1/3 Riksdaler - Karl X Gustav Funeral of Karl X

Karl X Gustav died in February 1660 at Gothenburg, aged 37, almost certainly from pneumonia contracted during the winter campaign. His death came at a politically precarious moment — peace negotiations at Oliva were still unresolved, and Sweden held territories across the Baltic that required a functioning monarchy to defend. The funeral coinage was struck as part of the formal mourning observances, a practice rooted in Swedish ceremonial tradition dating back through the Vasa kings.

SM#40 is among the scarcer Swedish memorial issues of the 17th century. The .880 fineness is characteristic of Swedish silver production in this period, when the crown was managing bullion supplies under considerable fiscal strain from decades of near-continuous warfare.