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1 Thaler Courant
| Issuer | Haupt-Verwaltung der Staatsschulden (Prussian Main Administration of State Debts) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1851 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Thaler |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is dominated by the central Prussian royal coat of arms suspended from a decorative garland of leaves and ribbons, rendered in fine intaglio engraving. Above, the denomination EIN THALER is set in large letterpress type across the top margin, flanked by the numeral 1 in each corner against a dense guilloche underprint. Below the arms, the issuing authority text and place-date line appear in Gothic script, followed by four manuscript signatures of responsible officials. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is laid out symmetrically around a central intaglio vignette comprising the Prussian eagle above a globe, crossed palm and laurel branches, and a ribbon inscribed GOTT with decorative scrollwork, all surmounted by an Iron Cross. Two classically draped putti flank the central device on either side, each rendered in detailed intaglio engraving. The denomination EIN THALER COURANT is set in bold letterpress at centre top, with the trilingual treasury bill designations in the lower corners and a fine guilloche pattern filling the background. |
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| Comments |
Prussia's Haupt-Verwaltung der Staatsschulden was primarily a debt management body, not a bank, which makes this 1 Thaler issue an unusual instrument — essentially state treasury paper pressed into circulation as small-denomination currency. The arrangement reflected Prussia's persistent reluctance to grant the Bank of Prussia a monopoly over note issuance, a tension that ran through Prussian monetary policy well into the 1850s.
The Thaler Courant designation distinguishes it from the Thaler Preußisch Courant in its precise silver valuation — a distinction that mattered to merchants but confused ordinary users, contributing to the chronic small-change disorder that dogged German states before unification.