3 Ducats - Charles Theodor

Charles Theodor inherited the Bavarian electorate in 1777 under deeply unpopular circumstances — he was a Palatine Wittelsbach with no particular attachment to Bavaria, and his near-surrender of the territory to Austria in the abortive exchange scheme of 1778–79 nearly cost him his throne entirely. Frederick the Great intervened militarily in what became the War of the Bavarian Succession, a conflict settled bloodlessly but humiliatingly. Multi-ducat presentation pieces struck during his reign were almost certainly not intended for circulation.

The .986 fineness places this among the finest gold coinages of the period — Bavarian ducats of this era were struck from Rhenish gold of exceptionally high purity.