What Is A "Medallic Thaler"?

Thaler-sized commemoratives or medals (<44mm) not intended for circulation -- not to be confused with commemorative thalers which had commemorative/medallic themes but were intended for circulation.

Some of them have the standard thaler obverse for their year and state or city, but a different medallic reverse vs. the circulating thaler.

If you want larger currency coins from the German States/Austria, they are available, but scarce, in 2 and 3 thaler denominations; for the well-heeled, there are gold issues denominated as 5 thalers, small in size but larger in value. A 17th c. Austrian 3 thaler of Rudolf II, for instance, has a weight of 86.2g silver -- now that's a heavy coin!

A much later silver 2 thaler issue of Friedrich Wilhelm IV (mid 19th c.) has a weight of 37.1g and a diameter of 41mm, the size of a modern American Silver Eagle.