One of the rarest Malbork sixpences. The 1596 yearbook with the distinctive large head of the king.
Malbork sixpences from the first year of their minting (1596), come with two types of portrait. The first, with a portrait with a small king's head, which can only be found on this vintage, is a common, popular coin. The second type of portrait, of which this piece is representative, is a distinctive portrait with a large king's head.
The item is very rare, occasionally appearing in the trade. A variety against which there is a theory that it was an engraver's error. The large head of Sigismund III is a portrait also known from the 1599 yearbook. Its early type, which with this depiction of the king, appears in the trade more frequently from 1596, and it should be noted that these issues are separated by 3 years. It could, therefore, have been an error on the part of the stamp maker, who misplaced the second digit of the date. A simpler solution is also likely, that after a small issue in 1596, the punch with a large head simply lingered until 1599, until the reissue of Malbork sixpences. For more on this topic, see groupamarciniak.pl.
