1 Ducat - Christian IV

Christian IV struck gold ducats throughout his reign as a matter of prestige finance — these coins circulated among merchants and diplomats, not ordinary Danes. The 1640s issues fall within the final, troubled stretch of his reign, following Denmark's catastrophic defeat in the Torstenson War against Sweden, which concluded in 1645 with the Peace of Brömsebro and stripped Denmark of significant Norwegian and Swedish territories. The crown was financially exhausted.

Lange's subdivision into 31, 31A, and 31B reflects distinct die variations documented across the emission, a detail that has made systematic attribution a persistent challenge for specialists working from worn or mounted examples.