A history of Slav princes and Russian grand duchesses — the Schwerin Coin Cabinet

Abstract

Located in the northeast of Germany and once inhabited by the Slavs, Mecklenburg-Schwerin enjoys more than a thousand-year history. The collection of the Schwerin Museum was formed from a collection of Dutch paintings, collected by Christian Ludwig II of Mecklenburg, who lived in the 18th century. Over time, the collection expanded. Now in its funds are stored such masterpieces, as works of Rembrandt, Rubens, Brueghel the Elder. The twentieth century is represented by the works of Picasso, Lieberman, Duchamp. In the Engraving Room - a collection of engravings from Durer to Nolde. Department of arts and crafts stores a collection of weapons, porcelain, coins and medals. Schwerin coin (numismatic) cabinet is a part of the State Museum of Schwerin. It is located in the historic part of the city. The collection of the Cabinet includes 30 000 coins and medals, cover a vast historical period, beginning with the Middle Ages (from the 10th century) and up to the present day. Most of the museum items in this collection were made in Mecklenburg. The numismatic cabinet has a collection of German and European coins, Mecklenburg marks and letters with extremely rare postmarks of the 18th and 19th centuries. Coins and medals are an important historical source, can serve as a basis for solving a number of problems of historical chronology: they are an excellent material for establishing (specifying) dating. Numismatic collections allow you to reconstruct important aspects of political, economic and cultural life in the Middle Ages, as well as in the era of early modern times. The article introduces the history of Mecklenburg, and also offers a characterization of the Schwerin numismatic cabinet. The text of the article uses selected samples of coins and medals from the collection, which illustrate important historical events.