48 Klippe Kreuzer Siege coinage

Breisach's 1633 siege coinage was struck under conditions of genuine desperation. The city, held by Imperial forces, endured a prolonged investment by Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar during the Thirty Years' War, and the municipal authorities resorted to emergency klippe issues — cut from irregular plate silver — when normal coin supply collapsed entirely. The 48 Kreuzer denomination was wildly overvalued against its silver content, a deliberate expedient to stretch whatever metal remained.

Berstett's ZB#86 distinguishes this as the second die variety of the type. The square-cut flan surfaces frequently show file marks from the hasty preparation of blanks under siege conditions.