Schneeberg Mint
The Schneeberg mint was established in 1483 during the reign of Elector Ernst (1464 / 85–1486) and his brother Albrecht (1464 / 85–1500). With the Dresden mint founded in 1556 , Elector August (1553–1586) ordered the closure of all state mints . Schneeberger coin introduced only in 1570 closed its doors, occupied by the Münzmeisterzeichen T .
history
Dime
The discovery of rich ore deposits led to the foundation of Schneeberg in 1471 . In 1481 the town, which had been urban in character since 1479, received the rights of a free mining town, in which the Schneeberg mint was established in 1483 under Elector Ernst and Duke Albrecht. In the new coin, under the direction of the mint master Augustin Horn, the elector Ernst and Duke Albrecht jointly minted half sword groschen of 40 pieces on the Rhenish guilder . All half sword groschen minted up to 1485 bear the year (14) 82, whereby their production was increasingly concentrated on the Zwickau mint . From 1484 the minting volume of these coins also shifted to the mint in neighboring Schneeberg. Half of the sword penny in a three-pass carry the Kurschild with the crossed swords on one side and the divided Meißen - Landsberg shield on the other . Other features of the new Schneeberg mint were the lion pfennigs and the so-called Rauthen heller with the mint master's mark Kleeblatt of the mint master Augustin Horn, which were also struck in the Zwickau mint.
Beard groschen and interest groschen
From 1492 the Schneeberger and Zwickau "Bergmünzstätten" minted beard groschen with the bust of Elector Friedrich III. (1486-1542). The groschen are the first Saxon coins with the image of the regent. The coin image on the obverse of the groschen shows the bust portrait of Frederick the Wise in the cure regalia with cure sword . The die cutter of the later minted flip - top hats (silver guilders ) oriented itself on the front of this groschen.
The coined from the Schneeberger silver "Schneeberger" and "Schnieber" mentioned, since 1496, especially in Schneeberg in large quantities beard penny worth equal embossed Zinsgroschen and from 1498 in mint Annaberg coined Schreckenberger worth three Zinsgroschen preparation served to made from 1500 new silver guilder currency.
Thaler time
The first Saxon large silver coins minted in 1500 without a mint master's mark or year, the guilders (gold groschen, gold groschen), later also referred to as folding hats, were minted in the Annaberg mint and possibly also in the Wittenberg mint . The Schneeberg Mint is eliminated because it was closed from 1498 to 1501. The minting of silver guilders did not take place until after 1525.
In the period from 1501 to 1570, one-sided pfennigs, three-pfennig pieces (three), groschen, ⅛ thaler, ¼ thaler, ½ thaler and thaler were struck in Schneeberg.
Saxon coin separation
As a result of differences of opinion, from 1530 to the end of 1533 there was a separation between the Ernestine and Albertine minters Johann the Constant (1486 / 1525–1532) and Georg the Bearded (1500–1539), the so-called Saxon coin separation . The Zwickau mint, which was temporarily reopened in 1530, started minting for Elector Johann with a lighter coin , while Duke Georg had AFTER THE OLD SCHROT UND KORN minted in the mints of Freiberg , Leipzig and Annaberg (quality designation on the reverse of Georg's coins) . The common Schneeberg mint on Ernestine territory was closed.
As early as 1531 it was decided in the Grimmaischen power ruling by the state estates of both minters that Duke Georg had to cede his claim to half of the Schneeberg mint to the elector. For this purpose, the Zwickau Mint is to be moved back to Schneeberg. In 1534, the former coin community came into force again until 1547 under Elector Johann Friedrich [1532–1547– (1554)]. The Zwickau mint was relocated to Schneeberg.
When the Ernestines lost their electoral dignity to the Albertines in 1547, the Schneeberg mint and all of the jointly operated mints that had previously been in operation came into the sole possession of the new Elector Moritz (1541–1547–1553).
Location of the mint
According to Julius and Albert Erbstein , a residential building built by mint master Sebastian Funke in 1540 in Schneeberg was called "the coin":
- Mint masters during the reign of the Duke and later Elector Moritz were: In Schneeberg, which came from Ernestine property to Elector Moritz: Sebastian Funke, who was temporarily mint master in Zwickau and until 1551 in Buchholz , in this capacity various Saxon princes for a total of 45 years is said to have served long and died in 1569 or 1570. From the rich yield of his "Fertile Folly" mine he built a stately house in Schneeberg from 1539 to 1540, which was called the mint long after him ...
According to Schumann's State Encyclopedia (1823), the Schneeberger Mint took the place of the “current Latin school”.
Relocation to Dresden
Elector August (1553–1586), when he checked the coins in his mints in Freiberg, Annaberg and Schneeberg, found that the mint masters had reduced the fine silver content of the guldengroschen ( thalers ) on their own initiative. According to the regulations of the Saxon coinage system from 1549 (coin base from 1549 to 1558) the fineness of the guldengroschen was 14 Lot 8 Grän (= 902.78 / 1000). The elector then had all state coins closed and moved them to a single mint in Dresden, in the immediate vicinity of his residence palace , in order to be able to better monitor the accuracy of the shot and grain. As the thalers with the Schneeberg mint mark T prove, the Schneeberg Mint was still active in 1570 and was only united with the Dresden Mint in that year.
Mint master of the Schneeberg Mint
| Mint master | from | to | Mintmaster's mark | comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Augustin Horn | 1483 | 1498 | Shamrock, without mm. | until 1485 mint master in Zwickau and Schneeberg |
| Heinrich Stein | 1497 | 1498 | five-pointed star | |
| Andreas Funcke | 1501 | 1529 | X ( St. Andrew's Cross ) | |
| Sebastian Funcke | 1529 | 1530 | X (St. Andrew's Cross) | 1529 / 30–1533 / 34 moved to Zwickau |
| Sebastian Funcke | 1534 | 1535 | X (St. Andrew's Cross) | |
| Sebastian Funcke | 1535 | 1569 | T | |
| Sebastian Funcke | 1547 | 1551 | SB T, T | (SB = Schneeberg) |
| Hans Funke | 1569 | 1570 | T | Relocated to Dresden in 1570 |
In the periods without information, the coin operation was interrupted.
The mint master's mark T was used in Buchholz until 1551 and also in Schneeberg from 1535 to 1569.
See also
literature
- Walther Haupt: Saxon coinage . German Verl. D. Wiss., Berlin 1974
- Paul Arnold: Walther Haupt and his “Saxon Coin Studies” . In numismatic notebooks . No. 20, Dresden 1986
- Gerhard Krug: The Meissnian-Saxon Groschen 1338–1500 , Berlin 1974
- Julius Erbstein , Albert Erbstein : Discussions in the field of the Saxon coin and medal history when listing the Hofrath Engelhardt's collection . Dresden 1888
- Tristan Weber: The Saxon coinage from 1500 to 1571 . A quantitative study, Gietelverlag 2010
- Claus Keilitz: The Saxon Coins 1500–1547. H. Gietl, Regenstauf 2010
- Heinz Fengler, Gerd Gierow, Willy Unger: transpress Lexikon Numismatics , Berlin 1976
- 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)
- Otto F. Müller: Otto Merseburger Collection comprising coins and medals from Saxony, sales catalog , Leipzig 1894
Web links
- Official website of the city of Schneeberg: A brief historical insight ( Memento from January 7, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
- Timeline of the history of the Saxon mining industry. Edited and supplemented according to Bachmann / Max / Wächtler "Der silberne Boden", Stuttgart / Leipzig 1990
- panoramio: School building in Schneeberg. Allegedly there was a Schneeberger mint here.
Individual evidence
- ^ Gerhard Krug: The Meissnisch-Saxon Groschen 1338–1500 , Berlin 1974 p. 182.
- ↑ mcsearch.info: Friedrich III., Johann and Georg, the deputy Albrecht (1492–1499), beard groschen 1492. Half-length portrait in the spa regalia and with shouldered spa sword to the right. The beard groschen from 1492 are the first Saxon coins with a portrait of the regent.
- ^ Tristan Weber: The Saxon coinage from 1500 to 1571: A quantitative study , Gietl Verlag 2010, p. 9. Beard groschen.
- ↑ Julius and Albert Erbstein: Discussions in the field of the Saxon coin and medal history with the listing of Hofrath Engelhardt's collection . Dresden 1888, p. 41.
- ↑ Schneeberg . In: August Schumann : Complete State, Post and Newspaper Lexicon of Saxony. 10th volume. Schumann, Zwickau 1823, p. 470.