Germany (East) Commemorative 5, 10, and 20 Mark 1966 to 1990

The German Democratic Republic (DEUTSCHE DEMOKRATISCHE REPUBLIK), otherwise known as East Germany, issued many different commemorative coins with many different patterns starting in 1966. These come in 5, 10, and 20 mark denominations. Our picture shows a sampling of patterns on these coins. In fact, there are over 100 different patterns.

West Germany (BUNDESREPUBLIK DEUTSCHLAND) issued similar coins. You can see those on this CoinQuest page [Click Here].

As to value, some of these East German coins are made of copper-nickel and carry very little value. Some coins, notably the earlier 5 mark coins, were made of nickel-bronze, and these too are of low value.

Nevertheless many of these coins are made of silver and some have low mintages. Both of these factors push value upward. In the listings below, we summarize the series by quoting approximate values for all of the common coins. Then, for coins that are less common, we call these out separately. If your coin is not in the MORE VALUABLE list, then it follows roughly these values:

LESS VALUABLE COINS: 5, 10, AND 20 MARK
worn: $2 US dollar approximate catalog value
average circulated: $7
well preserved: $15
fully uncirculated: $35

Catalog values quoted as more valuable are for coins in well preserved condition.

MORE VALUABLE COINS: 5 MARK
1969 with 'mark' to left of '5': $75 in well preserved condition
1983A Brandenburg gate: $500
1983A City of Meissen: $150
1985A Caroline Neuber: $75
1986A Heinrich von Kleist: $150
1989 Carl vo Ossietzky: $75

MORE VALUABLE COINS: 10 MARK
1967 Kathe Kollwitz: $100
1968 Johan Gutenberg: $75
1969 Johann Friedrich Bottger: $50
1970 Ludwig von Beethoven: $50
1971 Albrecht Durer monogram: $50
1972 Heinrich Heine: $60
1973 Bertolt Brecht: $50
1974 25th anniversary DDR: $50
1974 Caspar David Friedrich: $50
1978 Albert Schweitzer: $50
1976 Carl Maria von Weber: $70
1977 Otto von Guericke: $100
1978 Justus vo Liebig: $90
1979 Ludwig Feuerback: $150
1981 Georg Hegel: $50
1982 Leipzig Gewandhaus: $50
1983 Richard Wagner: $50
1984 Alfred Brehm: $65
1985 Semper Opera: $65
1985 Hurnboldt University: $75
1986 Charite Berlin: $70
1987 Berlin Theater: $60
1988 Ulrich von Hutten: $75
1989 Johann Gottfried Schadow: $100
1990 Johann Gottfried Fichte: $75

MORE VALUABLE COINS: 20 MARK
1966 Gottfried Wilhelm Leibrniz: $200
1967 Wilhelm von Humboldt: $170
1968 Karl Marx: $90
1969 Johann Wolfgang von Boethe: $160
1970 Friedrich Engels: $100
1971 Karl Kiebknetch Rosa Luxemburg: $75
1972 Lucas Cranach: $65
1973 August Bebel: $65
1974 Immanuel Kant: $60
1975 Johann Sebastian Bach: $115
1976 Wilhelm Liebknecht: $65
1977 Carl Friedrich Gauss: $95
1978 Johann von Herder: $95
1979 Gotthold Ephraim Lessing: $110
1980 Ernst Abbe: $70
1981 vom Stein: $60
1982 Clara Zetkin: $65
1983 Martin Luther: $700
1984 Georg Friedrich Handel: $175
1985 Ernst Moritze Arndt: $135
1986 Wilhelm Grimm: $245
1987 Berlin: $500
1988 Carl Zeiss: $240
1989 Thomas Muntzer: $90
1990 Andreas Schluter: $100
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