Albert Kuner

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The great seal of the US state of California engraved by Kuner

Albert Kuner (born as Georg Albrecht Ferdinand Küner ; born October 9, 1819 in Lindau in Lake Constance ; † January 23, 1906 in San Francisco ) was a German-American gold and silversmith and engraver . Kuner gained broader fame through the engraving of the California seal .

Life

As a journeyman, he went on a journey from Lindau to Kempten, Memmingen, Ulm, Munich and finally Nuremberg.

On September 3, 1848, he left Europe with three other travel companions; he arrived in New York on October 28, 1848, where he remained until January 1, 1849. In New York he was received by the Heidecker family, with whom he was related, and worked in his job at Tiffany & Co. The California gold rush attracted him further, and so he left New York on board the Sutton with the same three traveling companions and circled on her Cap Horn. After a long and adventurous journey, he arrived in San Francisco on October 22, 1849.

Albert Kuner Window in St. Matthew Church in San Francisco

After arriving in San Francisco, he started working as an engraver. At the time he was the only engraver in San Francisco and a master goldsmith too. Here he worked for Moffat & Co., where he created the engraving for the 5 and 10 dollar coins. He created the engravings for the first coins minted in San Francisco. Kuner achieved particular fame as an engraver of the state coat of arms of California designed by Robert S. Garnett , also known as the seal of California . He also created the engravings for the majority of the county (district) coats of arms or seals in California, as well as the seal of the California Supreme Court in 1850. In addition, he created the engravings for the award medals for the Mechanics Institute in San Francisco. From 1852 he worked for the Bank Wells Fargo & Co., in whose service he created engravings for the seals of the well-known San Francisco financial institution.

In 1854 he returned to visit his homeland and married Juditha Rheineck, who came from Memmingen . The couple met in Lindau when Juditha Rheineck was visiting her aunt there. The wedding took place on August 14, 1854 in Memmingen. After staying in Paris for two weeks, the couple took a ship from Le Havre to New York. Then the couple traveled by ship to Nicaragua, crossed the country by mule to the Pacific, from where the journey continued by steamship to California.

Gravestone of Albert Kuner and his wife Juditha
Gravestone of Pastor Hermann Gehrke and his wife Martha (Martha was a daughter of Albert and Juditha Küner)

Albert and Juditha Küner had five children together - four daughters and a son. A daughter, Martha, married the German pastor Hermann Gehrke, who became the founder of St. Matthew's Church in San Francisco, in which a stained glass window in honor of Albert Kuner can still be seen today.

Albert Kuner died in San Francisco on January 23, 1906, two months before the severe earthquake . He was survived by his wife and five children. His body was transferred from his home (730 Gough Street) to Olivet Memorial Park in Colma (Lawn 36, Lot 8), south of San Francisco, and buried there.

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personal data
SURNAME Kuner, Albert
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Küner, Georg Albrecht Ferdinand (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German-American gold and silversmith and engraver
DATE OF BIRTH October 9, 1819
PLACE OF BIRTH Lindau in Lake Constance
DATE OF DEATH January 23, 1906
Place of death San Francisco