5 Reichsmark Saar - Pattern

The Saar territory was administered by the League of Nations following the Treaty of Versailles and its coal mines handed to France as reparations. A January 1935 plebiscite returned an overwhelming 90.8% vote for reunification with Germany, and coinage was prepared in anticipation. This piece is a pattern struck for that proposed issue — the reunification coinage was ultimately never released for general circulation, making survivors from the trial striking genuinely scarce.