The great Ottoman monetary reform
On December 12, 2011, the Osnabrück auction house Künker sells the Sultan Collection of Coins of the Ottoman Empire. These 908 lots reflect the history of the coins of the last Ottoman sultans and the monetary reform of 1845...
Between East and West or: the first Western coins of China
The first Chinese coins imitating western models were struck on the island of Formosa, modern-day Taiwan, nearly 200 years before. This article will tell the story, how it came about...
Coin Grading Made Easy
A lot of coin collectors are insecure when it comes to judging the condition of a coin. This article offers an introduction to this high art...
Gradings made in the USA
“Slabs“, that is how Americans call the small plastic boxes where coins are welded in, against a fee, after a procedure called grading. What is behind that? What advantages has that system? What problems?
Splendor of a dynasty – the five family roubles of Tsar Nicholas I (1825-1855)
King Louis’ I “historic thaler” made impression in Russia and left it’s marks. Tsar Nicholas I struck similar coins with his family on the reverse. How this happened and why there are five different types you can read here...
Peter the Great as his nation’s barber
During the cultural revolution Peter the Great brought Russia, not only institutions were put in the crosshairs but the country’s population as well. The beard had to go – literally speaking...
Prussian Spirit in Tsarist Russia
Peter III had ruled Russia for just six months. For this reason virtually all of his coins are rare. Künker will offer a very rare 10 rouble piece of that ruler in his sale 264 on June 25. It depicts Peter Prussian-style.
A Platinum Set from 1839 that Once Belonged to Great Prince Georgy Mikhailovich
Platinum coins rank among the great and most sought-after rarities of Russian numismatics. In their upcoming Berlin Auction, auction house Künker will offer a complete set of said rarities of exceptional condition, which once belonged to Georgy Mikhailovich, arguably the most famous collector of Russian coins.
Bridges as a sign of the Russian-French friendship
On 1 February 2018, Künker will auction off a testimony to the French-Russian alliance of 1892 in its Berlin auction. It is a gold medal dedicated to the inauguration of the Trinity Bridge in Saint Petersburg. This bridge was built as a symbol of this alliance and it has the Pont Alexandre III in Paris as its counterpart.
Catherine the Great, Moscow and the Kremlin
An impressive gold medal of Catherine the Great, which will be auctioned off at the Künker Auction 306 on 23 March 2018, shows the magnificent view of a Moscow Kremlin Palace that never existed. Here is the explanation why.