Ducats ... Ducats ... Ducats

I thought ducats were only minted in Holland. How many countries produced them? Are you trying to get all of them? How many would that be?

They look awesome btw.

 

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Thanks Doug. It did explain a lot. One question. What do you mean by:

[FONT=Verdana,Helvetica][SIZE=-1]"Even today, the Netherlands still issues this coin as a collector's item and bullion coin. After more than 400 years it still has the same basic design and the same specifications. It is surpassed only by the Venetian ducat as the coin with the greatest longevity."[/SIZE][/FONT]

Does Italy still produce ducats? I think the article doesn't mention if or when they stopped producing them.

 

My point was another: isn't the 400 years in which Holland produced them a longer period than the period for Venice?

On the other hand, the production period for Germany spans from 1300 to 1871, which is almost 600 years.

This is an unimportant detail, I'm just trying to understand what you mean by longevity.

 

I have two more questions:

Germany (and its states) never resumed production of ducats after 1871?

When did the Dutch ducats stop circulating and become just a bullion/collection piece? In other words, what was the last year to circulate?

 

Again, many thanks. I totally skipped this line when I was re-reading the article:

[FONT=Verdana,Helvetica][SIZE=-1]"The design continued basically the same until 1797 until Venice was captured by Napoleon."[/SIZE][/FONT]

I already decided a ducat will be my first gold coin.

 

Good plan!

The Swiss produced some beautiful gold ducats, half ducats and quarter ducats. Here are a few photos...

1712 Half Ducat from Zurich from Heritage:



1743 Quarter Ducat in MS condition:



1743 Netherlands ducat:



And a 1753 Swiss Quarter Ducat:



One word of caution. If you are looking for a large gold coin you will not be happy with the Swiss quarter ducats as they are TINY.

 

This is a picture of ducat of Kingdom of Yugoslavia 1932.
obverse: Aleksander I the King of Yugoslavia
reverse: Kingdom of Yugoslavia 1932 1 ducat.

 

Yes ducats were issued by many countries over the years

Some may remember these ducats added to my collection throughout the years.

DENMARK
1792 Ducat Specie
NGC MS-62


GERMAN STATES -HAMBURG
1833 Dukat ... (with a K)
NGC MS-63


AUSTRIAN STATES-SALZBURG
1782M Ducat
NGC MS-62


AUSTRIAN STATES-SALZBURG
1794M Ducat
NGC AU-58
(This was my 1st world coin purchase in 1995)


AUSTRIA
1868A Ducat
NGC MS-63 PL
(This is the coin pictured in Doug's "The Ducat" , I acquired from him a few years ago .. it's a beauty is hand)

 

This is one of the better threads I have seen in this forum. Well done!

 

There is another ducat I wish to share with all of you with some interesting history.....

Netherlands (Utrecht) 1724 Ducat



A ducat of this mint & year was not considered to exist prior to the finding of the wreck of the Akerendam on 16 July 1972, by three Swedish sports divers, Bengt-Olof Gustafsson, Stefan Persson and Eystein Kroh-Dalen.

The ‘Akerendam’ was a Dutch East-Indiaman ship that wrecked at the Island of Runde, off the west coast of Norway, on March 8, 1725 during a North Sea storm. It was inroute to Batavia (Djakarta, Idonesia) for trade. In total 19 chest of gold and silver coins, some 16,000 coins were recovered in the wreckage. Of this total, 6,506 were 1724 gold ducats from the Utrecht mint !!
Though some five chest of coins were salvaged at the time of the wreck apparently no ducats dated 1724, were part of the recovery.

The foremost reference book on gold coins for the territories of the former northern and southern Netherlands, "Le Benelux D'or", does not have any reference to this coin because it was written and published by A. Delmonte in 1964 !!

The example pictured was acquired by me in October 2006 from GDJMSP and is graded NGC MS63. It is a classic shipwreck coin ....247 years in Davy Jones's Locker !!

 

edited

 

Hey doug, by Russian copies do you make counterfeits that were made in russia or do you mean more like a replica?

 

My speciman of a Venetian Ducat

Dated (1356-1361) - Doge Giovanni Dolfin
NGC MS63


Design: OBVERSE: Doge (or Duke) kneeling before a standing figure of St. Mark handing the doge the Venetians’ sacred banner, the gonfalone. Down along the staff of the gonfalone is the word “DVX” – “duke” and the legend reads: SMVENETTI – “Scared Money of Venice” on the left and on the right GIO˚DOLPHYNO – “Giovanni Dolfin” the name of the Doge. ~ REVERSE: Christ standing within a mandorla, with stars of heaven to either side, 4 stars on the left and 5 stars on the right; holding his right hand in benediction and the book of the Gospels in his left. The legend, in abbreviated Latin, SIT TIBI CHRISTE DATUS QUEM TU REGIS ISTE DUCATUS - “May This Royal Ducat (Duchy) Be Dedicated to Thee O’ Christ”
Mint: Venice (Zecca)
Mintage: Unknown
References: Fr. 1224
Specifications: Diameter – 20.0 mm
Weight – 3.500 g. @ 0.9860 Gold = .1107 oz AGW
Acquired: May 2006
Notes:

• Type I design. This design continued basically the same from 1285 until 1797 when Venice was captured by Napoleon.

• Doge Giovanni Dolfin was the 57th Doge of Venice. There was a total of 120 Doges from Year 697-1797

• Saint Mark is the patron saint of Venice

• The Venice (Zecca) Mint opened in 1284 and Venice soon became the primary market for gold in the world. In 1285 the first Venetian gold ducat was minted at 3.5 grams of .986 gold. These specifications for the ducat would remain the same until today. This coin, the “Ducat” became a symbol of wealth and power for the next 500 years.

• Considered by many to be the most important coin of the Middle Ages and one of the most popular gold coins ever.

 

That's a very nice coin. How much do those run for? I have a modern restrike ducat but nothing like that. I like the fact that they are more pure gold than most coins of their time.

 

GCL, I would say in general for one graded MS probably $700-$1000+. Some doge issues are rarer than others and therefore bring much higher prices. I just checked a couple of dealers and found one listed .. Doge Michele Steno (1400-1413) NGC AU-55 for $550. Another list a Andrea Dandola (1382-1400) NGC MS62 for $895.