Commemorating independence and celebrating nationalism was the context behind this next entry in our blog series covering Whitman Publishing’s 100 Greatest Modern World Coins. With hope towards the future, this coin marked a new beginning that would quickly change just a year later. However, authors Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker will help guide us through its journey and the history surrounding this top 25 pick.
#25 – Saxony 1913-E Albertine 3 Marks, Matte Proof
The first defeat of French emperor and military expert, Napoleon Bonaparte, came at the Battle of Leipzig, or the Battle of the Nations. It was the largest battle fought on European land until World War I (1914-1918). Armies from Austria, Prussia, Russia, and Sweden met Napoleon’s forces in the eastern German state of Saxony on October 16-19 in 1813. Taking place as part of an allied effort to free the German states from French rule, the battle would be the final blow and allow independence from foreign domination. Born from such an important moment in time and history, the commemoration would take place on the 1913-E mark circulating coin, among other things.
At the expense of six million gold marks, the Monument to the Battle of the Nations was completed in 1913. The coin is one commemorating the event as the landmark was supposedly built on the spot of some of the most intense fighting in addition to where Napoleon asked his forces to retreat. It stands 299 feet tall and is one of the tallest memorials in Europe.
The coin was designed by Friedrich Wilhelm Hornlein, a medalist and engraver from Saxony. A mintage of 999,999 circulating pieces of the 1913-E marks were issued in addition to a regular Proof version of 17,000. However, there were only 150 Matte Proofs struck.