German Democratic Republic
Soviet Satellite State (1949-1990)
Location: Northeast Germany
Capital City: East Berlin
Government type: Communist Republic
Main languages: German
Main religions: Protestant Christianity, Atheism
Chronology
1945: Soviet occupation zone established in Germany
1949: Soviet occupation zone in Germany becomes the German Democratic Republic
1972: Treaty with West Germany mutually recognizng each other
1990: Reunification with West Germany
Currency
Mark (1948-1990)
1 Mark = 100 Pfennig
Coins from East Germany in the collection
•1 Pfennig, 1952 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#5)
•1 Pfennig, 1963 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#8)
•1 Pfennig, 1968 (aluminum, Leningrad mint, KM#8)
•1 Pfennig, 1975 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#8)
•1 Pfennig, 1982 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#8)
•1 Pfennig, 1989 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#8)
•5 Pfennig, 1948 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#2)
•5 Pfennig, 1950 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#2)
•5 Pfennig, 1952 (aluminum, Muldenhütten mint, KM#6)
•5 Pfennig, 1968 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#9.1)
•5 Pfennig, 1972 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#9.1)
•5 Pfennig, 1975 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#9.1)
•10 Pfennig, 1948 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#3)
•10 Pfennig, 1952 (aluminum, Muldenhütten mint, KM#7)
•10 Pfennig, 1968 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#10)
•10 Pfennig, 1971 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#10)
•10 Pfennig, 1979 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#10)
•20 Pfennig, 1969 (brass, Berlin mint, KM#11)
•20 Pfennig, 1971 (brass, Berlin mint, KM#11)
•20 Pfennig, 1983 (brass, Berlin mint, KM#11)
•50 Pfennig, 1950 (aluminum bronze, Berlin mint, KM#4)
•50 Pfennig, 1958 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#12)
•50 Pfennig, 1968 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#12)
•1 Mark, 1956 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#13)
•1 Mark, 1962 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#13)
•1 Mark, 1977 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#35)
•1 Mark, 1982 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#35)
•2 Mark, 1957 (aluminum, Berlin mint, KM#14)
•5 Mark, 1969 (nickel brass, Berlin mint, KM#22.1) Commemorative: 20th Anniversary of the establishment of East Germany
•5 Mark, 1971 (cupronickel, Berlin mint, KM#29) Commemorative: Brandenburg Gate
•5 Mark, 1990 (nickel brass, Berlin mint, KM#135) Commemorative: Zeughaus Museum
•10 Mark, 1975 (nickel brass, Berlin mint, KM#58) Commemorative: 20th Anniversary of the Warsaw Pact
•20 Mark, 1979 (nickel brass, Berlin mint, KM#75) Commemorative: 30th Anniversary of the establishment of East Germany
Banknotes from East Germany in the collection
•5 Mark, 1975 (P#27)
•200 Mark, 1985 (P#32)
•500 Mark, 1985 (P#33)
Note: The 200 and 500 Mark notes were never released into circulation. They were deemed too high-value to be practical (in 1985, 500 Marks was roughly equal to the average monthly salary in East Germany), and were put in storage, to be released if they would become usable. After unification and the retirement of the East German Mark, all notes were stashed away in a cavern near Halberstadt to decompose naturally, but many were salvaged by locals and made their way to the collector's market before the remainder were incinerated.