A very rare, first-year issue of King Sigismund Augustus’s half-groschen.
This issue marked the beginning of the denomination’s issuance, which dominated the king’s coinage. It was issued on a large scale for over 20 years, which is why it features such a wide variety of variants and attracts significant collector interest today.
A type featuring the king’s title (SIGIS AVG REX...) on the side with the Pogoń motif. Found only on some coins from this single year. Its rarity is well illustrated by Tyszkiewicz’s price list, which valued it at 30 mk, while the next edition, once minting began on a large scale, valued it at only 1 mk.
A variant featuring Pogoń Type 2 (with the so-called “gridded shield”) and legends ending in L / LITVA
