Künker Auctions 219-222 Preview

Künker Rarities Auction
October 30-31, 2012 in Osnabrück

With a second auction within a month the leading German auction house surprises the collector community: on October 30 and 31 another four catalogues will be presented, containing more than 2,000 lots. On the first day the Hagander (part 4) and Vogel (part 3 and 4) collections will be liquidated, on the second the Mercator collection of Hesse coins and medals as well as Russian coins and medals. The total estimate adds up to more than 7 million euros. With 150,000 euros the highest individual estimate is connected to a coronation coin, minted in 1629 in Prague.

Catalogue 219: Part 4 of the Julius Hagander collection “Sweden and its territories” comes first this day. This time, 337 lots for estimated 800,000 euros will be called up. Carefully selected items, rarities for the most part, and the entire catalogue for that matter rather reads like a history book for Scandinavia, the Baltic States and Germany.

The sale starts with a pfennig of the “Treasure King” Olof Skötkonung, minted around 1005 in Sigtuna (estimate: 2,000 euros). The catalogue’s end is marked by a mixed lot of important publications (130 pieces, estimate: 500 euros). What do a silver gulden (gyllen) 1512 of Regent Sten Sture the Younger, a portugalöser without date (1585/1586) of King John III and two 10 ducat pieces 1644 and 1645 of Queen Christina of Riga have in common? The estimate: 30,000 euros each. What is the common feature of John’s gold gulden 1570, a 10 ducat piece 1658 of the city of Elbing and the 5 ducat piece 1645/1655 of Riga? The estimate of 25,000 euros each. In comparison, the daler 1535 of King Gustav Eriksson Vasa with its 10,000 euros seems rather modest.

An eye-catcher is the 3 ducat piece 1632 of the city of Augsburg with the portraits of the royal Swedish couple Gustav Adolf II and Maria Eleonora (15,000 euros), the only specimen in private possession. Likewise unique is the 3 ducat piece 1631 of Hildesheim (20,000 euros). These (exemplary) numbers bear witness to the importance of the Hagander Collection.

Catalogue 220: The Mercator Collection comprises “300 rarities from Hesse”, which are estimated at almost 1.4 million euros. The offer ranges from an albus 1675 from Kassel for 100 euros to the double edergold-gulden from 1677, a unique specimen estimated at 100,000 euros.

The admirers of mining coins will get their money’s worth: the mining regions Bieber, Gladenbach, Frankenberg and Roth appear on the scene. The dozen or so coins of land grave Louis IV of Hesse-Marburg (1567-1604) is unprecedented: from Kassel comes his münzvereinstaler 1572 (estimate: 25,000 euros), from Gladenbach his double thick reichstaler 1588 (30,000 euros), the two reichstaler 1587 and 1588 (3,000 euros each) as well as the 1/2 taler 1588 (10,000 euros).

In 1590 William IV, called “the Elder“, relocated the production to Marburg. A thick double reichstaler 1595 (30,000 euros), another four taler (2,500 to 15,000 euros) and three 1/2 taler (3,000 to 15,000 euros) testify to that. The last item of this rare collection tells of the death of the landgrave who died in Marburg without leaving any children (1/2 taler 1604, 5,000 euros). With the Hesse collection Künker is able to offer the earliest German taler with a date, the very rare guldengroschen from 1502 from Kassel (20,000 euros). A very rare goldgulden from 1506 of landgrave William II comes with the same estimate. Some coins from the Schmalkadic League fall in the same price category.

Catalogue 221: With this catalogue, two parts of the comprehensive Vogel Collection will be liquidated, starting with 371 lots “Gold rarities from 6 centuries of European history“ (total estimate 2.6 million euros), followed by roughly 500 lots “Hamburg coins and medals – minted history in gold” (1.4 million euros). 50,000 euros – that is the pre-sale price tag of a portuguez without date of Portuguese King John III (1521-1575). 80,000 euros is the estimate of an extremely rare 7 ducat piece n. d., minted posthumously on Archduke Sigismund (1446-1496) in Hall around 1563. The same denomination, issued posthumously on Maximilian I. (1490-1519), is estimated at 25,000 euros. Twice that sum is expected for 5 ducats of Maximilian; the gold item, weighing more than 17 grams, was produced in Sankt Veit in 1518. Of Archduke Ferdinand Charles there is a 20 ducat piece from 1654 from Hall, estimated at 75,000 euros. The double denomination, i.e. 40 ducats, comes with twice that estimate: 150,000, that is the expectation for the coin of Ferdinand III, minted in 1629 in Prague on his coronation. The listing of examples could be enlarged by a 10 ducat piece 1793 from the city of Regensburg (60,000 euros), a 20 ducat piece from Dresden (50,000 Euros) and a klippe of 25 ducats from Salzburg (60,000 euros). Anyone who hasn’t ordered a catalogue yet can view the precious items likewise on the internet (www.kuenker.de).

The Hamburg part of the catalogue assembles further valuables, ranging from the mark 1506 of the mint master Martin Oldehorst (1,000 euros) to the bankportugalöser of 10 ducats n. y. (around 1986, 1,250 euros). In between there is any number of gold with three- to five-figure sum estimates. To cite a few cases in point: three coins form the time of Emperor Leopold I, estimated at 25,000 euros each: 1/2 portugalöser of 5 ducats n. y. (1675-1692), 1/2 bankportugalöser of 5 ducats 1687, and 1/2 bankportugalöser of 5 ducats 1695.

Catalogue 222: Künker concludes the two-day auction with almost 600 lots “Russian coins and medals”. The collector can enter the bidding with 50 euros, for example for a cupreous polushka 1736 from Moscow. Special attention, however, will be paid as usual to the higher results, as can be expected for a 25 rouble piece equalling 2 1/2 imperial 1908 of Tsar Nicholas (estimate 80,000 euros), or the 5 rouble piece of Tsar Peter III 1762 (30,000 euros). Half that sum, i.e. 15,000 euros, is estimated for a golden achievement medal, awarded in 1864 to participants of the ‘proclamation of the emancipation of the serfs’. This is of interest to collectors of both countries. But: Tsar Alexander had minted 100 examples only. That is likely to cause a surprising hammer price exceeding the estimate. That promises to be not the only surprise of the two auction days in Osnabrück in late October.

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