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5 Thalers - Henry Julius Löser
| Issuer | Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel |
|---|---|
| Year | 1609 |
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| Currency | Thaler (1499-1814) |
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| Obverse description | Armored equestrian portrait of Duke Henry Julius of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel facing right, mounted on a caparisoned horse in full stride, the duke depicted in elaborate plate armor with plumed helmet and commanding baton raised in his right hand. Beneath the horse, a detailed panoramic view of a fortified town or cityscape is rendered in low relief. The circular Latin legend surrounds the entire composition within a beaded border, reading HENRICVS IVLIVS D:G: POST: EPIS: HALB: DVX BRVN: ET LVN:, identifying the duke as postulate bishop of Halberstadt and Duke of Brunswick and Lüneburg. The work displays the virtuoso deep-relief hammered engraving characteristic of Löser-type multiple thalers produced for the Brunswick court. |
|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | HENRICVS • IVLIVS • D:G: POST: EPIS: HALB: DVX • BRVN: ET • LVN: |
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| Additional information |
Henry Julius, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, commissioned these massive multiple-thaler pieces — known as Löserthaler — as showpieces of territorial wealth rather than instruments of trade. The Löser designation refers specifically to this Brunswick tradition of striking oversized silver pieces at multiples of the thaler, intended for presentation, gifting, and treasury storage. At 81mm across, these were never meant to pass through a merchant's hands.
Henry Julius died in 1613 at the court of Emperor Rudolf II in Prague, where he had spent considerable time as an active participant in imperial politics. The 1609 date places this piece in the final years of his reign, as religious tensions across the Holy Roman Empire were hardening toward what would become the Thirty Years' War just nine years later.