East Germany 1974-A 10 mark KM-50
This specimen was lot 71599 in Stack's Bowers Collectors Choice sale (Santa Ana, CA, October 2020), where it sold for $216. The catalog description[1] noted, "GERMANY. Silver Off-Metal 10 Mark, 1974-A. Berlin Mint. NGC MS-67. Mintage: 1,500. Struck to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Democratic Republic of Germany. An entirely brilliant example of this popular off-metal issue, struck in silver instead of the standard copper-nickel composition." This pattern was struck in numbers too large to be for test purposes. It was likely struck for sale to rich Westerners, as the regime was always desperate for foreign exchange.
Recorded mintage: 3,000,000 plus prooflike specimens plus 1,500 in silver.
Specification: copper-nickel, 31 mm diameter; the example shown is struck in silver.
Catalog reference: KM-Pr13 (of KM-50).
- Jaeger, Kurt, Die Deutschen Münzen seit 1871, Basel: Münzen und Medaillen AG, 1982.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Richard Ponterio and Kyle Ponterio, The October 2020 Collector's Choice sale: World and Ancient Coins, Santa Ana, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2020.
Link to:
- 1966 10 mark, Schinkel
- 1971 20 mark
- East Germany 1972-A 5 mark KM-37, Meissen
- East Germany 1973-A 10 mark KM-44, 10th Youth Festival Games
- 1975-A pfennig
- Coins and currency dated 1974
- return to coins of Germany, East Germany