(sold for $130.0)

1690/1, Saxe-Meiningen, Bernhard I. Scarce Silver 2/3 Thaler (Gulden) Coin. R!

Denomination: 2/3 Thaler (Gulden)
Reference: Davenport 876, KM#25 (1-year type!). R!
Condition: Crudely struck, light scratches and planchet imperefections, ohterwise about XF for issue!
Mint year: 1691 (last digit re-cut from 0, which shows, that the modified dies of the 1690 issue were used for the minting of this coin!)
Weight: 15.32gm
Diameter: 39mm
Material: Silver

Obverse: Bare and draped bust of the Duke right.
Legend: DG B D S I C M A & W 16 - 91 (re-cut from 0!)

Reverse: Crowned 4-fold arms within palm-wreath. Value (2/3) in oval frame below.
Legend: NON EST MORT (2/3) ALEQUOD OPTO

The Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen was one of the Saxon duchies held by the Ernestine line of the Wettin dynasty, located in the southwest of the present-day German state of Thuringia. Established in 1681, by partition of the Ernestine duchy of Saxe-Gotha among the seven sons of deceased Duke Ernst der Fromme (Ernest the Pious), the Saxe-Meiningen line of the House of Wettin lasted until the end of the German monarchies in 1918.

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Bernhard I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen (Gotha, 10 September 1649 – Meiningen, 27 April 1706) was a duke of Saxe-Meiningen.

He was the sixth but third surviving son of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Altenburg and Elisabeth Sophie of Saxe-Altenburg.

After the death of his father, in 1675, the duchy was jointly governed by him and his brothers; but the duchy was divided five years later (in 1680); as a result of this divisionary treaty, Bernhard received Meiningen, Wasungen, Salzungen, Untermassfeld, Frauenbreitungen and Ichtershausen. Bernhard became the founder of the Saxe-Meiningen line.

The building of an official residence in Meiningen began immediately. The residence was finished in 1692 and was called Schloss Elisabethenburg, in honor of Bernhard's second wife. Like his brother Ernst, Bernhard's financial stability in his duchy was remarkable. The sales of chamber goods and the additional charge of taxes to the population were the result.

Bernhard's will ordered the indivisibility of the duchy, but not Primogeniture. This allowed his sons to govern the duchy jointly after his death.