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1 Thaler - Henry Julius 'Wahrheitstaler'
| Issuer | Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Principality of |
|---|---|
| Year | 1597-1598 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | Standing frontal figure of Veritas (personification of Truth), draped, occupying the central field within a raised inner circle. The border is composed of eleven small shields of arms arranged around the circumference, with a horse crest (the Brunswick leaping horse) prominently placed at the top. A six-part Latin legend distributed around the figure reads VERITAS / VIN-CIT / OM-NIA / CALVM / NIA- MEN / DACIVM, proclaiming that Truth conquers all calumny and falsehood. The composition is characteristic of the 'Wahrheitstaler' (Truth Thaler) type issued by Heinrich Julius of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. |
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| Additional information |
Henry Julius, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, issued this coin during an intense personal feud with his own nobility — specifically the Estates, whom he accused of corruption and conspiracy against ducal authority. The "Wahrheitstaler," or Truth Thaler, was a deliberate propaganda instrument: the duke used coinage as a public broadside, inscribing accusations and biblical justifications directly onto silver. It is one of the more aggressive deployments of a coin as political pamphlet in early modern German history.
Henry Julius was also a practicing playwright, and the same polemical instinct that shaped his dramas shaped this issue. The 1597–1598 dating reflects the period of sharpest conflict with the Estates before an uneasy resolution.