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1/4 Thaler
| Issuer | City of Geneva |
|---|---|
| Year | 1623-1633 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | The quartered arms of Geneva — displaying the Imperial eagle on the dexter and the key of Saint Peter on the sinister — occupy the central field within a beaded inner circle. Above the shield, the IHS Christogram within a radiant sun surmounts the composition. The date appears in the outer legend, which reads GENEVA * CIVITAS * flanking the year. The overall style is characteristic of early seventeenth-century Swiss municipal coinage, executed in the hammered technique with bold, deeply struck relief. |
|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | GENEVA * CIVITAS * 1623 IHS |
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| Additional information |
Geneva struck this fractional thaler series during a decade of acute political anxiety — the city had survived the Escalade of 1602, the Duke of Savoy's failed night assault, and remained acutely aware of its vulnerability as a small Protestant republic surrounded by Catholic powers. Coinage in this period served a diplomatic as much as a commercial function, projecting municipal authority and confessional independence through currency.
The HMZ reference places this among a well-documented run of Geneva municipal silver, but individual dates within the 1623–1633 window carry meaningfully different survival rates.