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1/2 Mark - Gustav Vasa Bust type Ib
| Issuer | Sweden |
|---|---|
| Year | 1536-1537 |
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| Currency | Daler (1534-1593) |
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| Obverse description | Armored and crowned effigy of King Gustav Vasa facing right, rendered in the bold relief characteristic of early Swedish Renaissance coinage. The royal bust occupies a central beaded or linear inner circle, with the full Latin legend and date disposed in the outer annular field. The armor detailing and crown form are consistent with the Bust type Ib classification, distinguishing this issue from related obverse varieties. The portrait conveys regal authority within the constraints of mid-sixteenth-century hammered die work. |
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| Obverse lettering | GOSTAVS*D:G*REX*SWECIE (Translation: Gustav King of Sweden by the Grace of God) |
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| Additional information |
Gustav Vasa's half mark issues of the mid-1530s were struck at a moment when the Swedish crown was still consolidating monetary control following the break with the Hanseatic League and the upheavals of the Reformation. The Bust type series itself reflects multiple die revisions in rapid succession — the distinction between type Ia and Ib rests on subtle punch differences in the portrait die, catalogued by Märta Boëthius in her foundational work on Vasa coinage.
The .625 fineness was already a compromise, and contemporary records suggest ongoing debasement pressure throughout the 1530s as Vasa's military and administrative costs outpaced revenue.