Pattern coins from Germany

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Patterns from Germany.

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More patterns from Germany.

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More patterns from Germany.

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More patterns from Germany.

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More patterns from Germany.

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More patterns from Germany.

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More patterns from Germany.

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More patterns from Germany.

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More patterns from Germany.

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Patterns from the German Democratic Republic.

[chrisild]

The very first image shows a design that I find interesting because of the font, especially the giant P. Don't know who designed it, but it is amazing anyway how many different "patterns" there are, of this 25 Pf piece.

For the design competition, "only" 50 were actually submitted. But many more exist, and Rudolf Schaaf (who published a book about patterns from Germany, primarily of the German Empire) wrote that we need to differentiate between four pattern types: those that were officially produced at the mints; those that were privately made from refused designs; patterns that were not even submitted and yet "minted"; and later fantasy designs made to fool (oops, attract) collectors.

Christian

[Prosit]

#5 looks to have a Portuguese flavor or at least the ship looks familiar.
Dale

...looked like the 5 and 10 heller coins "from" German East Africa. Design wise, and hole wise.

Christian

[chrisild]

#5 looks to have a Portuguese flavor or at least the ship looks familiar.

Maybe so; the silver piece in reply #5 was one of the Goetz designs for a 5 RM circulation coin. The gold (?) medal combines two of his designs: The eagle was the same for both, and one piece had the lady, the other one showed the ship.

And the "Liberation from Fascism" GDR coin was then minted with a different design and a different face value. The pattern shows a Soviet soldier with the USSR flag on the Reichstag (see Raising a Flag over the Reichstag). The design that was minted for, hmm, circulation shows the War Memorial in Treptower Park. The "Postal Services" GDR piece also got a different design, with a stagecoach as the central feature.

Christian

[Figleaf]

#5 looks to have a Portuguese flavor or at least the ship looks familiar.

The ship is a Cog, your typical medieval merchantman. In heraldry, most ships are cogs. They often symbolise a sea port or a naval tradition. In the Christian religion, a cog symbolises hope. It is often used on St. Christopher medals. A number of counters show a cog as a symbol of (wealth through) trade.

On Portuguese coins, the cog reflects Portugal's voyages of discovery and its golden age, much like the counters. In Germany, the cog often refers to the Hanse as on the coins of Danzig. Goetz had reprehensible political convictions. His cogs are not symbols, but political references to perceived "Germanic" political power in earlier times. The historical details are not necessarily correct (his cogs are cartoonish). Rather, they convey a nationalist political message.

Peter

[eurocoin]

Germany, 25 Pfennig, 1908.  Design trial.