2009 Youth Hostels 100th Anniversary German Silver Coins
German silver coins will be issued to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the first youth hostel and the growth of the German Youth Hostel Assocation and Hostelling International. The 10 Euro coins will be issued in silver proof and silver BU as part of the regular German silver coin program.
The very first youth hostel was started by schoolteacher Richard Schirrmann and conservationist Wilhelm Münker in 1909 in the town of Altena (Nordrhein-Westfalen) in Germany's west. Their plan was to offer cheap overnight accommodation to students on school tours traveling the German countryside. This first hostel was located in Schirrmann's own school at Altena, although it was moved to Altena Castle in 1912 where it still operates today.
The idea of youth hostels quickly spread, first throughout Germany and then the rest of the world. In 1919 Schirrmann founded the German Youth Hostel Association, and in 1932 the International Youth Hostel Federation was started. Later this would become Hostelling International, which overseas more than 4,000 youth hostels worldwide. Youth hostels, now no longer exclusive to the young and more often called backpacker hostels, provide affordable temporary accommodation for travelers throughout the world.
The obverse of each coin carries the Eagle motif, State Emblem of the Federal Republic of Germany. The Eagle has been designed to compliment the reverse image. Inscriptions include the country and year of issue, together with the nominal face value of 10 euro. The reverse features the modern logo of the German Youth Hostel Association, with the anniversary inscribed inside it. Below is an image of the town of Altena, where the first hostel is located, while below that are the years of the anniversary.
Each coin is struck from 18 grams of 92.5% sterling silver from a 32.50 mm disc, either in brilliant uncirculated condition or in high quality proof standards. The Proof coin is supplied in a capsule, while the BU edition comes in a protective plastic flip.
Peter Horsman writes for Euro Collections, which offers around 1000 different coin and collectible products from around the world. To find the coins described in this article and more visit EuroCollections.com.
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...Related Posts:
Peter – The Germans obviously put one over on you. The 100th anniversary of the Hostel Association includes the 12 years under National Socialism, 1933-1945. What did this mean? German Hostels were banned to certain nationalities during most of these 12 years.