This 2004 set with mint mark A holds euro coins from Berlin, struck in the year the European Union welcomed new members on 1 May. Yet the common side of the 10 cent to €2 coins still shows the map of the Union before enlargement, with its 15 states: the set captures Europe on the eve of change.

The set covers all eight denominations, from 1 cent to €2, and three German designs. The oak twig on the 1, 2 and 5 cent coins, by Professor Rolf Lederbogen, recalls the old pfennig. Reinhard Heinsdorff’s Brandenburg Gate on the 10, 20 and 50 cent coins stands for the division of Germany and its reunification. The eagle on the €1 and €2, created by Heinz Hoyer and Sneschana Russewa-Hoyer, is the traditional emblem of German sovereignty, ringed by the stars of Europe.

The letter A is the mark of the Berlin mint. Germany’s euro coins come from five mints, A Berlin, D Munich, F Stuttgart, G Karlsruhe and J Hamburg, and each issues its own uncirculated (Stempelglanz) set every year. Collectors therefore gather a year’s sets as a run of five letters, and Berlin opens that run.

For a date run of German euro coins this is the A position for 2004, and the souvenir packaging keeps all eight coins together. The edge of the €2 carries a line of the national anthem, EINIGKEIT UND RECHT UND FREIHEIT («Unity and Justice and Freedom»).

UNC grade means the coins never circulated: there is no wear, the original mint lustre is intact, and only minor handling marks from storage are possible.

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