Catalog
1 Mark - Wilhelm II
| Issuer | Neu-Guinea Compagnie |
|---|---|
| Year | 1894 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Mark |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The denomination '1' appears prominently at the top of the central field, followed below by the inscription 'NEU-GUINEA MARK' and the date '1894', all enclosed within a wreath of palm fronds tied at the base with a ribbon. The mint mark 'A' for Berlin appears at the bottom of the field below the wreath. The legend 'NEU-GUINEA COMPAGNIE' curves along the upper periphery between the beaded border and the wreath. |
| Reverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
The Neu-Guinea Compagnie was a chartered trading corporation granted administrative authority over German New Guinea in 1885, but by 1899 the German imperial government had stripped it of those powers entirely after a series of financial failures and its inability to govern the territory effectively. This coin — issued under company authority, not the German state — belongs to a window of less than a decade when a private firm was legally empowered to strike currency for a colonial possession.
Mintage was extremely low across all Neu-Guinea Compagnie issues, and the 1 Mark saw little actual circulation in the territory; most coins were absorbed by collectors almost immediately upon release in Germany.