Numismatics

[Lagun]

Numismatics are one of my passions.

I have special fever for Thalers and large silver coins from the Middle Ages to WWI.
So I will insert some of my favorite coins, so that any other pasionate collector in the forum does it aswell.

I will start with the King of Spanish Numismatics:

CINCUENTIN (175g -76mm - 903 Silver) This one represents an almost 100% unified Spain (Just French Bask Country and Andorra missing)

[Lagun]

Double Thaler (Austria-Tirol - Hall - 1712) (57,2 g - 47 mm - aprox. 870 silver)

[Lagun]

20 Reales (Spain - 1810 - Madrid - 903 Silver - 27,07g - 40mm)

[Lagun]

DUCATON (Spanish Nederlands -Antwerp - 1619 -Albert & Elizabeth - 32,23g - aprox. Silver 900)

[Lagun]

As a homage to Aptrgangr:

5 Mark (1901 - Silver 900 - 27,77gr - 38mm)

[Lagun]

This one is for Hohenheim, who also loves coins, to encourage him to put his beloved ones.

Tallero Ragusa (1752 - about 30g - About 870 Silver - 40mm)

[Lagun]

8 Reales (Spain-Strucked at Mexico-1734-27g- 903 Silver -40mm)





I have decided to add some comments so that every coin that I thread in is understood in it´s context.

This coins known as Columnarios in Spain and Pillar Dollars in the USA, were strucked in Spanish Colonial mints since 1732 to 1771, under the reigns of Philip V, Ferdinand VI, and Charles III.

It was considered to be the trading coinage of the world. The most prestigiuos and valuable for trade, as it was reliable both for it´s weight (Castilian oz 27,07g) and the purity of silver (903m). It was in fact the coin that most of USA citizents had in their pockets at their independence days.

The $ symbol, (S with two bars), is understood to come from the "colums" of the coin we are talking today about. The "S" is supoused to come from the latin form of the Spanish gold coin of that time "EScudo".

The most popular mints of "Columnarios", were: Mexico, Lima, Potosí (Bolivia), Guatemala.

The most Precious and scarce: Madrid, Santiago de Chile and Popayan (Colombia).

[Lagun]

The Chinese Countermarks

During the XVIII century, the Spanish silver coinage, based in American Colonial Mints and Silver Mines, dominated all the worlds economy.

As I said before Spanish 8 reales pieces (silver oz), were the most reliable in weight and Silver purity.

To avoid this monopoly, English started introducing in the far east, replicas of Spanish 8 reales minted in lead and coated in silver.

To distinguish the real from the "replicas", the Chinese bankers introduced countermarks in the good coins to certify there authenticity.

In the example you can see and 8 reales coin minted at Potosí (Bolivia) the 1774,for Charles III King of Spain.

[Aptrgangr]

I used to collect WW1 and WW2 era coins, these are some I have (my 1 Reichsmark coins are in a better condition than the depicted one). The 1 Reichsmark coins never were coined with the new eagle+swastika, which became obligatory in late 1936.

[Lagun]

That was great Aptrgangr,
As you know the 5 Reichmarks were 900 Silver 13,88g and minted at:

A (Berlin)
B (Vienna / Wien) (1938-1944)
D (Munich / München)
E (Muldenhutten - Saxony)
F (Stuttgart)
G (Karlsruhe)
J (Hamburg)

In the case of the coins you have inserted, all seem to be A, so strucked in Berlin. Ther 1 reichsmark coin is nickel, and it´s design seems to be an evolution form the 5g 500 silver 1 mark (1925-1927) Weimar Republic:



Regarding the 5 Reichsmark coins in the III Reich period, the coins that would complete the series that you have started are:

5 Reichmarks 13,88g 900 Silver 450th Anniversary Martin Luther
(This example strucked in Munich/München)




5 Reischsmark 1934 (175th Anniversary Schiller´s Birth-900 Silver-13,88g)
(This example issued at Stuttgart mint)

5 Reichsmark since 1934 - Postdam Garrison Church (13,88g-900Silver) (The example minted at Stuttgart (F))

The same coin but With Legend (First Anniversary Nazy Rule)

[Lagun]

The King of Spain represented as an Indian

From 1808 to 1814 most of Mainland Spain was ocupied by French Napoleonic troops (about 100.000 soldiers permanently movilizied). José Napoleón I, Napoleon´s brother, was nominaly King of Spain. Nominally because he was not accepted by the Spanish people, and not recognized where ever French troops were not present. Communications were not that good and American Colonial mints strucked coins using imaginary portraits of the true king: Ferdinand VII.

Thats how the king of Spain in Lima (Perú) was represented as an INDIAN. (8 Reales - Lima - Spain - 27,07g - 903 Silver - 40mm)

[Lagun]

Coins with city skylines

It was rather frequent to represent city skylines in the strucked thalers of Germanic cities along the S.XVII and S.XVIII, mainly. Prosperous European cities with granted freedom within the Holly Roman Germanic Empire or independent cities mainly.
Some examples:

NURNBERG (Thaler-1745-about 42mm-about 30g-about 870 silver)



Nurnberg (1630 - Thaler)





Zurich (1/2 Thaler - 1756)



REGENSBURG (1 THALER - 1775 - APRX30G- 870 SILVER - 42MM)

[Lagun]

As a homage to BREHA.



TALERO VENEZIA (Scudo della Croce da 140 Soldi)(31.45 g. – ø 44 mm - About 870 Silver)

For many centuries the fabulous Republica Serenissima, strucked coins with the proud lion of St. Mark, being owners of the Adriatic and most of eastern Mediterranean See.

[Lagun]

The crowned C

In was usual in olden days numismatics, and even nowdays in some cases, that coins held symbols regarding the place/city where they were strucked.

In this sense in Spanish numismatics, the crowned M, was the symbol of Madrid since about 1728.

But during the Napoleonic wars, what we call the War of Independende (1808-1814), most of Spanish mainland cities were ocupied by the French troops with the exeption of Cadiz, were in absence of the true King FERDINAND VII, kidnapped in France by Napoleon, the "true government of the Spanish nation and overseas territories was in CADIZ.

Thats the reasson why in those years, Cádiz´s mintmark stopped being a C to become a CROWNED C, as you can observe in the following piece.

8 REALES (Spain - Cádiz - 1813 - 27,07g - 903 SILVER - 42mm)

[Lagun]

The wild man

Another of the most repeated and prefered topics in the SXVI-SXVIII century German Thalers, is that of the Wildman.

Some examples:

THALER 1663 BRUNSWICK-LUNEBURG-CALENBERG





THALER 1691 BRUNSWICK-WOLFENBUTTEL

[Lagun]

NECESSITY COINAGE

During moments of instability caused by revolutions, wars or similar, coins have been strucked to guarantee trade, pay soldiers or others.

This coins have always been different to the official coins of the period, as they were usualy strucked in dificult conditions and with basic designs.

I include some examples of necessity coinage strucked in Spain during the Spanish war of independence (1808-1814) (Napoleonic wars), by Spanish patriots that were not under French control.

Gerona 1808 (Duro - 40mm - 900 Silver - 27g)

The town of Gerona in Catalonia, sufered a terrible siege and kept loyal to the true King Fernando VII, eating rats and mice to survive. Thys strucked coin using silver requested from private houses.

[Marcus Marulus]

Coins and banknotes of the Independent State of Croatia (Nezavisna Država Hrvatska), 1941-1945:

(1 kuna = 100 banica)

kovanice || coins

[26-05-1941]
izdanje ministarstva narodnog gospodarstva
issued by the Ministry of Economics
50 kuna
100 kuna
500 kuna
1000 kuna

[30-08-1941]
izdanje Državne riznice
issued by the National Treasury
10 kuna

[01-09-1942]
(papirni bonovi/scrips)
izdanje grada Zagreba
issued by the city of Zagreb
50 banica
1 kuna
2 kune

[25-09-1942]
izdanje Državne riznice
issued by the National Treasury
50 banica
1 kuna
2 kune

[15-07-1943]
izdanje Hrvatske državne banke
issued by the Croatian National Bank
5000 kuna
(novčanica od 10.000 kuna je ostala u pripremnoj tiskarskoj fazi/
a banknote of 10,000 kuna remained in preparation for printing phase)

[01-09-1943]
izdanje Hrvatske državne banke
issued by the Croatian National Bank
100 kuna
(nije bila u obtjecaju/didn't gain currency)
500 kuna
(nije bila u obtjecaju/didn't gain currency)
1000 kuna
5000 kuna

[15-01-1944]
izdanje Državne riznice
issued by the National Treasury
(nisu bile puštene u obtjecaj/didn't gain currency)
20 kuna
50 kuna
cinčani novci
zinc coins
[1941]
1 kuna
2 kune

pokusni odkovi Kerdića
test-forgings by Kerdić
25 banica
50 banica
1 kuna
2 kune
5 kuna
10 kuna

sadreni predložci Kerdića
plaster models by Kerdić
25 banica
50 banica
1 kuna
2 kune
5 kuna
10 kuna

zlatnici
gold coins
500 kuna


kovanice izdane u izseljeničtvu/ coins issued in exile 5 kuna 1934
razne/various

(click on every icon to see a larger picture)

[Lagun]

Pezza de la Rosa

One of the jewels of European numismatics, one of the prides of Italy, is the famous Pezza de la Rosa, a beautiful coin that was strucked by the Medicci family in Livorno in between the XVII and XVIII centuries.

It´s weight varied from 25 to 26 grams, in aprox. 40mm and 800 to 900 silver.

LIVORNO - Cosimo III (1670-1723) - Pezza della Rosa 1701