3 Pfennig - Adolphus Frederick II Gold pattern strike

Adolphus Frederick II ruled Mecklenburg-Strelitz for over four decades, but pattern strikings from his reign are exceptionally scarce — this gold example of a base-denomination piece suggests a presentation or proof-of-die purpose rather than any serious proposal for circulating gold coinage of this value. The economics alone made that implausible; three pfennig in gold represented a fundamental mismatch between metal value and face value that no mint official would have overlooked.

KM#Pn8 is one of the few documented patterns attributable to this minor North German duchy's mid-18th century output.