2 Ducats - Ernest Augustus

Ernest Augustus had spent decades maneuvering for electoral dignity, and 1694 was his payoff — Emperor Leopold I formally elevated Brunswick-Lüneburg to an electorate that year, making Ernest Augustus the first Elector of Hanover. This coin was struck in the immediate aftermath of that elevation. He died the following year, making issues dated 1694 among the last produced under his authority.

The Welter reference places this among a well-documented run of ducats from the Clausthal mint, struck from Harz Mountain gold — a source the Brunswick dukes had exploited aggressively since the sixteenth century.