1 Ducat - Christian

Brandenburg-Bayreuth's ducat production during these years unfolded against the catastrophic backdrop of the Thirty Years' War, which devastated the Franconian territories more thoroughly than almost any other German region. Christian of Brandenburg-Bayreuth lost roughly half his population to war, plague, and famine between 1618 and 1648. Gold ducats of this period served diplomatic and military payment functions that base metal coinage could not — field commanders and foreign allies demanded specie of unimpeachable fineness.

The .986 fineness conforms to the longstanding ducat standard codified across the Holy Roman Empire, traceable to the 1559 imperial mint ordinance.