The Stack’s Bowers Galleries ANA World’s Fair of Money Auction is nearly
here. In just a few days the doors will open at the Colorado Convention Center
in Denver and coin dealers and collectors from across the country will gather around
their shared interest in numismatics. This preview will showcase a rare one
year type from the earliest formative years of the German Empire. The coin
hails from the relatively small German State of ‘Schaumburg-Lippe,’ which
encompassed only 131 square miles in northwest Germany. Schaumburg-Lippe became
a member state of the German Empire when it was founded in 1871. Just three
years later the penultimate sovereign prince Adolph I Georg issued a 20 mark in
accordance with the coinage reform of the new empire. This 20 Mark was only minted in 1873, and is now a
key issue.
The obverse design features the bare left facing head of Adolph I Georg,
with the inscription: “ADOLF GEORG FURST Z. SCHAUMBURG-LIPPE” around. The mint
mark “B” appears just below and signifies it was struck at the Hannover mint.
The reverse design features the iconic and elaborate German Imperial eagle,
flanked by “DEUTSCHES REICH 1874” above and “20 MARK” below, with five-pointed
stars separating the two halves of the legend. This example is near the
pinnacle of the finest certified by either NGC or PCGS, and it is easy to see
why. It is superb with crisp strike details, pristine surfaces and lovely
orange peel tone.
While we are no longer accepting consignments for our August 2017 ANA
Auction, we are currently taking consignments of world and ancient coins and
world paper money for our October 2017 Collectors Choice Online Auction and our
January 2018 New York International Auction. We are also accepting consignments
of Chinese and other Asian coins and currency for our April 2018 Hong Kong
Showcase Auction. Time is running short, so if you are interested in consigning
your coins and paper currency (whether a whole collection or a single rarity)
be sure to contact one of our consignment directors.
