Adolph von Dalberg served as Prince-Abbot of Fulda from 1726 until his death in 1737, and large multiple-ducat pieces from his abbacy were struck almost entirely for presentation and diplomatic purposes rather than commerce. An eight-ducat piece at 28 grams would have been commissioned as a Schaumünze — a showpiece distributed to visiting dignitaries or given as formal gifts by the abbey — which explains why survivors typically appear in finer preservation than their nominal face value would suggest.
Fulda's ecclesiastical mint operated under imperial privilege, and the abbey ranked among the oldest and most politically consequential of the German prince-abbacies.
Adolph von Dalberg served as Prince-Abbot of Fulda from 1726 until his death in 1737, and large multiple-ducat pieces from his abbacy were struck almost entirely for presentation and diplomatic purposes rather than commerce. An eight-ducat piece at 28 grams would have been commissioned as a Schaumünze — a showpiece distributed to visiting dignitaries or given as formal gifts by the abbey — which explains why survivors typically appear in finer preservation than their nominal face value would suggest.
Fulda's ecclesiastical mint operated under imperial privilege, and the abbey ranked among the oldest and most politically consequential of the German prince-abbacies.