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1 daler, Stockholm, Gustav I Vasa, 1534

The coin in the display case is a daler minted at the Stockholm mint in 1534. The daler was an international trade coin, based on the fact that the coin had to have a certain silver content and weight. The daler comes from the denomination taler, which was first minted in 1518 in Joachimstal in the present-day Czech Republic.

1534 was the first year the daler was minted in Sweden. In the same year, half-daler and quarter-daler coins were also minted. There are several reasons why the daler was first minted in Sweden. Dalers were used, among other things, to pay mercenary troops and to help the Danish King Christian III financially in the civil war against supporters of the deposed King Christian II, who was also supported by Lübeck and others. The civil war is usually referred to as the Count's Feud (1534-1536) after Christian II's commander, Count Christopher of Oldenburg.

In 1534, daler coins were minted with four different motifs, which have been given the names Barette, Crown, Sword and Sceptre. The silver for the daler coinage came from the Sala silver mine in Västmanland. The coin in the display case is of the type known as the ‘Sceptre’ and was produced in both 1534 and 1535. The obverse (front) shows the king in a breastplate with a cloak. The king has royal attributes such as a crown, sceptre and orb. The year 1534 is also shown in the field, divided by the image. The reverse shows the crowned Great Coat of Arms with a heart shield bearing the coat of arms of the House of Vasa, the vase.

Image rights: Helena Bonnevier, Ekonomiska museet - Kungliga myntkabinettet/SHM (CC BY 4.0)

Object number: 106596_KMK

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