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On January 18, 1871, rulers of the individual German states agreed to unify and create a new German Empire with Wilhelm I as Emperor. Following unification, the coinage of the Empire became standardized as to denominations and types, though the individual states retained their identities on the denominations 2 Marks and above)
Minor coins (1 Pfennig to 1 Mark) circulated throughout the new Empire and replaced local currencies such as Hellers, Kreuzers, Groschen, and others. Each coin bore a generic design that reinforced the concept of a German Empire in the minds of the general public. Denominations of 2 Marks and above were state-specific, but shared a common reverse design.
| MINOR COINAGE (1 Pfennig to 1 Mark) Germany 1 Pfennig, Small Eagle (1873-1889) Germany 1 Pfennig, Large Eagle (1889-1916) Germany 1 Pfennig, Aluminum (1916-1918) Germany 2 Pfennig, Small Eagle (1873-1877) Germany 2 Pfennig, Large Eagle (1904-1916) Germany 5 Pfennig (Small Eagle) Germany 5 Pfennig (Large Eagle) Germany 10 Pfennig (Small Eagle) Germany 10 Pfennig (Large Eagle) Germany 20 Pfennig (Silver) Germany 20 Pfennig (Copper-Nickel) Germany 25 Pfennig Germany 50 Pfennig (Small Eagle) Germany 50 Pfennig (Large Eagle) Germany 1/2 Mark Germany 1 Mark (Small Eagle) Germany 1 Mark (Large Eagle) | STATE COINAGE (2 Marks to 20 Marks) Anhalt Baden Bavaria Bremen Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel Frankfurt Hamburg Hessen Lippe Lubeck Mecklenburg-Schwerin Mecklenburg-Strelitz Oldenburg Prussia Reuss-Greiz Reuss-Schleiz Sachsen Altenburg Sachsen Coburg Gotha Sachsen Meiningen Sachsen Weimar Eisenach Saxony Schwarzburg Rudolstadt Schwarzburg Sondershausen Waldeck-Pyrmont Wurttemberg |