1/2 Öre - Gustav II Adolf

Gustav II Adolf's early coinage was issued against the backdrop of simultaneous wars with Denmark, Russia, and Poland — a strategic overextension that strained Swedish finances severely enough to drive the crown toward debased alloys. The .203 fineness of this piece is not incidental; it reflects deliberate fiscal policy during a period when full-silver coinage was simply not sustainable.

SM#80 places this among the earliest standardized small copper-silver issues of Gustav's reign, before the massive Falun copper revenues reshaped Swedish monetary production entirely.