Triton XX, Lot: 1153. Estimate $1500. Sold for $1700. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

AUSTRIA, Ensisheim (Landgrafschaft). Rudolf II. Holy Roman Emperor, 1576-1612. AR Taler (39.5mm, 12h). Ensisheim mint. Dated 1607. Laureate and cuirassed bust right, wearing ruff / Crowned and collared coat-of-arms. Davenport 3036; KM 246.4 (Germany). In NGC encapsulation MS 64. Toned. The only example graded by NGC and finer than the specimens on CoinArchives. WINGS APPROVED.

The region of Ensisheim, known as Alsace in French, was a territory within the Holy Roman Empire. The landgravate was held by the Hapsburg dynasty until 1639, when much of the region was conquered by France. It was then administered by France until 1871, when the region was incorporated into Germany following the Franco-Prussian War. Alsace was again returned to France in 1919, following the First World War. Though we generally catalog city coins under the modern-day country, considering the political complexities of the region, we have decided to place this series under Austria, to recognize Ensisheim’s place in Vorderösterreich (Further Austria).