(sold for $242.0)

1746, Hall (Swabia), Emperor Francis I. Silver ½ Thaler Coin. 700 pcs. Struck!

Mint Year: 1746 Mintage: 700 pcs.   Mint Place: Nurnberg Denomination: ½ Thaler State: Hall (in Swabia) /  Swäbisch Hall References: Raff 50, Binder 69, KM-30. Engraver: P.P. Werner (Peter Paul Werner, die-cutter) Condition: Removed suspension loop at 12 o'clock, bag-marks and  scratches in obverse, otherwise a nice XF-AU! Weight: 14.52gm Diameter: 35mm Material: Silver

Obverse: Armored and draped bust of Emperor Francis I right, wearing Toison d'or order on a large chain on shoulders.  Engraver´s signature (P.P. WERNER) below arm drapery. Legend: FRANCISCVS D.G. ROM. IMP. SEMP. AVG. / P.P. WERNER

Reverse: Three shields with coat-of-arms on olive-wreath. Arabesque and date (17-46) below. Legend: MONETA NOVA REIPUBLICAE HALAE SUEVICAE / 17-46

Schwäbisch Hall, or (in the vernacular called) Hall for short is a town in the German state of Baden-Württemberg and capital of the district of Schwäbisch Hall. The town is located in the valley of the Kocher river in the north-eastern part of Baden-Württemberg. Hall was a Free Imperial City for five centuries until it was annexed by Württemberg in 1802. "Schwäbisch" refers to the Swabian League (German: Schwäbischer Bund). The origin of the second part of the name, "Hall", is unclear. It might be derived from a West Germanic word family that means "drying something by heating it", possibly referring to the open-pan salt making method used there until the saltworks closed down in 1925.

Francis I (Francis Stephen; 8 December 1708 – 18 August 1765) was Holy Roman Emperor and Grand Duke of Tuscany, though his wife effectively executed the real power of those positions. With his wife, Maria Theresa, he was the founder of the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty.

On 12 February 1736 Francis and Maria Theresa were married, and they went for a short time to Florence, when he succeeded to the grand duchy on the death of Gian Gastone de' Medici, the last of the ruling house of Medici. His wife secured in the Treaty of Füssen his election to the Empire on 13 September 1745, in succession to Charles VII, and she made him co-regent of her hereditary dominions.

Francis was well content to leave the wielding of power to his able wife. He had a natural fund of good sense and some business capacity and was a useful assistant to Maria Theresa in the laborious task of governing the complicated Austrian dominions, but his functions appear to have been primarily secretarial. He also took a great interest in the natural sciences. He was a member of the Freemasons.

Francis was quite the philanderer and was known for his many indiscreet affairs, notably one with Princess Auersperg, who was thirty years his junior. This particular affair has been remarked upon the letters and journals of visitors to the court and his children.

He died suddenly in his carriage while returning from the opera at Innsbruck on 18 August 1765. He is buried in tomb number 55 in the Imperial Crypt in Vienna.

Maria Theresa and Francis I had sixteen children--their youngest daughter was the future queen consort of France, Marie Antoinette (1755-1793). He was officially succeeded by his eldest son Joseph II although the real power remained with his wife. Another son was the Emperor Leopold II.