1/2 Batzen - William IV

William IV became sole Duke of Bavaria only after a prolonged dynastic struggle with his brother Louis X, the two eventually agreeing in 1514 to rule jointly — but this half-Batzen predates that settlement, struck during the years William held contested authority in the duchy. The Batzen denomination itself was a relatively new invention at this point, having emerged from Swiss minting practice in the 1490s and spreading rapidly through southern German territories as a practical response to the chronic shortage of mid-value silver coinage.

The three-year window of this issue likely reflects a specific administrative or monetary reform that closed it out.