Medieval Germany Isny Batzen 1522 to 1532

What an incredibly cool coin, Juli!

These old silver coins were minted over a period of about a decade in the German state of Isny. Today it is known as Isny im Allgäu and is a small town in southeastern Baden-Württemberg, close to the Alps. But until 1803, it was a Free Imperial City, or 'Freie Reichsstadt', with the authority to mint its own coins. The example in our picture comes from respected coin, stamp, and medal dealer H. D. Rauch in Vienna. It sold for 35 euros, about $50 US dollars, in a 2011 auction. CoinQuest thanks H. D. Rauch for use of their coin photo.

There are three different varieties of these batzen. They all have the same design. One has an inscription of 'GRA: CAROLVS: ROM: REG' on the side with the six-pointed star. Another type has 'GRA: CAROLVS: IMP AVG.' instead. Finally, there is a type with 'CAROLVS ROMA IMP AVGV'.

The dates on these coins do not have the first two numerals. A date of 30 (like on Juli's coin) thus means the year 1530. Some earlier dates use the letter Z instead of the numeral 2. A date of 'ZZ' thus means '1522'.

COINS WITH 'GRA: CAROLVS: ROM: REG'
worn: $8 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $35
well preserved: $65

COINS WITH 'GRA: CAROLVS: IMP AVG.' or 'CAROLVS ROMA IMP AVGV'
worn: $15
average circulated: $60
well preserved: $90

Damaged coins will be worth a few dollars at most. Read our Important Terminology page found at the top left in order to properly interpret the catalog values used on this page.
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