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Thaler - Ferdinand I
| Issuer | Hungary |
|---|---|
| Year | 1555-1556 |
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| Engraver(s) | Kristof Füessl |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | FERDINAND · D · G · ROM · HVN · BOE · DAL · C · REX ¤ (Translation: Ferdinandus Dei Gratia Romanorum Hungariae Bohemiae Dalmatiae Croatiae Rex - Ferdinánd, by the grace of God, King of the Romans, Hungary, Bohemia, Dalmatia, Croatia) |
| Reverse description | A large heraldic eagle displayed with open wings fills the central field, bearing on its breast a complex quartered shield incorporating the Árpád stripes of Hungary, the Hungarian double cross, the Dalmatian leopard heads, and the Bohemian lion, with an inescutcheon of the Austrian fess at center. Surmounting the eagle is the crowned Madonna and Child, the Virgin holding a scepter in her left hand with the Christ Child on her right arm, serving as the Madonna of Hungary (Patrona Hungariae). The mint mark of Kremnica (K-B) appears on both sides of the Madonna within the inner pearl circle. The date 1556 appears within the circumferential legend, which completes Ferdinand's extensive royal titulature continued from the obverse. |
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| Additional information |
Ferdinand I's Hungarian thalers of the mid-1550s were struck at Kremnica (Körmöcbánya), the principal mint serving the Hungarian crown throughout the Habsburg period. By this point Ferdinand was fighting a permanent two-front problem: Ottoman forces under Suleiman the Magnificent held central Hungary after Mohács, and Transylvania was operating as a semi-autonomous vassal state under János Zsigmond. The thaler coinage was partly a statement of administrative control over the rump kingdom that remained — the northern and western strips where Habsburg writ actually ran.
The .894 fineness is notably high for mid-century central European thaler production, reflecting the quality of silver flowing from the rich Slovak mining towns still under Habsburg control.