Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
1/2 Mark - Wilhelm von Fürstenberg Riga
| Issuer | Livonian Order |
|---|---|
| Year | 1557-1558 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 5.61 g |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | A fortified castle gateway rendered in detailed relief, surmounted by two crossed keys, the traditional arms of the city of Riga, all within a circular Latin legend along the periphery. The architectural motif is depicted with crenellated towers and an arched gate, characteristic of the hammered coinage of the Livonian Order. |
| Reverse script | Latin |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Wilhelm von Fürstenberg served as Master of the Livonian Order during one of its most precarious stretches — the years immediately preceding the Livonian War, which broke out in January 1558 when Ivan IV's forces crossed the eastern frontier. These coins were struck as the Order's political and military position was collapsing; Fürstenberg himself was captured by Russian forces in 1560 at the Battle of Ermes and spent the rest of his life in captivity in Russia. The half mark denomination served the Order's local Baltic trade obligations during a monetary system already under pressure from Polish and Lithuanian influence.