The Danzig half-taler of August III Sas - a coin that was never put into circulation.
An impressive, wide, proof issue worth 2 guilders = 60 groszes = half-taler (also called a two-gold coin).
Gdansk in the last years of the reign of August III Sas developed its minting activities. This was the city's response to the growing influx of low-value, licentious foreign coinage, including efraimek (a counterfeit coin of Frederick II, struck with Polish stamps). As we read in "The Gdansk Mint," the City Council also planned to mint a large silver coin in its project. The pattern for these was prepared by Gellentin, and the stamps were made by Abraham. These were precisely the two-gold coins. The minting of them was commissioned to the then head of the mint, Oeckermann. He was to make 200,000 two-dollar coins from 11-ounce silver, weighing ~13.6 grams. However, the order was not carried out.
Only a trial batch was minted.
This may have had to do with the very broad stamps, relative to the weight of this minted in high-grade silver coinage (11-oz., where the PLN was minted in 8-oz. silver). The two-zloty coin according to this design was almost equal in diameter to the thaler for Poland of August III, yet twice as light. The result was an inferior quality of reflection of the stamp's details. Here a very good reflection of the royal portrait stands out.
The present coin is an original mintage, with sterling silver of the correct grade for the planned issue, which we confirmed by spectrographic examination at the Assay Office. Not being a print in pure silver, for collector purposes.
First time in our history.
Listings at auctions in Poland unit.
