Item number: A1680

Year: AD 1975

Material: Silver (.625)

Size: 32.9 x 32.9 x 2.6 mm

Weight: 21.00g

Manufactured by: Publicly Owned Enterprise Berlin Mint

Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2014

This is a 20 Mark commemorative silver coin, minted in AD 1975 by VEB Münze Berlin (People’s Enterprise Berlin Mint) and issued by the Staatsbank der DDR (State Bank of the German Democratic Republic, GDR) to commemorate the 225th anniversary of Johann Sebastian Bach’s death.

The obverse of the coin features the opening musical manuscript of the C Major Prelude from the first book of Das Wohltemperierte Klavier (The Well-Tempered Clavier). Below the musical notation, “Joh:Sebast:Bach” appears as Bach’s frequently used abbreviated signature in his manuscripts. In the upper left corner, “1685–1750” indicates Bach’s birth and death years.

The reverse of the coin displays the coat of arms of the German Democratic Republic (GDR). At its centre, a hammer, representing the workers, is crossed with a compass, symbolising the intellectual class, both encircled by a sheaf of rye, representing the farmers. The decorative ribbon below, according to heraldic conventions, should depict the black-red-gold tricolour of Germany, though the relief engraving does not differentiate the colours. Surrounding the emblem is the inscription “DEUTSCHE DEMOKRATISCHE REPUBLIK”, translating to “German Democratic Republic”. The inscriptions “1975” and “20 MARK” at the bottom indicate the year of issue and the coin’s denomination, respectively.

The edge of the silver coin is inscribed with the denomination “20 MARK” repeated three times.

The Berlin Mint has been in operation since the 13th century, with its location shifting several times but always remaining along the Spree River to utilise its water resources. After World War II, Germany was divided into two states: the German Democratic Republic (GDR), a socialist regime established in the Soviet-occupied zone, and the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) in the Western zones. In AD 1947, the Prussian State Mint, which fell under East German jurisdiction, was renamed VEB Münze Berlin (People’s Enterprise Berlin Mint) and became responsible for minting currency for the GDR. In addition to standard circulating coins, the East German government regularly issued commemorative coins, often featuring historical events and figures, socialist figures and achievements, anniversaries, and architectural landmarks. Among these, silver commemorative coins were relatively rare, primarily minted for foreign exchange revenue, with limited domestic circulation.

Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach in 17th century, within the Holy Roman Empire, and passed away in Leipzig, both of which were later significant cities in East Germany. As a result, the GDR government regularly organised music competitions in Bach’s name to celebrate and honour his contributions. His work, Das Wohltemperierte Klavier, is most renowned for its status as an essential pedagogical text for keyboard music. As Bach wrote in its preface: “For the use of young musicians eager to learn, as well as for the special amusement of those already skilled in this discipline.” Furthermore, the work holds great academic significance in the exploration of tonality and the development of compositional techniques.

物件編號: A1679

年代: 公元 1975 年

材質: 銀 (625‰)

尺寸: 32.9 x 32.9 x 2.6 mm

重量: 21.00g

製造地: 人民企業柏林鑄幣廠

來源: 大城郵幣社 2014

這是一枚公元1975年，由人民企業柏林鑄幣廠(VEB Münze Berlin)鑄造，德意志民主共和國(即東德)國家銀行(Staatsbank der DDR)發行的20馬克紀念銀幣，紀念約翰·塞巴斯汀·巴哈逝世225週年。

銀幣的正面是巴哈《平均律鍵盤曲集》第一部中，C大調的第一首前奏曲的開頭樂譜手稿。下方「Joh:Sebast:Bach」為巴哈在手稿中經常使用的略簽，而左上角「1685-1750」為巴哈的生卒年。

銀幣的背面是德意志民主共和國國徽。中心為代表工人的錘子，與代表知識份子的圓規，環繞著代表農民的黑麥穗束。下方的飾帶按律應為德意志黑紅金三色旗，只是因為在浮雕上區別不顯。周圍環繞著德文「DEUTSCHE DEMOKRATISCHE REPUBLIK」，即「德意志民主共和國」。下方「1975」與「20 MARK」分別表示發行年與面額。銀幣的側面反覆刻寫了三遍「20MARK」的邊銘

柏林鑄幣廠自公元13世紀便已開始運行，位置幾經變動，但始終位於施普雷河畔以借水利。二戰後，德國一分為二，德國俄佔區成立社會主義政權，德意志民主共和國，與西方德意志聯邦共和國對峙。公元1947年，普魯士國立鑄幣廠，在東德治下，更名為人民企業柏林鑄幣廠，為東德發行硬幣。除通用貨幣外，東德政府亦定期發行各種紀念幣，多有關古代歷史事件與人物、社會主義相關人物與成就、節慶與建築等。其中銀質紀念幣較為稀有，多為賺取外匯而發行，本國流通較少。

約翰·塞巴斯汀·巴哈於公元17世紀生於神聖羅馬帝國艾森納赫，逝於萊比錫，都是後世東德的重要城市。因此，東德政府定期舉辦以巴哈為名的各式音樂比賽，慶祝並紀念他的成就。而其作品《平均律鍵盤曲集》最著名之處，在於它成為後世鍵盤音樂學習的重要教材。如同巴哈於扉頁所寫：「供渴望學習音樂的年輕人使用，也供那些已經熟練掌握該技藝的人作為特殊消遣。」此外，該作品在調性探索、作曲技法的發展等學術價值上，也極有貢獻。