Mint mark

Mintmark or embossed characters are on many coins that serve as means of payment. The usually very small symbol in some instances, to a certain mint back and consists of either a symbol, a number or a letter. The embossed characters is suppressed in the coinage. Basically need for coins between the Münzstättenzeichen, abbreviated mintmark. , Ie Mintmark, the Münzmeisterzeichen (name of moneyer ), abbreviated Mmx. , And the artist's signature can be distinguished. Sometimes both the mint mark and the Münzmeisterzeichen is called with " mint mark ". Also some mint marks are used to bullion coins or collectible coins from mints, to celebrate special occasions or limited editions to mark ( " Privy Mark ").

Mintmark for mints

In many countries, there is a mint mark of a letter or a short combination of letters, each representing a particular mint.

Germany

The German euro coins have as well been the DM coins a letter that indicates the mint that manufactured the coin. Germany is the only Euro -emitting country, which commissioned more than a mint with coin production. The code letters of the German mints are:

  • A - State Mint in Berlin ( since 1750)
  • D - Bavarian State Mint, Munich
  • F - State Mint Stuttgart
  • G - State Mint Karlsruhe
  • J - Hamburg Mint

Previously, there were in Germany further mints with different mint marks. A further breakdown is provided in the article Mint

DDR coins were minted in Berlin majority and therefore had the mintmark A. The sole exception being until 1953 in the mint Muldenhütten at Freiberg (Saxony ) minted coins with the mint mark E, which was taken over from the previous mint Dresden.

France

In Paris embossed coins bore from 1559, first the mint mark coins from A. Metz between 1693 to 1802 bore the mint marks AA.

Austria

The in Vienna ( Austria coin ) minted coins wore from 1766 to 1868 the mint mark A.

Switzerland

Swiss coins bear the mint mark B for Swissmint in Bern. In the years 1970-1985 the mint mark on the Bernese imprints, however, was omitted. The fifty centimes pieces of the years 1968 and 1969 as well as the one-and two -franc pieces of the year 1968 exist both with and without mintmark. The pieces without mint mark were minted in London. The capacities of the Federal Mint at that time ranged from no more, because after the sharp price rise of the silver, the silver coins were hoarded and had to be replaced by cupro-nickel coins. Were also minted in London every two centimes pieces of the vintage 1969 ( no mint mark ), part of the Fifty centimes pieces of the Year 1970 ( indistinguishable from the Bernese imprints, as both without mintmark ) and part of the Einfrankenstücke of 1969 ( still with "B" that is indistinguishable from the Bernese imprints ).

Swiss coins of the 19th century also exist with the following mint mark:

  • A - Paris
  • AB and BB - Strasbourg
  • B. ( with dot ) - Brussels

USA

The U.S. dollar coins produced by the United States Mint and carry the following mint mark:

  • P - mintmark Philadelphia Mint
  • D - mintmark Denver Mint
  • S - mintmark San Francisco Mint
  • W - mintmark West Point Mint
  • CC - mintmark Carson City Mint
  • C - mintmark Charlotte Mint
  • O - mint New Orleans Mint

Privy Mark mintmark

In recent years, mintmark are increasingly being used to characterize individual years or series variants of investment and collector coins and thus to achieve a limitation of the number of pieces. In English-speaking countries such mintmark are called Privy mark.

An example of coins with privy mark are the Maple Leaf silver and gold coins the Royal Canadian Mint.

Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Royal Mint
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