The 1597 portrait penny is the first, oldest type of penny from the mint in Lublin.
It is a unique coin against the background of the entire rich minting of King Sigismund III Vasa. The only one with a portrait of the king showing him without one of the insignia of power - without the crown! It was changed later that year to a type referring to the issue of one of Vasa's predecessors - the Cracow pennies of Sigismund I the Old.
This is a very rare and collector-prized issue.
This is confirmed by our auction archive, in which this type, over the 25 years of our activity, was in our offer only 4 times.
Never in such a state of preservation.
This is one of the finest pieces of this type, including those from museum collections. Deep, stamped, with preserved mint freshness of the surface, with a spot near the portrait. No wonder it was one of the ornaments of the Lublin coin collection offered here.
Also noteworthy in its case is the variety - known only from this one piece.
Distinguished by an erroneously executed coat of arms of Lithuania, in which the Pogo was scooped onto the previously placed Eagle. The result was a knight with an eagle's beak.
Abbreviated date (97) at the end of Melchior Reysner's monogram-parted reverse legend. In addition, with an error in the king's titulary - REX-(sic!) M-D-L- , where P[OLONIAE] was missing, creating the legend: Sigismund 3 by God's grace King, Grand Duke of Lithuania.
