Archive: People and Markets

Goldbeater. Frontispiece from a register of creditors of a Bolognese lending society. Illuminated by Nicolò di Giacomo di Nascimbene, called Nicolò da Bologna Italy, Bologna, ca. 1394–95. The Morgan Library & Museum, MS M.1056, fol. 1v detail. Photography by Janny Chiu.

Medieval Money, Merchants, and Morality

The new exhibition in the Morgan Library & Museum examines the economic revolution in medieval Europe and charts the expanding role and perception of money during that period. The medieval manuscripts shown in the exhibition are truly stunning!

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Berkshire Coin Hoard. © The Trustees of the British Museum.

2022 Biggest Year for Treasure Finds in the UK

Earlier this year, the British Museum launched the latest Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) Annual Report. This showed that in 2022, over 50,000 archaeological finds were recorded, including 1,378 Treasure cases – the highest ever reported in a single year. See some of the highlights here.

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Marija Jurić Zagorka: A Feminist Icon from Croatia

The Croatian National Bank, in cooperation with the Croatian Mint, continues its series on Croatian literature. The second issue is dedicated to Marija Jurić Zagorka. She is celebrated in Croatia as an icon of feminism.

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The coin show takes place in the prestigious Four Seasons Hotel in Madrid. Photo Hotel: Luis García / CC BY-SA 3.0

Evento Numismático Internacional

There is a new coin show aimed at the Spanish-speaking world: from 26 to 29 June 2024, the first Evento Numismático Internacional will take place at the prestigious Four Seasons Hotel in Madrid, and will include a coin show, numerous presentations and an extensive cultural programme.

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Archive: Coins, Medals and more

Women on Commemorative Coins: A Long Road to True Equality

Every year, International Women’s Day is celebrated on 8 March—and this week, numismatists also have a reason to celebrate. On 6 March, a German 20-euro coin was issued to mark the 50th anniversary of the International Women’s Year. This coin marks the beginning of a new German commemorative coin series under the theme "Influential Women". But does this mean that women have finally secured their place in the world of numismatics?
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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