St. Gallen occupied an unusual constitutional position within the Swiss Confederacy — a free imperial city whose monetary rights were perpetually contested by the nearby Abbey of St. Gallen, a separate sovereign entity sharing the same name and geography. The billon issues of the 1720s and 1730s reflect the city asserting its independent coining authority during a period of particular tension with the abbatial administration under Prince-Abbot Joseph von Rudolphi.
Billon of this period varied considerably in silver fineness depending on the issuing authority and the moment of production, and St. Gallen's civic issues were not always consistent in alloy quality across the fourteen-year span this type covers.
St. Gallen occupied an unusual constitutional position within the Swiss Confederacy — a free imperial city whose monetary rights were perpetually contested by the nearby Abbey of St. Gallen, a separate sovereign entity sharing the same name and geography. The billon issues of the 1720s and 1730s reflect the city asserting its independent coining authority during a period of particular tension with the abbatial administration under Prince-Abbot Joseph von Rudolphi.
Billon of this period varied considerably in silver fineness depending on the issuing authority and the moment of production, and St. Gallen's civic issues were not always consistent in alloy quality across the fourteen-year span this type covers.