Danzig gulden

Danziger Gulden (German) Gulden gdański (Polish)
20 gulden (1937) 10 pfennig coin
Unit
Plural	Gulden
Denominations
Subunit
1⁄100	Pfennig
Plural
Pfennig	Pfennige
Banknotes	10, 20, 25, 50, 100, 500, 1000 gulden
Coins	1, 2, 5, 10 pfennige 1⁄2, 1, 2, 5, 10, 25 gulden
Demographics
User(s)	Free City of Danzig
Issuance
Central bank	Bank of Danzig
This infobox shows the latest status before this currency was rendered obsolete.

The gulden, divided into 100 Pfennige, was the currency of the Free City of Danzig from 1923 to 1939.

History

From 1914 to 1923, Danzig used the German Papiermark and issued several local 'emergency notes'. Inflation during 1922–23 averaged roughly 2,440% per month.^[1] In July 1923 it was announced that a new and independent currency (the gulden) was being established with the approval of the League of Nations finance committee to replace the German mark.^[2] The gulden was introduced at a value of 25 gulden = 1 pound sterling.^[2][3]

Coins

The first series of coins was issued in 1923, followed by a second in 1932. Coins were issued in denominations of 1, 2, 5 and 10 pfennige and 1⁄2, 1, 2, 5, 10 and 25 gulden.

The 25-gulden coins were minted in gold. Produced in very small numbers in 1923 (1,000) and 1930 (4,000), the latter date's issue was only released as a few presentation pieces. As part of the 1923 series are 200 proof coins and, while available to collectors, are very expensive.^[8] The 1930 issue was essentially unobtainable until a large number appeared in the 1990s, apparently released from a Russian treasury where they had been stored since their capture at the end of World War II.^[9]

First series (1923)[10]
Image	Value	Technical parameters			Description				Date of
		Diameter	Mass	Composition	Edge	Obverse	Reverse	quantity minted	minting	issue	withdrawal	lapse
	1 pfennig	17 mm	1.67 g	95% Cu, 4% Sn, 1% Zn	Plain	Value, country name "Danzig"	Year, Danzig coat of arms	11,500,000	1923–1937	18 December 1923[11]	1 November 1940[12]	30 November 1940[12]
	2 pfennige	19.5 mm	2.5 g					3,250,000	1923–1937
	5 pfennige	17.5 mm	2.0 g	75% Cu, 25% Ni	Plain	Value, country name "Danzig"	Year, Danzig coat of arms	4,000,000	1923, 1928	18 December 1923[11]	1 October 1932[11]	?
	10 pfennige	21.5 mm	4.0 g			Value, country name "Freie Stadt Danzig"		5,000,000	1923
	1⁄2 gulden	19.5 mm	2.5 g	75% Ag, 25% Cu	?	Value, country name "Freie Stadt Danzig", coat of arms	cog	1,400,000	1923, 1927		1 April 1932[11]
	1 gulden	23.5 mm	5.0 g			Value, country name "Freie Stadt Danzig", cog	Coat of arms held by two lions	3,500,500	1923
	2 gulden	26.5 mm	10.0 g					1,250,000
	5 gulden	35.0 mm	25.0 g			Value, country name "Freie Stadt Danzig", St. Mary's Church		860,500	1923, 1927
These images are to scale at 2.5 pixels per millimetre. For table standards, see the coin specification table.

Banknotes

The first Danzig gulden banknotes were issued by the Danzig Central Finance Department and dated 22 October 1923 with a second issue dated 1 November 1923.^[13] Denominations for both series included 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, and 50-pfennige notes,^[13] as well as 1, 2, and 5 gulden.^[13] In addition, the first issue contained 10 and 25-gulden notes,^[14] and the second issue contained 50 and 100-gulden notes.^[15] The Bank of Danzig was capitalized with £300,000 on 5 February 1924 and officially opened on 17 March 1924.^[3] The Bank of Danzig issued four series of gulden (1924, 1928–30, 1931–32, and 1937–38) with an initial issue date of 10 February 1924.^[15]

Banknotes of Danzig

Issued by	Issue	Value	Image	Comments
Danzig Central Finance Department	1923 first series	1 pfennig
		2 pfennige
		5 pfennige
		10 pfennige
		25 pfennige
		50 pfennige
		1 gulden
		2 gulden
		5 gulden
		10 gulden
		25 gulden
	1923 second series	1 pfennig
		2 pfennige
		5 pfennige
		10 pfennige
		25 pfennige
		50 pfennige
		1 gulden
		2 gulden
		5 gulden
		50 gulden
		100 gulden
Bank of Danzig	1924	10 gulden
		25 gulden
		100 gulden
		500 gulden		Zeughaus (arsenal)
		1,000 gulden		City Hall
	1928–30	10 gulden		Artus Court
		25 gulden		St. Mary's Church
	1931–32	20 gulden		Stockturm (local tower) part of Golden Gate (Gdańsk) Neptune
		25 gulden		St. Mary's Church
		100 gulden		Motława River dock scene
	1937–38	20 gulden		Artus Court
		50 gulden		Vorlaubenhaus

References

Notes

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Money of the Free City of Danzig.

1. ↑ McGuire 2013, p. 48.
2. 1 2 "Danzig to Establish New Currency System". The New York Times. 20 July 1923. p. 3 – via ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times (1851–2010).
3. 1 2 Mason 1946, p. 74.
4. ↑ Österreichische Nationalbibliothek. "ÖNB-ALEX – Deutsches Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I 1867–1945". onb.ac.at.
5. ↑ Österreichische Nationalbibliothek. "ÖNB-ALEX – Deutsches Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I 1867–1945". onb.ac.at.
6. ↑ Österreichische Nationalbibliothek. "ÖNB-ALEX – Deutsches Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I 1867–1945". onb.ac.at.
7. ↑ "Danziger Geld im 20. Jahrhundert". ostsee-urlaub-polen.de. Archived from the original on 2014-05-22.
8. ↑ Statue of Neptune basis of design on Danzig gold 25-gulden coins issued between two world wars
9. ↑ A huge portion of Hitler's gold was already taken in 1945
10. ↑ Schön G. and Schön G.: Welt Münzkatalog, 20. & 21. Jahrhundert, 1900–2010, München 2010, Battenberg Verlag. ISBN 978-3-86646-036-2
11. 1 2 3 4 Kamiński Cz.: Ilustrowany katalog monet polskich 1916–1991, Warsaw 1992, KAW. ISBN 83-03-00041-1
12. 1 2 Österreichische Nationalbibliothek. "ÖNB-ALEX – Deutsches Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I 1867–1945". onb.ac.at.
13. 1 2 3 Cuhaj 2010, pp. 430–31.
14. ↑ Cuhaj 2010, p. 430.
15. 1 2 Cuhaj 2010, p. 431.