50 Old Deutsche Mark Banknote Gold Minted Bar (Mintage: 1,000 | Old Design | Proof)
- Real investment gold: 999.9 fine gold
- Official coin: 25 dollar face value
- Give gold as a gift: real investment
- Real investment goldValue is based on fine gold and tracks the gold price
- Official coinLegal tender of the Republic of Liberia
- Give gold as a giftGive real investment gold for christenings or birthdays
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First Bundesbank series, 50 marks
Hans Urmiller,around 1525.
A 1/200 ounce gold bar by Kettner Edelmetalle, just 15 × 8.5 millimetres in size, showing the design of the 50 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 50 DM note: Hans Urmiller
The face of the note
A head from “Man with Child”
The portrait comes from a painting in the Städel in Frankfurt am Main. The Bundesbank called it “Man with Child, Swabian Master around 1525”; it depicts a member of the Urmiller patrician family. Today the Städel lists it as a work by Barthel Beham, under the title “Portrait of Hans Urmiller with his Son”.
The back shows the Holstentor in Lübeck.
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.
Hans Urmiller
The numeral 50
The Holstentor
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 50 DM note measured 150 × 75 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
- 50 DM note, Hans Urmiller
- 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.
Hans Urmiller on 1/200 ounce of gold.
50 Deutsche Mark Gold Minted Bar – Strictly Limited Rarity with Only 1,000 Pieces
- Strictly limited: capped worldwide at a very low mintage of just 1,000 pieces.
- Growth opportunities: noticeable appreciation potential thanks to the strict limitation and the unbroken demand for historic D-Mark designs.
- Rare rarity: a sought-after collector's coin in the smallest denomination.
- Minting quality: struck in the highest possible quality grade Proof (PP) – mirror-like background, raised matte design elements.
- Fine gold: 1/200 ounce of purest fine gold with 999.9 fineness (0.16 g), securely stored in a coin capsule.
- Design: a faithful replica of the legendary old 50-DM banknote – the portrait of a man wearing a fur cap on one side, the Holsten Gate of Lübeck on the other.
- Manufacturer: minted for Kettner Edelmetalle.
- Country of origin: official issue of the Republic of Liberia with a face value of 25 dollars.
- Investment goal: with these gold bars, you effectively protect your wealth against inflation.
- Preservation of value: a proven store of value that secures the real value of your assets and can grow over the years.
- Hedge: a solid anchor for your portfolio, especially in times of inflation, recession, and high government debt.
The 50 Deutsche Mark Gold Minted Bar combines a piece of West German monetary history with the tangible substance of physical gold. Visually, it recalls the famous banknote of the D-Mark era – but the real reason to buy lies deeper: it contains 1/200 ounce of fine gold with 999.9 fineness, and its value is primarily determined by the gold price. The design is the personal touch, the precious metal the lasting substance.
A Bar with the Status of a Coin
Why minted bars? Quite simply: bars that bear a coin die and an embossed face value are referred to as minted bars. At first glance, the angular piece looks like a classic small bar – but through the embossed face value of 25 dollars of the Republic of Liberia, it attains the status of a genuine coin and is recognized as official legal tender in the issuing country. This combination of bar shape and coin character makes this issue one of the most appealing small gold mintages of all.
The Design: The Legendary Old 50-DM Banknote
Anyone who still remembers the D-Mark will recognize the image immediately. On one side is the distinctive portrait of a man wearing a fur cap – taken from a painting created around 1525 by Barthel Beham, which adorned the brown fifty-mark note for decades. The other side shows the Holsten Gate of the Hanseatic city of Lübeck, one of Germany's most famous historic landmarks. Both designs are finely engraved into the fine gold and come across with particular depth thanks to the Proof minting quality.
Strictly Limited – Only 1,000 Pieces Worldwide
What matters most to investors is the mintage of only 1,000 pieces. While many small gold mintages are issued in large quantities, this edition remains a true rarity. Experience shows that small quantities meet with loyal demand for Deutsche Mark designs – giving rise to this mintage's special appreciation potential. There is no guaranteed outcome, but there is a comprehensible appeal: what is strictly limited cannot later be reproduced at will.
Investment Gold That Moves with the Gold Price
Physical gold has been regarded as a store of value for over 6,000 years and is the oldest currency in the world. It possesses an inherent, intrinsic value, has never had a price of zero, and is recognized worldwide as a medium of exchange. This is precisely why gold serves as a proven inflation hedge: while fiat money can be multiplied at will via the printing press, the supply of gold remains naturally scarce. The precious metal has also proven itself as crisis protection across generations – it is no coincidence that central banks are among the largest holders of gold in the world.
Gold protects your purchasing power when confidence in paper currencies wanes – an advantage that has been confirmed time and again over the centuries.
Another advantage: profits from the sale of physical gold in Germany are generally tax-free after a holding period of at least one year. This makes the minted bar not only suitable for gradually building wealth in small units, but also as a long-term building block that can be passed down from generation to generation. Small amounts of gold add up over the years into substantial wealth.
For Investors – and as an Investment to Give as a Gift
This issue is aimed at everyone who wants to build up physical gold in a manageable form. And it is also perfectly suited as a gift of genuine investment gold for christenings, birthdays, or Christmas – instead of a fleeting present, you give an asset whose substance is tied to the gold price. Thanks to its high liquidity, the precious metal can be traded at any time and sold again without complication.
Key Features at a Glance
- Precious metal: gold, fineness 999.9/1,000
- Fine weight: 0.16 g (denomination 1/200 oz)
- Dimensions: 15.00 mm × 8.50 mm
- Face value: 25 dollars (Republic of Liberia)
- Condition: Proof (PP), brand new
- Mintage: strictly limited to 1,000 pieces
- Packaging: coin capsule
Product depiction may differ from the final product.
