1/2 Thaler

Bremen struck this half thaler in 1643 during the closing years of the Thirty Years' War, a conflict that had devastated much of the German-speaking world since 1618. The city had maintained its status as a Free Imperial City and navigated the war with considerable diplomatic care, though Swedish forces had effectively dominated the surrounding region for years. The Peace of Westphalia was still five years away, and coinage of this period reflects the persistent need to maintain commercial credibility when political futures were genuinely uncertain.

Jungk's reference work on Bremen coinage remains the authoritative die study for this series.