Gotha Mint
During the development of the market town into the city of Gotha around 1150, the Gotha mint was founded . The first groschen minting took place after the temporary relocation of the Freiberg mint to Gotha around 1424. No later than 1482, still under Wilhelm III. (1445–1482), Duke of Saxony and Landgrave of Thuringia, had to shut down the mint. In 1650, Duke Ernst the Pious (1640–1675) established the mint for his Duchy of Saxe-Gotha in his residence in Gotha in the rooms of the west wing of Friedenstein Castle . From around 1684 to 1776 the mint was in the moat of the castle. The “New Mint”, established in 1828 under Duke Ernst I (1826–1844) of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , ceased operations after only ten years of operation.
history
Bracteatic time
Probably still under Ludwig II. (1140–1172) or already under Ludwig III. the Gotha mint was established as the second mint of the Landgraves of Thuringia . The main mint with the larger minting volume was in Eisenach .
For the Thuringian landgraves, the rider brakteat of the Eisenach and Gotha mints from around 1150 to 1247, minted under the Ludowingers and from 1247 to around 1290 under the Wettins after the unification of Meissen and Thuringia, is the typical pfennig coin. Bracteates bearing the name of the mint were first discovered in the coin treasure trove of 1909 near Ohrdruf . In addition to equestrian bracteates with letters and towers as hollow edge decorations, there were also those with the hollow edge writing GOTA. The exact stylistic correspondence with the other equestrian bracteatas with towers and letters is evidence that these coins were also struck with a high degree of probability in the Gotha mint. Towards the end of the 13th century, bracteates with a landgrave enthroned and the letter A. The letter A with a spherical cross hovering over it appears in the same form on the equestrian bracteates with the inscription GOTA.
There is documentary evidence from 1340 that the mint was leased to the Gotha City Council.
Dime
Since the middle of the 14th century, Meissen groschen of the Margraves of Meissen from their Freiberg mint have been recorded in payment transactions in Thuringia. It was first minted in Freiberg in 1338/39 . In 1391, groschen were minted for the first time in the history of Meissnian groschen outside the state mint in Freiberg in the Sangerhausen mint . Pfennigs (bracteates) remained the main type of currency for most of the population in the Saxon-Thuringian area in the 14th century.
KRUG gives price examples for this:
| 1324 | a chicken 2 pfennigs |
| a lamb belly 8 pfennigs | |
| before 1382 | a fattening pig 360 pfennigs |
| a young pig 180 pfennigs | |
| 1382 | a shock eggs 10 pennies |
| eight yards of linen cloth 54 pfennigs | |
| a port of butter 40 pfennigs | |
| a piece of fresh butter 3 pfennigs | |
| 1395 | six chickens 48 pfennigs |
For the new penny currency and to replace the “broad bracteates” a new penny coin, the hollow penny, was created for nine pennies. The Gotha mint was one of the first in Thuringia to produce the new pfennigs. In 1352 the Gotha mint master Berlt Printz is mentioned, under whom the first Gotha pennies were probably struck. The first six hollow penny types have the inscriptions and pictures:
- GOTA, large crown with lily ornament
- GOTA, capital A
- GOTA, capital E.
- GOTA, curly head with lilies (?)
- IN GOTA, bareheaded head to the left
- IN GOTA, bareheaded head to the right
The meaning of the letter A on the hollow penny is not known. The large Gothic E indicates a coinage of the widow of the Margrave of Meißen and Landgrave of Thuringia Frederick I (1307-1323). The pfennigs were minted in the reign of Frederick II (1329–1342). The widow of Frederick I, margravine and landgrave Elisabeth (* 1286, † 1359) owned Gotha as a widow's residence .
After the coinage agreement of 1381 between the five cities of Eisenach, Gotha, Jena , Langensalza and Weißensee , with the approval of Friedrich III. (1349–1381) struck two new types of hollow pfennig eight pieces on the Meissen groschen. The pennies of the city of Gotha, minted under Meißnian supervision, bear the inscriptions and coin images:
- GOThA, two opposing crowns in a tilted position
- GOThA, two crowns set against each other in a horizontal position
They were minted until the first half of the 15th century. It is documented that in 1404 the Gotha mint master Hans von Smyre was commissioned to mint pfennigs in the prescribed fine and rough weight . In 1412 Hans Martersteck was employed as a changer and at the same time intended as the future mint master.
Around 1424, Margrave Friedrich der Streitbaren (1381–1428), elector of Saxony since 1423, temporarily moved the main mint from Freiberg to Gotha , presumably for security reasons ( Hussite wars ). Here, in association with his brother Margrave Wilhelm II (1407–1425) of Meißen and his cousin Landgrave Friedrich the Peaceful (1406–1440) of Thuringia, he had shield groschen minted around 1424/25. After the death of Wilhelm II, the elector continued to coin the penny type in Gotha until his death in 1428. From 1425 to 1432, under Landgrave Friedrich, shock groschen or small groschen worth ⅓ shield groschen or 3 pfennigs were minted from the old Meissen groschen type with the letter f in front of the lion and the mint mark 4-petalled rose. The now rare groschen did not stay in the country, but were probably melted down because of their too high silver content for the production of low-value foreign money.
Elector Friedrich II (1428–1464) of Saxony coined mostly with his relatives. In Gotha, for a short period from 1437 to 1443, he had shield groschen whipped only under his name.
Duke and Landgrave Wilhelm III. (1445–1482) minted Jewish head groschen , shield groschen, new shock groschen and hollow pfennigs (Landsberger pfennigs) under his sole name in the Gotha mint in the period from 1445 to 1465 . In the period from 1457 to 1464, large groschen, diamond groschen and one-sided pennies were issued. From 1465 Wilhelm minted again in community with his cousins in the mints Freiberg, Gotha, Leipzig , Wittenberg and Zwickau as well as with the Electress Margaretha in the mint Colditz (see also Spitzgroschen and Colditzer Margarethengroschen ).
At the latest in 1482, with the death of Wilhelm III, the Gotha Mint had to cease operations. (The Weimar Mint had already been closed when Wilhelm gave up his sole minting.)
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Thaler time
1545-1622
In 1545 the disused mint burned down in the "Zum Einhorn" house in Salzgasse.
The two commemorative coins, a Gotha Schreckenberger and a commemorative coin the size of the Schreckenberger, both from 1553, were minted on the Grimmenstein in Gotha by the Saalfeld mint master Gregor Einkorn under Duke Johann Friedrich the Magnanimous (1532–1547–1554). Both coins show, among other things, the Saxon Kurschild, although the title of Elector of the Ernestines was transferred from the Emperor to the Albertines after the Battle of Mühlberg in 1547 . The Kurschild on the Ernestine coins must have had a provocative effect on the Albertine elector. Duke Johann Friedrich the Middle , son of Johann Friedrich the Magnanimous, tried to regain the electoral dignity and the lost Courland. He allied himself with the Frankish nobleman Wilhelm von Grumbach ( Grumbachsche Handel ), who was ostracized because of the murder of the bishop of Würzburg . Thereupon imperial troops besieged the city of Gotha and the Grimmenstein under the orders of the Saxon Elector August (1553–1586). During the siege, emergency cliffs ( siege coins) with the Saxon coat of arms, the year 1567 and the letter H HF GK (Duke Hans Friedrich-born Elector) were struck under the direction of the mint master Gregor Einkorn to cover the inner-city spending on the Grimmenstein . The Talerklippen sometimes show a G for Grimmenstein or Gotha. With the capture of Johann Friedrich, the activity of the Saalfeld mint master Einkorn also ended.
As a result of the conflict of 1566/67 Gotha was destroyed and the Grimmenstein was torn down to the foundation walls. The duke remained in imperial custody until the end of his life. Grumbach was quartered on April 18, 1567.
Commemorative coin for the capture of Gotha
In 1567, the elector had a commemorative coin (guldengroschen) struck in his mint in Dresden for the capture of Gotha with a demonstratively large spa sign. The translation of the Latin inscription reads: “Finally the good thing wins” and the inscription on the reverse: “When the city of Gotha was taken in 1567, the punishment of the outlawed besieged enemies of the empire was carried out and the others were put to flight, August left , Duke of Saxony and Elector, to make (this coin). "(Translation according to HAUPT)
Tipper and luffing time
During the time of money falsification, the tipper and wipper era , there were around 50 tipper mints in Thuringia between 1621 and 1623. The tipper mint in Gotha, which was set up in the grinding mill on Schlossberg in 1621, minted the now very rare tipper coins for Duke Johann Casimir (1596–1633) of Saxe-Coburg . Only the following nominal values are known:
- Doppelguldentaler ( Kippertaler ) 1622 for 40 Groschen, Mmz. Planetary symbol for Venus (or copper ), mint master Johann Stopffel (January 2 to July 25, 1622)
- 6 Bätzner (= 24 Kreuzer ) undated (1621), Mmz. Planetary symbol for Mercury (or mercury ), mint master Wolf Frömells (August 1621 to January 2, 1622)
- 6 Bätzer (= 24 Kreuzer) 1622, Mmz. Johann Stopffels
- 3 Kreuzer undated (1622), Mmz. Johann Stopffels
All Gotha tipper coins have a G for Gotha.
On July 25, 1622, Johann Kasimir had his three tipper mints Hildburghausen , Neustadt ad Heide and Gotha closed.
See also :
1650-1838
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Duke Ernst the Pious (1640–1675) established a new mint for his duchy of Saxe-Gotha in his Gotha residence in 1650 . The location was in the rooms of the west wing of the Residenzschloss Friedenstein . STEGUWEIT describes the location in the castle:
- The rooms of the mint connected to the passage in the middle of the west wing in the direction of the west tower, exactly where the entrance to the castle restaurant (formerly horse stable) is today.
Until the Duke's death, the mint was of little importance and was only operated sporadically. Its coins were of little importance in monetary history. In the case of the Reichstalern, the number of pieces was mostly well below 1000. The coins Ernst des Pious, some of which were lost, testify to his deeply religious attitude. Above all, the so-called catechism thalers (Reich thalers), namely the faith thalers from 1668 and 1671, the death thalers from 1668 and 1671, the wedding thalers from 1669 and 1671, the baptismal thalers from 1670/71 and the bliss thalers from 1672, are exemplary. The reason for the minting of the Tauftaler was the baptism of the first granddaughter of Ernst the Pious in 1670. The taler probably served as a model for the taler-shaped medals that were minted in larger numbers in Zellerfeld in the 17th and 18th centuries , which were often used as a godparent gift . His son and successor, Duke Friedrich I (1675–1691) of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg , employed Georg Friedrich Staude, his own mint master, in 1677 and enlarged the mint. Friedrich I used the Gotha division of the country in 1680 to relocate the Saalfeld district mint to Gotha. In the same year, a new mint was also set up in the city. On this and on the mint in the castle and in the moat, STEGUWEIT writes:
- Also in 1680, in the city, in the penitentiary, near the Erfurter Tor, a "New Muntze" was temporarily built. [...] This “Zucht- or Neue Müntzhaus” is a still largely preserved, mighty stone building that extends from the Erfurt to Mönchelstrasse. [...] The "New Müntze in the penitentiary at the Erfurter Tor" is no longer mentioned after 1683. […] Probably also in 1684 the mint in the west wing of the castle […] was closed. In their place, two new buildings can be found in which work was carried out until the minting operation was discontinued in 1776. […] First there is a “coin on the wall”, for the existence of which a fortification plan for Friedenstein Castle from 1752 provides the most important evidence.
The ⅔ thalers, which were minted in the Zinnaischer Fuß until 1690, became an integral part of the duchy's thaler currency. With the lowering of the fineness of the ⅔ thaler in the last quarter of the 17th century (so-called second tipper period) combined with a considerable increase in production, the duke made considerable profits. Nevertheless, high-quality and artistically valuable coins were also created during this time. The Schautaler with the inscription IN / MEMORIAM / SEMPITER / NAM (for eternal memory) of the coin engraver and medalist Johann Georg Sorberger, was later copied by the subsequent coin die cutter and medalist Christian Wermuth and testifies to the remarkable art of die cutting. The memorial coins were minted in variants 1681/83 and 1683/88. According to general interpretation, the reason for the coining was the admission of the duke to the order of the Pegnitz shepherds in 1681.
The ⅔ Kuranttaler, which was minted under Duke Friedrich II (1691–1732), again corresponded to the Leipzig foot introduced in 1690 and the Reichstaler to the Reichsfuß. The main minting volume of the mint, however, was small coins.
With the introduction of the in large quantities under Duke Friedrich III. (1732–1773) and the small groschen and half-groschen (six) minted under the direction of the mint master Ludwig Christian Koch, the government hoped for big profits. The massive coins minted, from 1755 to the beginning of 1766 it was 1,870,447 groschen and 5,616,093 half-groschen, were not only intended to cover their own needs. The ducal government expected the low-income money to be exported profitably to neighboring countries. Since the neighboring states also minted small coins that were impaired and poured into the Duchy of Saxony-Gotha-Altenburg, this monetary policy was doomed to failure.
Under Duke Ernst II (1772–1804) the mint had to cease operations. The huge volume of small Thuringian coins and the inflow of foreign money were probably essential reasons for the mint's shutdown from 1776 to 1828. Convention thalers dated 1776 are the last minting of the “Münze im Wallgraben”, the “Old Mint” Gotha. The Duke had the old coin buildings torn down in 1799.
The death of Duke Frederick IV (1822–1825) of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg triggered a re-division of the Ernestine territories among the remaining Ernestine lines. Duke Ernst I from the former Saxon-Coburg-Saalfeld line had ceded the Saalfeld mint together with the Principality of Saalfeld to Sachsen-Meiningen . Probably the Duke wanted to replace the loss of the mint at all costs. In 1828, under Ernst I of Saxe-Coburg and Gothas, the "New Mint" was established. In the same year, the mint master Ernst Kleinsteuber produced the first coins. STEGUWEIT writes about the warehouse of the new coin and the construction costs:
- For this purpose, the stately building "Das Paradies" below the castle was converted into a mint by March 1830 at a total cost of almost 13,000 thalers.
As early as 1835, minting was only continued to a limited extent. After only ten years of operation, the Gotha Mint was finally closed in 1838. Six years later, the inventory was auctioned. Only the "large embossing unit" ( balancer ) did not go under the hammer. The Gotha coin die cutter and medalist Ferdinand Helfricht minted his artistically important medals on it until his death in 1892. In 1981 the medal embossing machine (balancer) was installed under the arcades of Friedenstein Castle.
Even after the mint closed, Helfricht made most of the mint dies for the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, mostly based on their own designs. The minting of coins for the duchy was taken over by the Dresden mint from 1841 to 1872 and the Berlin mint from 1886 to 1911 .
The face value from 1650
- From 1650 to 1776, all denominations of the Duchy of Saxony-Gotha (-Altenburg since 1672) were minted from Heller to multiple ducats .
- From 1828 to 1838 all denominations of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha were minted according to the coinage convention of 1753/63 .
Mint master of the Gotha Mint from 1352 (incomplete)
| Mint master | from | to | Mintmaster's mark | comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berlt Printz | mentioned in 1352 | |||
| Claus Appeld | mentioned in 1398 | |||
| Hans von Smyre | mentioned in 1404 | |||
| Hans Martersteck | around 1413 | 1436 | Cross from 1428 | |
| Hans Erhard | 1437 | 1456 (?) | cross | |
| Heinz Martersteck | 1457 | 1478 (?) | Cross, from 1466 5-petalled rose | |
| Gregor Einkorn | only 1553 | Cross with skirting board and without Mzz. | Commemorative coins of the Saalfeld mint master, Grimmenstein Castle in Gotha
- from 1542 to 1547 in Goslar , the Schmalkaldic Bundestaler was struck |
|
| Gregor Einkorn | only 1566 | Mzz. G and without | Siege cliffs of the Saalfeld mintmaster, Grimmenstein Castle in Gotha | |
| Wolf Frömell | August 1621 | January 12, 1622 | Mercury symbol or mercury and mzz. G | Tipper mint Gotha |
| Johann Stopffel | 1622 | Venus symbol or copper and mzz. G | Tipper mint Gotha | |
| "Taster" Johann Braun | mentioned in 1650 | IB | ||
| Andreas Ulrich | mentioned in 1661 and 1668 | without | Mint master in Weimar , was also active in Gotha as a “coin maker” | |
| Bergmeister Christoph Friedrich Schindler | 1673 | 1676 | without | |
| Georg Friedrich Staude | 1677 | 1681 | GFS | |
| Henning Muller | 1681 | 1683 | HM | |
| Johann Gottfried Wichmannshausen | 1683 | 1688 | IGW | |
| Christian Fischer | 1688 | 1690 | CF, F, two fish | |
| Johann Thun | 1690 | 1723 | IT, T | |
| Andreas Helbig | 1723 | 1750 | AH | |
| Ludwig Christian Koch | 1750 | 1776 | LCK, K | Mint master and medalist. From 1776 the minting of the "Alte Münze" was suspended. |
| Ernst Kleinsteuerber | 1828 | 1832 | EK | From 1828 “New Mint” in Gotha |
| by Heldritt | 1832 | 1834 | without | |
| CH Hasenstein | 1835 | 1836 | without | |
| CFH Credner | 1837 | 1838 | without | 1838 closure of the mint |
Coin engravers of the Gotha Mint from 1650 (incomplete)
The coin engravers were also active as medalists . Your signatures can be important for the chronological classification of undated medals. Medalists who were not active as coin engravers are not included here.
| Coin engravers | from | to | Life dates | signature | comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wendel Elias friend | 1650 | 1661 | † 1665 | Goldsmith, coin engraver without appointment relationship | |
| Johann Christian Freund | 1668 | 1676 | * 1644, † 1722 | ICF | Goldsmith, coin engraver without appointment relationship |
| Johann Georg Sorberger | 1681 | 1687 | † 1703 | IGS | |
| Christian Wermuth | 1688 | 1739 | * 1661, † 1739 | CW, W | |
| Johann Christian Koch | 1700 | 1742 | * 1680, † 1742 | K | |
| Tobias Graefenstein | 1733 | 1750 | without | ||
| Ludwig Christian Koch | 1750 | 1777 | LCK | Mint master and coin engraver | |
| Johann Wolf Heinrich Stockmar | 1753 | 1772 (?) | * 1707, † 1785 | ||
| Valentin Christoph White | 1753 | 1772 (?) | |||
| Theodor Stockmar | 1774 | 1776 | † around 1820 | ||
| Ferdinand Helfricht | 1829 | 1838 | * 1809, † 1892 | HF, HELFRICHT |
See also
- Saxon coin history
- Hustaler , medal commemorating the death of Jan Hus , cast around 1717, by the Gotha coin engraver Christian Wermut
literature
- Wolfgang Steguweit : History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987
- Gerhard Krug: The Meissnian-Saxon Groschen 1338–1500 , Berlin 1974
- Paul Arnold, Harald Küthmann, Dirk Steinhilber: Large German coin catalog from 1800 to today , Augsburg 1997
- ND Nicol, Marian S. More, Fred J. Borgmann: Standard Catalog of German Coins 1601 to present
- Gerhard Schön: German coin catalog 18th century , Munich: Battenberg, 1984
- Friedrich von Schrötter , N. Bauer, K. Regling, A. Suhle, R. Vasmer, J. Wilcke: Dictionary of Coin Studies , Berlin 1970 (reprint of the original edition from 1930)
Web links
- Friedenstein Foundation, permanent exhibition (p. 31 to 33) ( Memento from July 19, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 2.8 MB)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Wolfgang Steguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987, p. 24
- ↑ Wolfgang Steguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987 p. 30
- ^ Gerhard Krug: The Meissnisch-Saxon Groschen 1338–1500 , Berlin 1974, p. 17
- ^ Gerhard Krug: The Meissnisch-Saxon Groschen 1338–1500 , Berlin 1974, p. 38
- ↑ Wolfgang Steguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987, pp. 31 and 32
- ↑ mcsearch.info: Country Gräfliche mint Elizabeth of Arnshaugk , widow of the Landgrave Frederick I, Hohlpfennig. Gothic E, legend GOTA
- ↑ mcsearch.info: Municipal Mint, Hohlpfennig. Mohrenkopf to the left, inscription: IN (?) GOTA.
- ^ Gerhard Krug: The Meissnisch-Saxon Groschen 1338–1500 , Berlin 1974, p. 113
- ↑ Wolfgang Streguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987, p. 33
- ↑ mcsearch.info: Municipal Mint, Hohlpfennig approx. 1410–1444. In the hollow ring two opposing crowns in a horizontal position. Inscription: + GOThA.
- ↑ Wolfgang Streguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987, p. 38
- ↑ Wolfgang Steguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century. Weimar 1987, p. 24.
- ↑ coingallery.de / Coinings on the occasion of sieges in the 16th century / Continuation page / Siege and capture of Gotha 1567. In it: Notklippe 1567 for three groschen, Gotha. Obv .: Saxon coat of arms with H HF G K. Rev .: Roman numerical value.
- ↑ Talernotklippe (siege coin) 1567, Gotha Mint, in the interactive catalog - Münzkabinett der Staatliche Museen Berlin, under Map / Europe / Germany / Mint - Gotha (2/6) ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Wolfgang Steguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987, p. 43
- ↑ Walther Haupt: Sächsische Münzkunde , Berlin 1974, pp. 275 and 279
- ↑ Wolfgang Steguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987, p. 49
- ↑ Doppelguldentaler 1622 at 40 Groschen (kipper coin), Gotha Mint, in the interactive catalog - Münzkabinett der Staatliche Museen Berlin, under Map / Europe / Germany / Mint - Gotha (3/6) ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as broken. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ mcsearch: Kipper-24 Kreuzer (Sechsbätzner) undated (1621), mint master Wolf Frömell, Gotha
- ↑ Wolfgang Steguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987, p. 63
- ↑ Wolfgang Steguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987, p. 80
- ↑ Wolfgang Steguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century , Weimar 1987, p. 118
- ↑ Wolfgang Steguweit: History of the Gotha Mint from the 12th to the 19th Century. Weimar 1987, p. 140.
- ↑ Central Technical Committee Numismatics Berlin: Historical Mints on the Territory of the GDR , Part 1, Numismatic Hefts No. 22, Berlin 1986, p. 23.
- ↑ Central Technical Committee Numismatics Berlin: Historical Mints on the Territory of the GDR , Part 1, Numismatic Hefts No. 22, Berlin 1986, p. 23.
