasion by the Turks but he did not participate directly in the resistance of the Khotyn Fortress in Moldavia against the Ottoman army in 1621. The conjunction of date of the 100 ducats coin with this heroic event is a mere coincidence or an opportunity.
Jacob Jacobson van Emden who signed with his Latinized initials II-VE was since 1616 the mint master in Bydgoszcz (Bromberg). The 100 ducats coin is a demonstration of his know-how which undoubtedly helped him to obtain from 1623 a direct or indirect responsibility over six other royal mints. The initials SA designate the Swiss born engraver Samuel Ammon.
The 80 Dukat gold coin of King Sigismund was struck with the same dies as the full weight 100 Dukat on a thinner planchet, being somehow an antonym of a piedfort. Other thin coins from 30 to 90 Dukat had also been referred in numismatic history. They were probably used as presentation medals.
Only one 80 Dukat is known. It weighs 282.54 grams and is graded AU50 by PCGS. It was sold for $ 900K by Stack's Bowers on January 14, 2022, lot 1497. The date 1621 is punched in three different places on the obverse and twice on the reverse of the coin. The dies were probably prepared in 1621 with the terminus ante quem at the death of Ammon in March 1622. The strike may be later.
Exceedingly rare Poland commemorative 100 Dukat (349.49 grams) of Zygmunt III Wasa, celebrating 1621 victory over Ottomans, offered by CNG at 46th New York International Numismatic Convention, 10 January 2018, is one of the largest gold coins ever struck. https://t.co/I1Ad44EOqD pic.twitter.com/90dcByCj9A
— Ancient Nomos (@ANAMCurator) December 8, 2017
1652 New England Threepence
2024 SOLD for $ 2.5M by Stack's Bowers
Economic activities are gradually organized in the British colonies of America. Trade is introducing foreign coins. Bartering furs and musket balls no longer meets the needs of this growing community.
In 1652, Boston is already demarcating from the colonial authority by authorizing the establishment of a silver mint, for the use of the entire New England Configuration uniting from 1643 the colonies of Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut and New Haven.
Three denominations are struck by the local silversmiths Hull and Sanderson : 3, 6 and 12 pence, the latter being also named shilling.
This social progress responds primarily to a need for regulation. The new coins are worth less than their face value when they leave the American territory, and no effort is made to make them pleasant.
The faces are pewter gray without any figure, just punched on one side by the letters NE for New England and on the other side by the monetary value in Roman numerals.
Coins with deep punching have certainly been made in the first year of the production. A shilling (XII) graded MS61 by NGC is the only mint state example of any 1652 NE. It was sold for $ 310K by Stack's Bowers on November 1, 2022, lot 3103. A shilling graded AU50 by PCGS was sold for $ 420K by Heritage on 11 August 11, 2010, lot 3002.
A 6 pence coin (VI) coming from the Newman collection, graded AU58 by NGC, was sold for $ 650K by Heritage on May 16, 2014, lot 30258. 6 other examples are in existence.
Only one threepence was known, a holed coin owned by the Massachusetts Historical Society. Another example surfaced in 2016. Graded EF45 by PCGS, it is the only intact coin of its variety and the only one in private hands. It was sold for $ 2.5M by Stack's Bowers on November 18, 2024, lot 1103. Please watch the Coin in motion video shared by the auction house.
The original rudimentary design was soon superseded by a model illustrated by a willow, which in turn is replaced by an oak in 1660 and a pine from 1667 to 1682. Some inscriptions appear : the colonial origin (Masathusets according to the spelling of the time) and the starting date of the mint (1652). Indeed 1652 on these coins does not indicate the date of melting.
In 1652, Boston is already demarcating from the colonial authority by authorizing the establishment of a silver mint, for the use of the entire New England Configuration uniting from 1643 the colonies of Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut and New Haven.
Three denominations are struck by the local silversmiths Hull and Sanderson : 3, 6 and 12 pence, the latter being also named shilling.
This social progress responds primarily to a need for regulation. The new coins are worth less than their face value when they leave the American territory, and no effort is made to make them pleasant.
The faces are pewter gray without any figure, just punched on one side by the letters NE for New England and on the other side by the monetary value in Roman numerals.
Coins with deep punching have certainly been made in the first year of the production. A shilling (XII) graded MS61 by NGC is the only mint state example of any 1652 NE. It was sold for $ 310K by Stack's Bowers on November 1, 2022, lot 3103. A shilling graded AU50 by PCGS was sold for $ 420K by Heritage on 11 August 11, 2010, lot 3002.
A 6 pence coin (VI) coming from the Newman collection, graded AU58 by NGC, was sold for $ 650K by Heritage on May 16, 2014, lot 30258. 6 other examples are in existence.
Only one threepence was known, a holed coin owned by the Massachusetts Historical Society. Another example surfaced in 2016. Graded EF45 by PCGS, it is the only intact coin of its variety and the only one in private hands. It was sold for $ 2.5M by Stack's Bowers on November 18, 2024, lot 1103. Please watch the Coin in motion video shared by the auction house.
The original rudimentary design was soon superseded by a model illustrated by a willow, which in turn is replaced by an oak in 1660 and a pine from 1667 to 1682. Some inscriptions appear : the colonial origin (Masathusets according to the spelling of the time) and the starting date of the mint (1652). Indeed 1652 on these coins does not indicate the date of melting.
Historic 1652 New England Threepence Could Shatter Records! America’s Rarest Pre-Federal Coin Finally Available to Collectors!
— Stack's Bowers (@StacksBowers) November 4, 2024
Preview Here □ https://t.co/uWiNTw4yJM#NewEnglandHistory #ColonialCoins #AmericanHistory #boston pic.twitter.com/A71az3vV31
1663 Charles II Silver Petition Crown by Simon
2024 SOLD for $ 960K by Heritage
Gold and silver coins become finer from the mid-16th century. The sharpness of the line and the regularity of the stroke are not for an aesthetic purpose. It is about fighting counterfeiting and clipping, a usual criminal practice of tearing metal in the circumference of the coins.
To replace hammering, the use of the mechanical press is tempting. Identified as "milled coins", the machined pieces had however the advantage of providing a better regularity. For a long time their profitability is doubtful and the workers fearing for their employment oppose it with violence.
The edict of March 31, 1640 modernizes the French coinage. The louis replaces the écu as the reference unit for gold coins. This reform aims to make it more difficult to counterfeit and to reduce the circulation in France of the Spanish pistole. The screw press, replacing the hammer, provides an excellent repeatability of the coins. The rim is fluted to prevent the clipping. The operation is entrusted to the Contrôleur Général des Monnaies, Jean Warin.
On November 19, 2019, Numismatica Genevensis sold for CHF 700K before fees an example of the heaviest French gold coin, a 10 louis weighing 67.49 g, lot 657 here linked on the Biddr auction platform.
At the fall of King Charles I, the engineer Pierre Blondeau is invited to install his machines at the Tower of London, bringing from the Paris Mint the know how of Warin. Assisted by the English medalist Thomas Simon for the dies, he realizes in 1656 a milled piedfort coin of 50 shillings in gold with the figure of Oliver Cromwell, the only ever minted in that value. 11 examples are surviving. One of them in extremely fine condition except for a few minor marks was sold by Dix Noonan Webb on January 21, 2021 for £ 470K, lot 1142.
When the Stuart dynasty was restored in 1660, the problem of currency control remained crucial. In 1661 King Charles II decreed that the use of the screw press is mandatory for all his gold and silver coins. Blondeau returns to England. To compare between his competing Mint engravers Simon and the Roettier brothers, the king asks for silver pattern coins.
A milled gold broad of 20 shillings was struck in ca 3,400 units by Simon in 1662, either as pattern or for circulation.
In the same year, a gold pattern crown of 5 shillings was struck by Jan Roettier. Less than 10 examples are surviving. A coin graded PR63 Cameo by NGC in a flawless strike was sold for $ 780K by Heritage on March 26, 2021, lot 30294.
In 1662 King Charles II chose the Dutch born John Roettier against Thomas Simon as chief engraver of the Mint.
Simon does not accept his defeat against a foreign engraver. The king's political preference for Roettier was obvious since Simon had served Cromwell, but it must also be admitted that Simon's splendid relief was difficult to industrialize. Roettier had supported the new king during his exile in Holland.
Blondeau had developed a decisive invention that will finally end the clipping : the mechanism that hits the coin onto its outline to engrave the rim.
In a vain hope that the king changes his decision, Simon realizes in 1663 two sets of the silver crown worth 5 shillings, with a text of supplication readably printed within the small width to demonstrate his know-how.
Simon's crowns have a single basic pattern : on one side the portrait of the King in high relief, and on the reverse the Garter surrounded by four shields. They are split into two variants by the inscription of the edge, whose sharpness is a real technological feat for that time.
These variants are identified by numismatists from the first word on the rim. The Petition crown has an English text of 200 letters in two lines. The other variant is named Reddite crown after the first word of its Latin text. The inscription on one line is shorter but the designer has added a figure showing the rise of the sun over the storm, supposed to please the king as a symbol of the come back of the Stuarts.
A Petition graded MS 62 by NGC, considered as the second finest in its variant, was sold for $ 960K from a lower estimate of $ 400K by Heritage on January 8, 2024, lot 31155. Please watch the videos shared by the auction house, obverse and reverse.
A Petition graded SP 53 by PCGS was sold for $ 550K before fees by Goldberg on January 10, 2018, lot 1103. It is illustrated in the post shared by DailyMail. The finest surviving Reddite was sold for £ 396K by Spink on March 27, 2014.
Less than 20 Petition coins are surviving. Some specimens also exist in pewter. Simon's work was exhibited to the king but did not change the decision. The rivalry between the two engravers was stopped by the untimely death of Simon in 1665, a year of plague in London.
To replace hammering, the use of the mechanical press is tempting. Identified as "milled coins", the machined pieces had however the advantage of providing a better regularity. For a long time their profitability is doubtful and the workers fearing for their employment oppose it with violence.
The edict of March 31, 1640 modernizes the French coinage. The louis replaces the écu as the reference unit for gold coins. This reform aims to make it more difficult to counterfeit and to reduce the circulation in France of the Spanish pistole. The screw press, replacing the hammer, provides an excellent repeatability of the coins. The rim is fluted to prevent the clipping. The operation is entrusted to the Contrôleur Général des Monnaies, Jean Warin.
On November 19, 2019, Numismatica Genevensis sold for CHF 700K before fees an example of the heaviest French gold coin, a 10 louis weighing 67.49 g, lot 657 here linked on the Biddr auction platform.
At the fall of King Charles I, the engineer Pierre Blondeau is invited to install his machines at the Tower of London, bringing from the Paris Mint the know how of Warin. Assisted by the English medalist Thomas Simon for the dies, he realizes in 1656 a milled piedfort coin of 50 shillings in gold with the figure of Oliver Cromwell, the only ever minted in that value. 11 examples are surviving. One of them in extremely fine condition except for a few minor marks was sold by Dix Noonan Webb on January 21, 2021 for £ 470K, lot 1142.
When the Stuart dynasty was restored in 1660, the problem of currency control remained crucial. In 1661 King Charles II decreed that the use of the screw press is mandatory for all his gold and silver coins. Blondeau returns to England. To compare between his competing Mint engravers Simon and the Roettier brothers, the king asks for silver pattern coins.
A milled gold broad of 20 shillings was struck in ca 3,400 units by Simon in 1662, either as pattern or for circulation.
In the same year, a gold pattern crown of 5 shillings was struck by Jan Roettier. Less than 10 examples are surviving. A coin graded PR63 Cameo by NGC in a flawless strike was sold for $ 780K by Heritage on March 26, 2021, lot 30294.
In 1662 King Charles II chose the Dutch born John Roettier against Thomas Simon as chief engraver of the Mint.
Simon does not accept his defeat against a foreign engraver. The king's political preference for Roettier was obvious since Simon had served Cromwell, but it must also be admitted that Simon's splendid relief was difficult to industrialize. Roettier had supported the new king during his exile in Holland.
Blondeau had developed a decisive invention that will finally end the clipping : the mechanism that hits the coin onto its outline to engrave the rim.
In a vain hope that the king changes his decision, Simon realizes in 1663 two sets of the silver crown worth 5 shillings, with a text of supplication readably printed within the small width to demonstrate his know-how.
Simon's crowns have a single basic pattern : on one side the portrait of the King in high relief, and on the reverse the Garter surrounded by four shields. They are split into two variants by the inscription of the edge, whose sharpness is a real technological feat for that time.
These variants are identified by numismatists from the first word on the rim. The Petition crown has an English text of 200 letters in two lines. The other variant is named Reddite crown after the first word of its Latin text. The inscription on one line is shorter but the designer has added a figure showing the rise of the sun over the storm, supposed to please the king as a symbol of the come back of the Stuarts.
A Petition graded MS 62 by NGC, considered as the second finest in its variant, was sold for $ 960K from a lower estimate of $ 400K by Heritage on January 8, 2024, lot 31155. Please watch the videos shared by the auction house, obverse and reverse.
A Petition graded SP 53 by PCGS was sold for $ 550K before fees by Goldberg on January 10, 2018, lot 1103. It is illustrated in the post shared by DailyMail. The finest surviving Reddite was sold for £ 396K by Spink on March 27, 2014.
Less than 20 Petition coins are surviving. Some specimens also exist in pewter. Simon's work was exhibited to the king but did not change the decision. The rivalry between the two engravers was stopped by the untimely death of Simon in 1665, a year of plague in London.
Explore a #numismatic journey through history — from the 17th-century 'Petition' Crown to the enchanting Henry III gold Penny.
— Heritage Auctions (@HeritageAuction) December 12, 2023
They go to auction on January 8th: https://t.co/QMqFind5CW pic.twitter.com/BM14tQHqtc
1703 Vigo Five guineas
2019 SOLD for $ 1.08M by Baldwin's of Saint James's
In 1702 the English have failed to take the port of Cadiz and divert their effort into Vigo Bay where a train of boats has just arrived from Havana, bringing to Europe the wealth of America. The war treasure captured by the English in Vigo is significant.
Gold is rare in England. In 1703 the metal seized in Vigo is used to mint coins with the effigy of Queen Anne. The largest denomination is the five guineas, a superb achievement weighing more than 40 grams. Its total population is estimated at 20 units in two basic variants differentiated by the position of the word VIGO centered under the bust or offset under the shoulder. The VIGO beneath shoulder is the rarer.
On February 9, 2016, St. James's sold for £ 275K before fees an example in very good condition of the VIGO beneath shoulder, graded AU55 by PCGS.
Another VIGO beneath shoulder was sold for £ 280K by Boningtons on Novemner 16, 2016. It had just been resurfaced by the consignor from a "pirate treasure" that had been constituted for him many years earlier by his grandfather who had been a lover of travels and coins.
On January 13, 2019, Baldwin's of Saint James's, successor to St. James's, sold another example for $ 1.08M. This VIGO beneath shoulder has a slightly different position of the VIGO hallmark. It may have been a prototype whose irregular letter height in that mark was not acceptable for the rest of the production. This coin is graded Mint State 62 by PCGS and is perfectly centered.
Gold is rare in England. In 1703 the metal seized in Vigo is used to mint coins with the effigy of Queen Anne. The largest denomination is the five guineas, a superb achievement weighing more than 40 grams. Its total population is estimated at 20 units in two basic variants differentiated by the position of the word VIGO centered under the bust or offset under the shoulder. The VIGO beneath shoulder is the rarer.
On February 9, 2016, St. James's sold for £ 275K before fees an example in very good condition of the VIGO beneath shoulder, graded AU55 by PCGS.
Another VIGO beneath shoulder was sold for £ 280K by Boningtons on Novemner 16, 2016. It had just been resurfaced by the consignor from a "pirate treasure" that had been constituted for him many years earlier by his grandfather who had been a lover of travels and coins.
On January 13, 2019, Baldwin's of Saint James's, successor to St. James's, sold another example for $ 1.08M. This VIGO beneath shoulder has a slightly different position of the VIGO hallmark. It may have been a prototype whose irregular letter height in that mark was not acceptable for the rest of the production. This coin is graded Mint State 62 by PCGS and is perfectly centered.
1740 The Ioann Ruble
2012 SOLD for CHF 3.6M before fees by Sincona
The very unpopular Empress Anna Ivanovna is ill and has no children. She designates a new born baby to succeed her, her grand-nephew Ioann Antonovich, under the regency of her former lover. When she dies in October 1740, the Crown Prince is two months old.
The Saint-Petersburg mint prepares the coins for the future reign. The pattern silver rubles dated 1740 bear on the obverse the Cyrillic inscription Ioann III by the grace of God Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia. On the same side, the traditional imperial effigy is replaced by a large 3 interlaced with two I. The reverse is illustrated with the two-headed eagle with its attributes : the crown, the shield, the scepter and the orb.
This design is immediately obsolete : the child's reign name is not Ioann III but Ivan VI. Only five units have been identified. One of them was sold for CHF 3.6M before fees by Sincona on October 9, 2012, lot 227 here linked on the NumisBids auction platform. The location of the other four has not been established.
In 1741 the child grew up and the new rubles are minted with his effigy at one year old. His father overthrew the regent. The Russians fear the return of the German influence and overthrow the child and his mother by a coup d'état in December 1741. Ivan VI's coins are redeemed and their possession is made illegal.
Another difficult succession will generate in 1825 the other top rarity of the Romanov numismatics, the pattern ruble prepared in the name and effigy of Grand Duke Constantine before he formally refuses to ascend the throne. Eight units are known.
The Saint-Petersburg mint prepares the coins for the future reign. The pattern silver rubles dated 1740 bear on the obverse the Cyrillic inscription Ioann III by the grace of God Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia. On the same side, the traditional imperial effigy is replaced by a large 3 interlaced with two I. The reverse is illustrated with the two-headed eagle with its attributes : the crown, the shield, the scepter and the orb.
This design is immediately obsolete : the child's reign name is not Ioann III but Ivan VI. Only five units have been identified. One of them was sold for CHF 3.6M before fees by Sincona on October 9, 2012, lot 227 here linked on the NumisBids auction platform. The location of the other four has not been established.
In 1741 the child grew up and the new rubles are minted with his effigy at one year old. His father overthrew the regent. The Russians fear the return of the German influence and overthrow the child and his mother by a coup d'état in December 1741. Ivan VI's coins are redeemed and their possession is made illegal.
Another difficult succession will generate in 1825 the other top rarity of the Romanov numismatics, the pattern ruble prepared in the name and effigy of Grand Duke Constantine before he formally refuses to ascend the throne. Eight units are known.
1741 The 20 Ducat Gold Coin of Basel
2014 SOLD for CHF 800K before fees by Numismatica Genevensis
In 1741, Basel is a wealthy city supported by its silk industry. The gold coin of 20 ducats is a masterpiece of the numismatics of its time and perhaps the most beautiful of all Swiss coins. Weighing more than 67 g, it represents a considerable amount of money which explains its extreme rarity.
A presentation specimen of this coin in a stunning condition was sold for CHF 800K before fees from a lower estimate of CHF 500K by Numismatica Genevensis on November 25, 2014, lot 581. Please watch the video shared by Numismatica Genevensis showing the great quality of carving of the Basel cityscape.
The engraving is very sharp and very attractive, with Basel symbols including a spectacular basilisk with outspread wings, the coat of arms of the city and the arms of the eight associated municipalities, plus a cornucopia. One side displays a wide panoramic view of Basel with the houses over the Rhine, a bridge and two boats.
The only other surviving copy, in lesser condition, is preserved in the museum of Zurich.
A presentation specimen of this coin in a stunning condition was sold for CHF 800K before fees from a lower estimate of CHF 500K by Numismatica Genevensis on November 25, 2014, lot 581. Please watch the video shared by Numismatica Genevensis showing the great quality of carving of the Basel cityscape.
The engraving is very sharp and very attractive, with Basel symbols including a spectacular basilisk with outspread wings, the coat of arms of the city and the arms of the eight associated municipalities, plus a cornucopia. One side displays a wide panoramic view of Basel with the houses over the Rhine, a bridge and two boats.
The only other surviving copy, in lesser condition, is preserved in the museum of Zurich.
1755 The Double Imperial of Elizabeth Petrovna
2008 SOLD for £ 1.8M by St. James's
Elizabeth Petrovna, a daughter of Peter the Great, seized power in Russia by a coup in 1741. Her reign was a compromise between the difficult temperament of the Empress and the desire of the court to imitate French luxury.
A gold coinage becomes necessary for international trade. The first issues are released in 1755 in two denominations, 10 rubles and 5 rubles. The obverse is the portrait already used on silver coins, carefully calculated and judiciously reduced so that no one comes to comment on the shape of the imperial nose. The reverse is centered with the two-headed eagle surrounded by a rosette of four crowned coats of arms symbolizing the union of Siberia, Moscow, Kazan and Astrakhan.
In this megalomaniacal surge, the St. Petersburg Mint is preparing a denomination of 20 rubles with the same figures. The coin demonstrated to the Senate in August 1755 is undoubtedly the only copy minted. The 'double imperial' project did not receive authorization from the Empress and was abandoned. It remains the highest denomination ever attempted for the imperial coinage.
In the following year, the list of gold coins is extended to lower denominations which compete with the silver ruble.
The 20 ruble specimen weighs 33.14 g with a diameter of 37 mm in standard .917 gold. It is very well centered although its cut is not perfectly circular. This coin graded AU-58 by NGC was sold for £ 1.8M by St. James's on November 6, 2008.
A gold coinage becomes necessary for international trade. The first issues are released in 1755 in two denominations, 10 rubles and 5 rubles. The obverse is the portrait already used on silver coins, carefully calculated and judiciously reduced so that no one comes to comment on the shape of the imperial nose. The reverse is centered with the two-headed eagle surrounded by a rosette of four crowned coats of arms symbolizing the union of Siberia, Moscow, Kazan and Astrakhan.
In this megalomaniacal surge, the St. Petersburg Mint is preparing a denomination of 20 rubles with the same figures. The coin demonstrated to the Senate in August 1755 is undoubtedly the only copy minted. The 'double imperial' project did not receive authorization from the Empress and was abandoned. It remains the highest denomination ever attempted for the imperial coinage.
In the following year, the list of gold coins is extended to lower denominations which compete with the silver ruble.
The 20 ruble specimen weighs 33.14 g with a diameter of 37 mm in standard .917 gold. It is very well centered although its cut is not perfectly circular. This coin graded AU-58 by NGC was sold for £ 1.8M by St. James's on November 6, 2008.
