German Hallmarks - City Marks II - Encyclopedia of Silver Marks, Hallmarks & Makers' Marks

Online Encyclopedia of Silver Marks, Hallmarks & Makers' Marks

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Silver Marks ~ Germany ~ Before 1886

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Assay marks for silver purity found on German and Prussian silver of the 18th & 19th centuries.

The Lot system divided silver into 16 parts
16/16 = pure silver • 15 lot =.937 14 lot =.875 13 lot =.812 12 lot =.750

German
Hallmarks
Post-1886

Individual City & Town marks were used until ca.1886

German City Marks
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A • D D • H H • O P • Z

The Arms of a city often reflected the imagery used in its town mark, where this was the case, an image of the city's arms is included for comparison.


	Danzig City Mark Prussia Variations on the "crown and two crosses" were used from the 17th century and into the 19th century. Danzig is now Gdansk, Poland
	Dessau City Mark Saxony-Anhalt Variations on the block letter D were used from the 17th century through the early 19th century when it was changed to a script letter.
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	Dresden City Mark Saxony Variations on the crossed swords and D were used from the early 18th century through the late 19th century.
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	Elberfeld City Mark North Rhine-Westphalia 18th century Elberfeld is now a district within the city of Wuppertal.
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	Elbing City Mark Prussia Elbing is now Elblag in Poland
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	Erfurt City Mark Thuringia Variations on the block letter E were used from the 17th century through the late 18th century. The cartouche shield can be lobed , plain or oval. Rectangle from a mid 19th C. example.
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	Flensburg City Mark Schleswig-Holstein Depicts a castle tower with a partial lion passant extending to the left from center.
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	Frankfurt am Main City Mark Hesse Early examples lacked the lothig number and sometimes showed an "F" on the eagle's breast. Beginning in the late 18th cent., the standard number was added.
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	Frankfurt an der Oder City Mark Brandenburg Mark depicts a cockerel, second example (photo) is an unverified example.
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	Freiberg City Mark Saxony latter 18th and 19th centuries
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	Fürth City Mark Bavaria 19th century examples
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	Gießen City Mark Hesse
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	Glückstadt City Mark Schleswig-Holstein The figure represents "Fortuna".
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	Goerlitz City Mark Saxony Sometimes seen with a "12" included above the crown.

	Greiffenberg City Mark Prussia As well as Greiffenberg (Gryfów S'laski) in Silesia, a number towns in the Pomerania region of Germany, including Stargard and Greifswald, also used a griffin mark.
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	Halberstadt City Mark Saxony-Anhalt The device is a cramp-iron, the city also used annual date letters.
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	Hamburg City Marks 19th Century Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg The three tower and gate mark was used from the 17th C. and was rendered within of a shield form until the late 18th cent. Hamburg Makers' Marks
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	Hanau City Mark Hesse Seen with or without the loth number above the chevrons. Beginning in the mid 19th Century, hallmarking rules were rescinded and many Hanau silversmiths used antique looking 'fantasy' marks.

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Related Pages at 925-1000.com:
German Hallmarks after-1886
Hanau Pseudo-Marks
Hamburg Makers' Marks
World Hallmarks
British Hallmarks Explained
Dutch Hallmarks
French Hallmarks
Austrian Hallmarks
Swedish Hallmarks
Finnish Hallmarks
Norwegian Makers
David-Andersen Marks
Georg Jensen Marks
Mexican Silver Marks

Thanks to forum members "Bahner" & "blakstone" for providing additional information on a number of these marks.

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Looking to do further research? Have a mark you can't identify? Join the forum.