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1 Kreuzer - Frederick Charles Joseph of Erthal Gold pattern strike
| Issuer | Archbishopric of Mainz |
|---|---|
| Year | 1795 |
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| Diameter | 15 mm |
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| Obverse description | Draped bust of Friedrich Karl Joseph von Erthal, Archbishop-Elector of Mainz, facing right, wearing ecclesiastical vestments with a lace collar. The hair is dressed in a short curled wig typical of the late 18th century. The encircling Latin legend reads FRID.CAR.IOS.A EP.ET EL.DIOC.EP.W, referencing his titles as Archbishop and Elector. The coin exhibits a milled border with fine dentilation. The portrait is rendered in a refined Baroque style consistent with late German ecclesiastical coinage. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Crowned oval coat of arms of the Archbishopric of Mainz displayed on a decorated pedestal, which incorporates the denomination within its base. Flanking the arms are palm branches, symbolizing peace and ecclesiastical dignity. The split date 17/95 appears at the bottom of the design, separated by the central pedestal element, with the mint mark and kreuzer denomination indicated by the letters 1K and 1/A. The overall composition is characteristic of late 18th-century German territorial coinage. |
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| Additional information |
Frederick Charles Joseph von Erthal was the last Prince-Archbishop of Mainz to actually hold temporal power over the electorate — French Revolutionary forces occupied the city in 1792, and by 1795, the year this pattern was struck, Erthal was governing little more than a rump territory from Aschaffenburg. A gold pattern of a base-denomination kreuzer in that particular moment is less a coin than a political gesture, asserting an authority that was rapidly evaporating.
The archbishopric ceased to exist entirely in 1803 under the Reichsdeputationshauptschluss.