20 Old Deutsche Mark Banknote Gold Minted Bar (Mintage: 1,000 | Old Design | Proof)
- Genuine investment gold: 999.9 fine gold
- Official coin: Face value 25 dollars
- Build wealth: Step by step
- Genuine investment goldValue is based on fine gold and follows the gold price
- Official coinLegal tender in Liberia
- Build wealthTradable worldwide and resellable at any time
Price alert set
share
First Bundesbank series, 20 marks
Elsbeth Tucher,after Albrecht Dürer.
A 1/200 ounce gold bar by Kettner Edelmetalle, just 15 × 8.5 millimetres in size, showing the design of the 20 DM note from the Bundesbank’s first series.
Image greatly enlarged. The bar measures 15 × 8.5 millimetres.
Image of the front of the bar with the design of the 20 DM note: Elsbeth Tucher
The face of the note
Elsbeth Tucher of Nuremberg
The portrait shows Elsbeth Tucher, a Nuremberg patrician and merchant’s wife, after a painting Albrecht Dürer made in Nuremberg in 1499. The painting is in Kassel.
The back shows a violin with its bow and, partly hidden, a clarinet. In the Bundesbank’s words, it was meant to symbolise the “world of German music”. The series began with the 20 DM note on 10 February 1961.
For its first series, the Bundesbank deliberately chose heads from old, recognised paintings. The names of painter and sitter do not appear on the notes, because some were unknown or uncertain.
Elsbeth Tucher
The numeral 20
Violin and clarinet
The series
Seven notes after old paintings
On 10 February 1961 the Bundesbank issued the first note of its first series, the 20 DM note. By 26 April 1965 the others had followed, last of all the 500 DM note. There were seven values from 5 to 1000 marks; a 200 DM note only came with the last series.
It was designed by Hermann Eidenbenz, chosen after a competition with 140 preliminary designs. The notes were printed by the Bundesdruckerei in Berlin and by Giesecke & Devrient in Munich. Each value was 5 millimetres higher and 10 millimetres longer than the next smaller one.
They remained valid until they were called in on 30 June 1995. Some things lived on in the last series: the colours of the values, the large portraits looking towards the centre and the word “Banknote” in Fraktur, which most notes of the first series already bore.
5 DM note1963
10 DM note1963
20 DM note1961
50 DM note1962
100 DM note1962
500 DM note1965
1000 DM note1964
The small format
The design of a note on 15 millimetres of gold
The 20 DM note measured 140 × 70 millimetres. The bar carries its design on a surface narrower than a 1-cent coin.
The paper note was work on the smallest scale. Egon Falz, Hans-Joachim Fuchs and José Lopez engraved the portrait and motif of each note by hand in steel, over months. In intaglio printing, the design stood raised on the paper like a relief.
The bar’s finish is proof. The image shows it in a capsule on a black card with DEUTSCHE MARK, 1/200 OZ and 9999 FINE GOLD.
At a glance
- Motif
- 20 DM note, Elsbeth Tucher
- The Bundesbank’s first series
- Maker
- Kettner Edelmetalle
- Face value
- 25 Dollars
- Liberia
- Weight
- 1/200 ounce
- Fine weight
- 0.16 g
- Fineness
- 999.9/1,000
- Dimensions
- 15.00 × 8.50 mm
- Finish
- Proof
- Mintage
- 1,000 pieces
- Packaging
- Coin capsule
All details except the design as stated in our product specifications. The bars are products of Kettner Edelmetalle, not an issue of the Deutsche Bundesbank.
Faces from old paintings, from 1961 to 1995.
Elsbeth Tucher on 1/200 ounce of gold.
20 Deutsche Mark Banknote Minted Bar – Strictly Limited Rarity in 999.9 Fine Gold
- Strictly limited: worldwide mintage of only 1,000 pieces – a true rarity in this size class.
- Growth potential: high value appreciation potential thanks to the strict limitation combined with strong demand.
- Investment goal: With gold bars, you protect your wealth very effectively against gradual currency devaluation.
- Value preservation: The minted bar serves as a solid store of value that preserves and secures the substance of your wealth.
- Protection: Especially in times of inflation, recession and high government debt, you can protect yourself with physical gold.
- Minting quality: produced in the highest possible grade, Proof (PP).
- Design: a detailed replica of the historic 20-DM banknote featuring the portrait of Elsbeth Tucher after Albrecht Dürer.
- Manufacturer: issued exclusively by Kettner Edelmetalle.
- Country of origin: official issue of the Republic of Liberia with a face value of 25 dollars.
A piece of German monetary history, captured in purest fine gold: The 20 Deutsche Mark banknote minted bar faithfully recreates the legendary note from the first Bundesbank series – and with a mintage of only 1,000 pieces worldwide, it ranks among the most sought-after collector's coins of this format. However, the core of the matter is decisive: here you hold full-fledged investment gold in your hand – minted 999.9 fine gold, whose value is primarily determined by the gold price. The fine design is the personal touch, the precious metal is the substance.
The Design: Elsbeth Tucher and the World of German Music
The obverse shows the famous front side of the old 20-DM note, featuring the portrait of the Nuremberg patrician lady Elsbeth Tucher. It is based on a painting by Albrecht Dürer from 1499 and adorned the twenty-mark note of the Federal Republic from 1961 to 1992. The reverse takes up the back of the banknote: a violin, bow and clarinet symbolising the \"world of German music\". The intricate guilloché patterns and fine lines of the former banknotes only come into their own with such razor-sharp precision in the Proof quality – mirror-like shine in the field, matte raised relief on the image areas. A tiny work of art that translates the aesthetics of the D-Mark into purest gold.
Technical Specifications of the Minted Bar
- Precious metal: Gold, fineness 999.9/1,000
- Denomination: 1/200 oz
- Fine and gross weight: 0.16 g
- Diameter / dimensions: 15.00 mm × 8.50 mm
- Grade: Proof (PP)
- Face value: 25 dollars (Republic of Liberia)
- Mintage: 1,000 pieces worldwide
- Manufacturer: Kettner Edelmetalle
- Delivered protected in a coin capsule
Bars with a stamped coin die and face value are referred to as minted bars. Visually a bar, legally a coin: due to the official face value of 25 dollars, this piece is recognised as legal tender in its issuing country, Liberia. This places it within the tradition of the smallest gold coins in the world – making entry into physical gold possible even with the smallest of budgets.
Small Gold, Big Impact – Investment Gold Piece by Piece
Gold is the oldest currency in the world and has been a proven store of value for over 6,000 years. It has intrinsic value, has never been worth zero, and is recognised worldwide as a medium of exchange. As an inflation hedge and crisis protection, physical gold preserves purchasing power when confidence in paper money fades – it is no coincidence that central banks around the world are hoarding more gold than ever. With a very low mintage and Proof minting quality, this minted bar combines two factors that drive the value appreciation potential of a strictly limited minting.
Gold is humanity's oldest currency – it has outlived all others and has never reached a value of zero.
Compared to a classic gold bar or a common gold coin, this minted bar stands out with its dual character: it combines the high liquidity of fine gold with the appeal of a tiny mintage of just 1,000 pieces. While large-format coins and bars require a higher entry sum, here you can deliberately build up physical wealth in small steps – tradable and resellable worldwide at any time. Just as gold is the big brother of small silver, many small amounts of gold add up over the years to a considerable fortune. And for anyone wishing to pass on something lasting on an occasion such as a birthday, christening or wedding, this minted bar is a gift of genuine investment gold instead of fleeting things.
Product depiction may differ from the final product.
