Christoph Bernhard von Galen became Prince-Bishop of Münster in 1650, just two years before this piece was struck, and his tenure opened with immediate political aggression — he spent much of the 1650s rebuilding Münster's military capacity and asserting episcopal authority that had been badly eroded during the Thirty Years' War. Klippe issues from his early reign are presentation pieces, almost certainly never intended for circulation.
The square flan format demanded hand-cutting from rolled gold sheet, making exact weight conformity across survivors essentially impossible. Schulze records only a handful of die-confirmed examples for this type.
Christoph Bernhard von Galen became Prince-Bishop of Münster in 1650, just two years before this piece was struck, and his tenure opened with immediate political aggression — he spent much of the 1650s rebuilding Münster's military capacity and asserting episcopal authority that had been badly eroded during the Thirty Years' War. Klippe issues from his early reign are presentation pieces, almost certainly never intended for circulation.
The square flan format demanded hand-cutting from rolled gold sheet, making exact weight conformity across survivors essentially impossible. Schulze records only a handful of die-confirmed examples for this type.