Louis XIV

Highlights from the Vault

October 15, 2024 to October 18, 2025

People often ask: “What else is hiding in the vault?”. Our collection has grown over the centuries and is so extensive that we can only show a fraction of it in our permanent exhibition. A selection of objects, whose history we tell, show highlights made of gold, silver, ivory, precious stones or sometimes even paper. There are topics familiar to our visitors, such as the coins and medals of the Wittelsbach dynasty, but we also show less known items, such as Byzantine or Ottoman coins. Let us surprise you!

HAND GREAT ART

March 9, 2021 to January 9, 2022

150 artists presented their latest works. With 240 works, the overall exhibition demonstrated the full spectrum of contemporary German medals covering a rich range of topics from portraits to the ancient world, religion, animals, war and money right through to politics and the environment.

A book has been published to accompany the exhibition.

Lustrous Propaganda

May 4, 2020 to January 21, 2021

The annual medals that have been issued by the Holy See on June 29 every year since 1605 speak as a historic repository and an aesthetic work of art. The exhibition was meant to be opened on May 4, 2020, by minister of state Bernd Sibler, but this had to be cancelled due to Corona. However, he caught up on the visit very soon afterwards.

A book has been published to accompany the exhibition.

Portraits.
500 Years of Roman Coin Portraits

March 30, 2017 to June 25, 2017

The exhibition presented the development of imperial portraiture on Roman coins from the late Republican period up until the end of the Roman Empire.

The Devastation of Europe 1914 - 1918

May 12, 2016 to March 26, 2017

A wealth of medals from Germany and Austria illustrates the nationalistic enthusiasm for war, but also the horror of the First World War. 431 medals were exhibited, arranged according to 24 subject areas.

A book has been published to accompany the exhibition.

The Double Mark.
Coinage from two German states

December 5, 2015 to April 24, 2016

The exhibition presented the history of the German Mark, from its introduction following the foundation of the German Reich in 1871 up to its demise with the introduction of the Euro in 1999/2002.

Nature - Chance - Art

October 10, 2014 to May 3, 2015

For sculptor and medallist Friedrich Brenner, who was born in 1939, nature is one of the prime concerns of his art. The exhibition displayed a cross-section of his medal and plaquette works.

100 Heads

May 15, 2014 to October 5, 2014

For Hubertus von Pilgrim (* 1931), humanistic and literary culture is the basis of his art. In historical and spiritual personages, he found “dialogue partners” and an artistic challenge. This developed into an impressive portrait gallery on medals and in plastic art.

Contest in Ore.
Portrait Medals from the German Renaissance

November 22, 2013 to March 15, 2014 

German medals from the Renaissance and related portrait media were united for the first time ever in a joint exhibition project of the Coin Collection of the Vienna Museum of Fine Arts, the Dresden State Art Collections and the Munich State Coin Collection.

A book has been published to accompany the exhibition.

Constantine 312

October 31, 2012 to September 30, 2013

We quite rightly speak of the Constantinian shift in the year 312 AD. However, at first Constantine arguably saw in Christ just another manifestation of the Roman sun god, as also the coins suggest. The exhibition was opened on October 31, 2012, by Cardinal Reinhard Marx.

A book has been published to accompany the exhibition.