Saxony 1869-B 2 pfennige
This specimen was lot 74764 in Stack's Bowers Collectors Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, November 2022), where it sold for $60. The catalog description[1] noted, "GERMANY. Saxony-Albertine. 2 Pfennig, 1869-B. Dresden Mint. Johann. NGC MS-66 Brown. Extraordinary cartwheel luster covers the frosty surfaces, showing splendid variation among overtones of indigo and blue-violet. The rich, consistent chocolate brown base is a pleasure to examine from every angle, and hints of mint red can still be spotted in the crevasses. The devices are well-detailed, all surrounded by fields that betray not the slightest evidence of handling." This type was struck 1862-66, 1869 and 1873 and is common in all grades. The introduction of the mark upon unification rendered all of the small change obsolete.
Recorded mintage: 2,220,000.
Specification: 2.88 g, copper, 19.1 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: KM-1217.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Craig, William D., Germanic Coinages: Charlemagne through Wilhelm II, Mountain View, CA: 1954.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The November 2022 Collectors Choice Ancient & World Coins Auction, Featuring the Pat Johnson Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2022.
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