5 Ducats - Carl XI 1st portrait

Reval — modern Tallinn — occupied an uneasy position in 1668, having passed to Swedish control following the Treaty of Roskilde a decade earlier. Carl XI was still a minor at the time of this issue, governing under a regency council dominated by Magnus Gabriel de la Gardie, which means this coin technically reflects the political authority of the regency rather than the king himself. The city retained limited minting privileges under Swedish rule, and multi-ducat gold pieces of this type were almost certainly struck for presentation purposes rather than commerce.

The first portrait type distinguishes this from later Reval issues of the same reign. Fewer than a handful of examples are recorded across major collections.