Heritage World Coin Auctions
ANA Signature Sale 3094 19-20 Aug 2021
View prices realized
► Sale information
Find similar lots
Poland
Danzig. Wladislaw IV gold "Marriage to Ludovica Maria Gonzaga" Medal of 18 Ducats 1646-Dated MS64 NGC, cf. Raczynski-125 (weight not listed), HCz-7585 var. (R6; Weight of 16 Ducats), Chełminski-643 var. (same), CNG-571 var. (same). 56mm. 62.48gm. By Johann Höhn the Elder (unsigned). Absolutely extraordinary, and a piece which can easily be said to inspire as much awe and admiration today as it must have when it was first minted. Fully evocative of the exquisite medal-work that characterized the products of the mid 16th-century goldsmiths' guild in Danzig, the fields across the piece are embellished with Prooflike features, a fully watery and glassy sheen washing over both faces as they meet with sculpturesque devices executed in the most painstaking artistry. Indeed, not the least bit of detail is left underexpressed even with the aid of close magnification, each fold on the royal couple's mantles, the ornamented canopy, and even the textures of the floor tiles are made plain for all to see in this laudable display. Only the most subtle evidence of imperfections in the donative's vast flan can be detected, these readily dismissible and hardly causing the eye to pause as it sweeps the motifs, and of even less consequence considering how likely it is that such pieces would have found use in jewelry.
Wladislaw's second wife after the death of Caecilia Renata von Habsburg in 1644, Ludovica Maria Gonzaga (neé Princess Marie Louise of Gonzaga-Nevers) represented a very political marriage within the contemporary European landscape. Whereas Renata had been the daughter of the Emperor Ferdinand II, Maria had been pushed in the Polish king's direction by the French crown, who had endeavored to include Poland in an anti-Austrian coalition. Clearly produced in celebration of their union, it is most interesting to note that this medal is classified by two varieties according to Dutkowski and Suchanek--one lacking the artist's initials, with plain floor tiles, and the spelling FACIA in the obverse legend (this piece, cf. CNG-571, which we would note Dutkowski and Suchanek ascribe to Sebastian Dadler), and one with the initials IH on the obverse, flowers over the floor tiles, and FACIAM in the legend (cf. CNG-572-573). While the former is recorded only in the weight of 16 Ducats, and was reportedly produced for distribution to attendants of the royal wedding, the latter was minted in weights of 10, 16, and 18 ducats. This fact is particularly noteworthy for the specimen on offer here, as it conforms entirely with the design of CNG-571, but is minted at a clear weight of 18 Ducats, marking it out as seemingly unpublished and missing from the Brand, Chełminski, Frankiewicz, and Karolkiewicz collections. As such it seems fitting to conclude that it must have been presented to a very important individual. Taken together with the fact this selection has been off the market for at least 30 years, we can hardly emphasize enough the singularity of the present opportunity to all connoisseurs of the Polish and Danzig series.
https://coins.ha.com/itm/poland/poland-danzig-wladislaw-iv-gold-marriage-to-ludovica-maria-gonzaga-medal-of-18-ducats-1646-dated-ms64-ngc-/a/3094-33280.s?type=CoinArchives3094
HID02906262019
© 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
Estimate: 30000-50000 USD
Danzig. Wladislaw IV gold "Marriage to Ludovica Maria Gonzaga" Medal of 18 Ducats 1646-Dated MS64 NGC, cf. Raczynski-125 (weight not listed), HCz-7585 var. (R6; Weight of 16 Ducats), Chełminski-643 var. (same), CNG-571 var. (same). 56mm. 62.48gm. By Johann Höhn the Elder (unsigned). Absolutely extraordinary, and a piece which can easily be said to inspire as much awe and admiration today as it must have when it was first minted. Fully evocative of the exquisite medal-work that characterized the products of the mid 16th-century goldsmiths' guild in Danzig, the fields across the piece are embellished with Prooflike features, a fully watery and glassy sheen washing over both faces as they meet with sculpturesque devices executed in the most painstaking artistry. Indeed, not the least bit of detail is left underexpressed even with the aid of close magnification, each fold on the royal couple's mantles, the ornamented canopy, and even the textures of the floor tiles are made plain for all to see in this laudable display. Only the most subtle evidence of imperfections in the donative's vast flan can be detected, these readily dismissible and hardly causing the eye to pause as it sweeps the motifs, and of even less consequence considering how likely it is that such pieces would have found use in jewelry.
Wladislaw's second wife after the death of Caecilia Renata von Habsburg in 1644, Ludovica Maria Gonzaga (neé Princess Marie Louise of Gonzaga-Nevers) represented a very political marriage within the contemporary European landscape. Whereas Renata had been the daughter of the Emperor Ferdinand II, Maria had been pushed in the Polish king's direction by the French crown, who had endeavored to include Poland in an anti-Austrian coalition. Clearly produced in celebration of their union, it is most interesting to note that this medal is classified by two varieties according to Dutkowski and Suchanek--one lacking the artist's initials, with plain floor tiles, and the spelling FACIA in the obverse legend (this piece, cf. CNG-571, which we would note Dutkowski and Suchanek ascribe to Sebastian Dadler), and one with the initials IH on the obverse, flowers over the floor tiles, and FACIAM in the legend (cf. CNG-572-573). While the former is recorded only in the weight of 16 Ducats, and was reportedly produced for distribution to attendants of the royal wedding, the latter was minted in weights of 10, 16, and 18 ducats. This fact is particularly noteworthy for the specimen on offer here, as it conforms entirely with the design of CNG-571, but is minted at a clear weight of 18 Ducats, marking it out as seemingly unpublished and missing from the Brand, Chełminski, Frankiewicz, and Karolkiewicz collections. As such it seems fitting to conclude that it must have been presented to a very important individual. Taken together with the fact this selection has been off the market for at least 30 years, we can hardly emphasize enough the singularity of the present opportunity to all connoisseurs of the Polish and Danzig series.
https://coins.ha.com/itm/poland/poland-danzig-wladislaw-iv-gold-marriage-to-ludovica-maria-gonzaga-medal-of-18-ducats-1646-dated-ms64-ngc-/a/3094-33280.s?type=CoinArchives3094
HID02906262019
© 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
Estimate: 30000-50000 USD