page_title: Johann Philipp Graumann
section_title: What happened next
hierarchical_section_title: Johann Philipp Graumann / What happened next
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Der Cöllnische Fischmarkt mit dem 1710 – 1723 nach Plänen von Martin Grünberg errichteten Rathausneubau. Im Hintergrund die barocke Petrikirche English: The square Cöllnischer Fischmarkt (“Cölln fish market”) with the town hall constructed between 1710 and 1723 after plans of Martin Grünberg. In the background the Petrikirche in baroque style.
context_page_description: Johann Philipp Graumann was a German business mathematician, an expert on exchange rates and coinage, mint master in Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel and Berlin, a mercantilist and Prussian financial advisor. He is considered one of the most important German monetary theorists of his time. As master of the mints in Prussia, he implemented a major coin reform, with the goal of implementing a new monetary standard to promote trade, increase seigniorage income and elevate the Prussian coins to the status of a reserve currency. Graumann was portrayed by his contemporaries as a dreamer, but with only a slight modification his coin standard remained in place in Germany until 1907.
context_section_description: After Graumann's fall the lease of the Prussian mint at Königsberg was transferred to Moses Fränkel and Veitel Heine Ephraim. Their success in Königsberg was so great that under similar conditions they were given the lease of the mints of Aurich and Cleves. Moses Gumpertz, Moses Isaak and Daniel Itzig leased the mint in Berlin. At the beginning of the Seven Years' War, the king's need for revenue rose sharply. Saxony was invaded by Prussia not least because of its wealthy silver mines near Freiberg. As the war continued Frederick agreed to reductions in the precious metal content of his coins in order to get as high a coinage as possible. In 1756 Ephraim became operator of the Leipzig mint facility; in 1757 also in Dresden and in 1758 of all the mint facilities in Saxony and Prussia together with Itzig. The Graumann coin standard was abandoned in 1758 in Saxony; at 1 January 1759 in Prussia. In April 1759 Graumann discussed with Ephraim the old and Mittelfriedrich d'or and the agio. Ephraim and Itzig produced millions of debased coins known as Ephraimiten. In Poland were no coins minted throughout the 18th century and consequently, it became an ideal dumping ground for the devalued coins. Frederick's debased coins were an inspiration to many other German principalities, who inflated their currencies as well. Rival mints in Harzgerode (1760) in Anhalt-Bernburg, Quedlinburg in Sachsen-Anhalt (1761), Schwerin in Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1761), Neustrelitz in Mecklenburg-Strelitz, (1762) and Rethwisch in the Duchy of Holstein (1762) were forcibly closed or acquired by Prussia, c.q. by Ephraim as undesired competition.
  By 1760 the price of silver that had to be bought from the Wisselbank in Amsterdam rose from 19 to 28 and 34 Reichsthaler per Mark. From November 1761 most foreign "Kriegsgeld" was no longer accepted in Prussia and Saxony, only if it was melted. An exception was made for the coins minted in Anhalt-Bernburg, which were used to buy silver in Amsterdam and Hamburg.
  In April 1762 the 56-year old Graumann died of a digestion disease, like many other people in Berlin. He was buried in Petrikirche (Berlin-Cölln). His widow was Johanna Christina Hersin from Hessen, whom he had married in May 1750.
caption: The square Cöllnischer Fischmarkt (“Cölln fish market”) with the town hall constructed between 1710 and 1723 after plans of Martin Grünberg. In the background the Petrikirche in baroque style. (1784)
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