1½ Thaler - Ferdinand of Bayern

Ferdinand of Bavaria held the see of Münster from 1612 until his death in 1650, simultaneously occupying the archbishopric of Cologne and several other northern German ecclesiastical territories — an accumulation of offices that made him one of the most politically powerful churchmen in the Empire. The 1½ Thaler denomination was never a workhorse of commerce; issues at this weight were produced for presentation, gift-giving among the nobility, or as Schaumünzen with quasi-medallic intent.

1638 falls squarely within the Thirty Years' War, with Westphalia itself badly disrupted by troop movements and occupation. That a piece of this size was struck at all that year reflects the bishop's determination to project fiscal authority under pressure.