Archive: People and Markets

The so-called Madara Rider is to be depicted on Bulgaria’s cent coins. Photo: Octopus / CC-BY-SA-3.0

Bulgaria and the Euro: the Current Situation

The plan was for Bulgaria to become a member of the eurozone by January 2024. However, this timeline will not be met. Find out more about the state of negotiations and the motifs that will be depicted on future Bulgarian euro coins.

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Tradition Meets Craftsmanship: Coin Minting as a Highlight of the Garden Show

When the Garden Show in Freudenstadt and Baiersbronn opens its doors in May, visitors can look forward to a special experience: a historical minting station, where they can create their own commemorative medals by hand.

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The conference takes place at the Bank of England. Image: Adrian Pingstone via Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain.

Inclusive Numismatics Conference

This conference at the Bank of England is a space where women, people of colour, those from the LGBTQ+ community and anyone who has not yet found the right forum for their passion can feel included. Proposals for papers are still accepted.

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Illustration: „highyou“ / Canva Pro.

Germany’s New Platform Tax Transparency Act: A Problem for eBay Coin Dealers?

Germany’s new Platform Tax Transparency Act has caused great concern among German coin collectors. Will they have to explain themselves to the tax authorities whenever they sell pieces of their collection? In most cases, the answer is no. Unless their hobby turns into a regular side-line.

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Archive: Coins, Medals and more

Die Qual der Wahl: Welche Goldmünzen sind zu gut für die Schmelze? Foto: Wieschowski / „Iron melting furnace“ von „fotosuper“ von Getty Images via Canva Pro.

Gold at Record Highs: Melt Down or Preserve Historic Gold Coins?

Gold is now more expensive than ever. This trend has put many collectors and dealers in a moral dilemma: Which gold coins can be sold or melted down without hesitation, and where do the real treasures lie?
Karl Ludwig von Bruck, the mastermind behind the Vienna Coinage Treaty. We chose not to depict Emperor Franz Josef I at this point, who is shown on the coins, but the liberal politician Karl Ludwig von Bruck. Born into the family of a bookbinder in Elberfeld (now Wuppertal, Germany), he worked his way up from a merchant’s position to become Austria’s finance minister. He could almost be described as a beacon of hope for Austrian economic policy. It was tragic – and not just for him personally – that Franz Josef “ungraciously” dismissed him in April 1860 on false suspicions. The then 61-year-old took his own life. This deprived Austria of an imaginative politician who might have prevented its economic marginalization by Prussia.

A War Fought with Unusual Weapons: How Prussia Used Finance and Politics to Force the Habsburg Hereditary Lands Out of the German Confederation

On 26 March 2024, the Künker auction house will offer the Tursky Collection with coins of Emperor Franz Joseph I. We use specimens from this collection to tell the story of how Prussia used its economic sway to become the sole hegemonic power in Germany.
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