Ausbeute coins — struck from ore mined at specific Saxon operations and presented as gifts or sold to investors and mine shareholders — were a distinct ceremonial-commercial hybrid unique to the German mining states. Frederick August I, better known as Augustus the Strong, was aggressively expanding Saxon mining revenues during this period to fund his extravagant court at Dresden and his ongoing ambitions in Poland, where he had purchased the crown in 1697.
The Müseler reference places this piece within the Erzgebirge mining district issues. Ausbeute ducats of this reign are encountered far less often than their thaler-denomination counterparts, the gold having been produced in smaller runs tied directly to yield surpluses.
Ausbeute coins — struck from ore mined at specific Saxon operations and presented as gifts or sold to investors and mine shareholders — were a distinct ceremonial-commercial hybrid unique to the German mining states. Frederick August I, better known as Augustus the Strong, was aggressively expanding Saxon mining revenues during this period to fund his extravagant court at Dresden and his ongoing ambitions in Poland, where he had purchased the crown in 1697.
The Müseler reference places this piece within the Erzgebirge mining district issues. Ausbeute ducats of this reign are encountered far less often than their thaler-denomination counterparts, the gold having been produced in smaller runs tied directly to yield surpluses.