As a result of the Turkish war, Rudolf saw his God-given omnipotence tarnished. Thus, the melancholy emperor sought refuge in his art collection, for which he always had money. However, this didn’t help him against his ambitious brother Matthias.
On his coins, Rudolf II displayed the high aspirations he had for his reign. However, day-to-day business was though and then war broke out against the Turks. And medals played a crucial role in it.
Rudolf II went down in history as an unworldly emperor hiding in the witches’ kitchens of alchemists. His brothers stole his imperial crown while he was still alive. Justly? Unjustly? Let’s try to answer this question.
A regulation of the Bavarian dukes William IV and his brother Louis X is still quoted frequently today: the “Reinheitsgebot” – the beer purity law of 1516. We tell its story with the help of coins from the Special Collection Bavaria, which will be on sale on 18 March 2020 at Künker.
On 18 March 2020, Künker’s auction No. 335 offers a special collection of medieval coins containing about 150 splendid bracteates. These Romanesque works of art take us back to a time when saints were regarded as fellow citizens willing to engage actively for the well-being of the community.
On 9 October 2019, auction house Künker will be auctioning an object of major art-historical importance: The very Albrecht Dürer himself had been commissioned by the Nuremberg City Council to create the dies for medals that were to be officially handed to Charles V during his entry into the city in 1521.
There are only a few bishops of the Middle Ages who minted coins whom we know as much about as Bernward of Hildesheim. There is a reason for this. The churchman, from one of Saxony’s best families, intended to be worshipped as a saint after his death.
On 27 September, 2012, the mayor of Berlin inaugurated the new Rathaus Bridge. It is already the sixth bridge in this historic location. An extremely rare gold medal commemorates the first stone bridge that was erected at the same place. On 27 June, 2019, the item is auctioned off at Künker in Osnabrück.
In Auction 76, Heidelberger Münzhandlung will offer an extremely rare taler of John I, Duke of Palatine-Veldenz-Zweibrücken. It was minted by a historian, coin collector and convinced Christian who converted from the Lutheran to the Reformed faith. This taler could be a record of his decision.
The coronation of Maximilian II in Frankfurt set the tone for a period of religious peace in the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation: The pragmatic politician was willing to break new ground, including for his own coronation.
