Medals made from silver mined in the Bohemian town of Joachimsthal were exported throughout the Holy Roman Empire in the early 16th century. Among the town’s most skilled medalists were Wolf Milicz and his son Nickel. In this inaugural book in the Frick’s Scher Lecture series, Maximilian Kummer explores how the Miliczs’ medals reflect the era’s religious and political tensions, offering a fascinating glimpse into the intersection of power, faith and artist expression.  
 
In the turbulent years before the Schmalkaldic War of 1546–47 – fought between the Protestant Schmalkaldic League and Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and his allies – the Bohemian town of Joachimsthal (now Jáchymov in the western part of the Czech Republic) was a major center for the production of coinage and medals. (The coins were named Joachimsthaler after the town, shortened to ‘thaler’ or ‘taler’ and from their ‘daler’, eventually becoming ‘dollar’ in the United States.) Medals made from the ore in the rich silver mines of Joachimsthal were exported throughout the Holy Roman Empire. Among the town’s most skilled medalists were Wolf Milicz and his son Nickel. Most of Joachimsthal’s inhabitants were Protestant, but the town’s mint was controlled by both the Schlicks, a noble Lutheran family, and King Ferdinand I of the Catholic Habsburgs, brother of Emperor Charles V. As a result, Wolf and his son created medals for both Protestant and Catholic patrons. The artistry and diplomacy required to navigate the complexities of the rivalling religious forces is particularly striking in the Milicz commemorative medals of Elector Johann Friedrich of Saxony. The medals featuring this powerful Protestant leader and fierce opponent of Ferdinand and Charles are rich in symbolism and carefully worded inscriptions. Maximilian Kummer explores how the medals by Wolf and Nickel Milicz reflect the era’s religious and political tensions, offering a fascinating glimpse into the intersection of power, faith and artist expression.