GERMANY. 'Drittes Reich'. 1933-1945. Reverse die (matrix) for 5 Reichspfennig 1941 (Steel, 41 mm, 237.00 g), Reichskreditkassen, for pattern without mint mark. Designed by Hans 'Mjölnir' Schweitzer (1901-1980) and revised by Richard Placht (1880-1960). Berlin or Wien (Vienna). 'Reichskreditkassen•1941•' around swastika (all incuse and mirrored). Cf. Jaeger 618 var. (for type with mint mark). Cf. KM 98 var. (for type with mint mark). Cf. Schaaf 618 G 1 var. (for type dated 1940). Unpublished and of great interest. An exceptionally important discovery among the already extremely rare coin dies of this period. Minor rust, otherwise, as made.



The Reichskreditkassen ('Reich Credit Offices') issued banknotes and coins denominated in Reichsmark and Reichspfennig for circulation in the German-occupied territories. These were exchanged at fixed rates against local currencies but were never accepted as legal tender within Germany itself. The ambitious mintage figures originally envisaged were never achieved, since the occupiers - above all the Wehrmacht - generally preferred to rely on local issues.

The present die is a particularly intriguing document in the history of Reichskreditkassen coinage. From the estate of the Austrian medalist Richard Placht, it was employed for trial strikings at the Vienna Mint, which eventually produced the corresponding 5 Reichspfennig coins with mintmark B (for Vienna) and the date 1940 (Jaeger 618). Patterns without mintmark are of the utmost rarity and so far known only for 1940 (Schaaf 618 G 1). This die suggests that the Vienna Mint may also have considered striking coins for the Reichskreditkassen - perhaps in response to Wehrmacht demands for additional quantities for Romania, where production in Vienna would have been logistically advantageous. In the event, however, no such coins were struck there in 1941.

As a surviving witness to these abandoned plans, this die provides a rare and illuminating insight into the complex monetary policies of the German occupation during the Second World War.