Very rare and beautiful municipal issue of a ducat of the city of Breslau.
Coin illustrated in the catalog 'Gold of the Jagiellonian Dynasty' by Jarosław Dutkowski with a rarity level of R8.
Attractive coin with plenty of mint luster.
Moderate surface hairliness.
Obverse: figure of the emperor facing right, holding the royal orb and a scepter
MAX II DGER IM SAGHB REX D SL
Reverse: coat of arms of the city of Wrocław
MO AVR WRATISLAVIENSIS 1573
Gold, diameter 22 mm, weight 3.46 g
Jarosław Dutkowski, in his study "Gold of the Vasa Dynasty" in Volume III devoted to Silesia, writes about the Wrocław mint as follows : "In the 16th century, the city of Wrocław very actively used its minting rights for over half a century. In 1560, the minting of city coins was limited. Occasionally at that time, the city mint minted a city coin, and at the request of the imperial chamber, also an imperial coin. In addition to circulation coins, the mint in Wrocław also minted occasional double ducats related to shooting tournaments organized by the Wrocław Fowler Brotherhood. During the reign of Emperor Rudolf II, the city council only twice issued ducats in 1582 and 1587. The Habsburgs were interested in limiting the rights not only of princes, but also of cities. This was even more important because the power in the city passed into the hands of Protestants, even though there was a Catholic bishopric here. Religious matters were the reason numerous conflicts in the Habsburg Empire. The conflict within the Habsburg family helped Czech and Silesian Protestants. Most Silesian princes also succumbed to the power of the Protestant religion. The Czechs had already taken advantage of the conflict of Emperor Maximilian (1564-1576), who was in dispute with his brother arch-Catholic rulers of Spain. There was a strong Protestant tradition in the Czech Republic, and Silesia also followed in the Czech footsteps.
