Hi, folks. I was hoping you could help me. I have an 1887 German pfenning with no visible mint mark. Actually, my understanding is that there should be two mint marks, one on either side at the bottom of the design on the reverse (the side without the big "1"). Has it been worn off this coin, do you think, or did they make some without mint marks?
Hi centsdimes, your coin is in really bad shape, the mintmarks under the Eagle are worn off. Sorry, there are no coins of this year without mintmarks, except of a bad strike from overused dies.
It is a 1 Pfennig coin from the German Empire. Those coins have a rim which in the case of the piece shown in the initial post is partly "gone" because the coin is worn. Copper, 2 grams, Ø 17.5 mm. The eagle is the older type; in 1890 a "rounder" one was introduced ... Christian
By the way, these 'older' types of German Empire coinage with the small eagle are rarely found in AU or UNC condition, because they were kept in circulation even after the later type was introduced. So finding a Pfennig denomination from before 1890 or even a 1 Mark piece with the small eagle that is XF or better would be quite a nice surprise.
