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1/2 Reichsthaler - Christopher of Manderscheid
| Issuer | Stavelot-Malmedy, Imperial abbey of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1569-1570 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 14.2 g |
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| Obverse description | Central field occupied by a quartered heraldic shield surmounted by an ornate crested helm with elaborate mantling, displaying the combined arms of the Abbey of Stavelot-Malmedy and the Manderscheid comital family. The escutcheon is set within decorative scrollwork and supported by foliate ornamental elements typical of late Renaissance die-cutting. The peripheral legend, struck in Roman capitals separated by mullets, reads: CHRIS ⋆ CO ⋆ A ⋆ MAND ⋆ D ⋆ G ⋆ AB ⋆ STAB ⋆ ET ⋆ PR, identifying the issuing authority as Christopher, Count of Manderscheid, by God's grace Abbot of Stavelot. The coin is struck on an irregular flan characteristic of hammered coinage of this period, with the legend partially weak at the margins. |
|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | CHRIS ⋆ CO ⋆ A ⋆ MAND ⋆ D ⋆ G ⋆ AB ⋆ STAB ⋆ ET ⋆ PR (Translation: Christopher Count of Manderscheid, by God`s grace Abbot of Stavelot, etc.) |
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| Additional information |
Christopher of Manderscheid-Blankenheim held the abbacy of Stavelot-Malmedy from 1546 until his death in 1576, presiding over one of the oldest Benedictine foundations in the Carolingian heartland — an institution that had maintained imperial immediacy, answering directly to the emperor, since the ninth century. The right to strike coin was among the abbey's jealously guarded privileges, and issues from this period reflect the abbey's insistence on that autonomy during a decade when religious authority across the Low Countries was fracturing under the pressure of Calvinist revolt and Spanish military consolidation.
The two-year span of this issue likely reflects a specific authorization or a short minting contract rather than continuous production.