Ausbeutethalers were struck specifically from silver extracted at named Saxon mines, a practice the Wettin dynasty used to advertise mining productivity as much as to produce currency. This piece draws from the Johann series, issued under King Johann of Saxony during his early reign — a monarch better remembered today for his scholarly translation of Dante's Divine Comedy under the pseudonym Philalethes than for his fiscal policy.
The two-year window of 1857–1858 coincides almost exactly with the transition to the Dresden Mint's modernized steam press infrastructure, which displaced the old screw press operation during this period.
Ausbeutethalers were struck specifically from silver extracted at named Saxon mines, a practice the Wettin dynasty used to advertise mining productivity as much as to produce currency. This piece draws from the Johann series, issued under King Johann of Saxony during his early reign — a monarch better remembered today for his scholarly translation of Dante's Divine Comedy under the pseudonym Philalethes than for his fiscal policy.
The two-year window of 1857–1858 coincides almost exactly with the transition to the Dresden Mint's modernized steam press infrastructure, which displaced the old screw press operation during this period.