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4 Pfennig - Clemens August
| Issuer | Bishopric of Münster |
|---|---|
| Year | 1743-1745 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Copper |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Central field bears an elaborate crowned royal cipher composed of intertwined gothic letters, likely the initials of Clemens August, Bishop of Münster, rendered in an ornate foliate monogram style beneath a bishop's or princely crown. The monogram is flanked on either side by palm or laurel branches serving as supporters. The denomination numeral '4' appears to the left of the device and the letter 'P' to the right, denoting 4 Pfennig. The overall design is executed in a Baroque style consistent with ecclesiastical coinage of the mid-eighteenth century. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | 4 P |
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| Additional information |
Clemens August of Bavaria held simultaneous control over five German ecclesiastical territories by the 1740s — Münster, Cologne, Paderborn, Hildesheim, and the Teutonic Order — making him one of the most powerful Catholic princes in the Holy Roman Empire. This small copper issue was struck during the final years of his rule over Münster, a bishopric he had governed since 1719. Financing the extravagant Baroque court at Brühl consumed enormous resources, and petty copper coinage like this 4 Pfennig piece served the everyday commerce his grander silver and gold issues never touched.