4 Thalers - Rudolph August Löser

The massive multiple-thaler pieces issued by Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel in the late seventeenth century were not struck for circulation — they functioned as presentation pieces, diplomatic gifts, and demonstrations of ducal prestige at a moment when the Guelf dynasty was aggressively lobbying for elevation to electoral status within the Holy Roman Empire. Rudolph August ruled jointly with his brother Anton Ulrich from 1685, but this piece predates that arrangement, issued during his sole rule following the death of their father August the Younger.

Dav BrSL#100 identifies this as a bracteate-tradition Löser, struck on a broad flan with the characteristic hammer-and-die method that left these coins prone to uneven surfaces at the margins.