1 Goldgulden

Frankfurt struck goldgulden under its own authority as a Free Imperial City, but production was always subject to the monetary regulations of the Holy Roman Empire — particularly the Reichsmünzordnungen that periodically tightened fineness standards and weight tolerances. The 1617 issue falls just before the catastrophic disruptions of the Kipper- und Wipperzeit, the currency debasement crisis of 1619–1623 during which smaller German states and mints systematically debased coinage to extract seigniorage profit, flooding the Empire with underweight silver. Gold issues from immediately before that period survived the crisis with their intrinsic value intact.

Fiala 960 and Jung/Fischer 328 both note this type's relative scarcity in commerce today.