Germany · Saarland – Saarschleife (series: Federal States II (Bundesländer II), 3rd issue)

Saarland is the smallest German federal state by area and borders France and Luxembourg. Its political history was shaped particularly by German-French relations. After the First World War, the Saargebiet was administered by the League of Nations (Völkerbund); economically, it was closely tied to France. In a 1935 referendum, a majority voted in favor of its reintegration into Germany. After the Second World War, the territory once again received special status and was economically integrated with France. A European Saar Statute was rejected in another referendum in 1955. On 1 January 1957, Saarland joined the Federal Republic of Germany (Bundesrepublik Deutschland); economic integration followed in 1959.

The Saar rises in the Vosges and flows through France and Saarland before joining the Moselle in Rhineland-Palatinate. The Saarschleife is located near Mettlach, between the districts of Besseringen and Orscholz. It is a deeply incised meander: the river circles a ridge in an almost complete loop. This form was created by the river’s progressive deepening into the surrounding rock. A well-known view of the river loop is offered by the Cloef viewpoint near Orscholz. Burg Montclair is also located on the ridge within the loop.

The issue belongs to the German coin series “Bundesländer II”, which began in 2023. It follows the first federal-state series and presents the states in the order of their presidencies in the Bundesrat. Saarland held the presidency for the 2024/2025 administrative year. This explains the issue date of 2025.

For the second series, buildings or landscapes associated with the respective state are selected. For Saarland, the choice was not a monument to the mining industry that shaped the state for so long, but rather a widely known landscape formation. The Saarschleife thus serves as a geographical symbol of the state and at the same time refers to the Saar, the river from which it takes its name.