12 Kreuzer - Frederick Ulrich Kipper

Frederick Ulrich's 12 Kreuzer belongs to the Kipper und Wipper period, one of the most spectacular monetary catastrophes in German history. Between roughly 1619 and 1623, dozens of petty princes — Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel among them — systematically debased their coinage, clipping and remelting good silver to strike overvalued small denominations, then spending them into neighboring territories before the fraud was detected. The resulting currency collapse drove grain prices in some regions up tenfold within two years.

Frederick Ulrich's administration was particularly aggressive in this exploitation. The coins circulated far faster than authorities could withdraw them, leaving ordinary subjects holding worthless metal.