Helvetia/Vreneli gold coin 20 Swiss francs 1949.

The 20 Swiss francs 1949 is an investment gold coin exempt from VAT. The Swiss Helvetia 20 franc 1949 coin is investment gold according to the criteria set by the european union directive 2006/112/EC and a coin daily quoted in France by Cpor at a price close to the spot price of gold. Millesimal fineness is 900 ‰ and the coin contain 5.80 grams of pure gold, it is a widely common coin (10.000.000 gold vreneli minted in 1949) the minimum value follows (in VG / VF) the normal quotation of the swiss 20 francs Helvetia, with some exceptions (error coins) due to die Rotation during manufacturing.

Helvetia 20 Franc Gold Coin 1949 value.

The story behind Swiss 20 Francs coins from 1947-1949 is far more complex and unsettling than most realize. These coins, known as Swiss Vreneli, are often admired for their 900 fineness—90% gold, with the remaining 10% being copper. However, a deeper analysis of the alloy reveals troubling traces of mercury and lead, raising questions about the origins of the gold used in these coins. Also this has been broadcast on the History Channel in the USA.

It turns out that a significant portion of the gold came from sources far more disturbing than ordinary trade. Much of it was reclaimed from dental uses, a fact that becomes haunting when viewed in the context of recent revelations about Switzerland’s close financial ties with Nazi Germany during and after World War II. Nazi Germany, infamous for looting and plundering, acquired a large amount of gold from Holocaust victims, often in the form of dental fillings and jewelry taken from concentration camps. This gold, tainted by human suffering, was funneled into various avenues, and some of it may have ended up in the Vreneli coins minted in Switzerland.

Though the Vreneli series was officially produced until 1945/46, many coins minted in the last decade of production—particularly those from 1947 and 1949—are believed to contain traces of this looted gold. While the precise extent to which Holocaust gold was used in these coins remains uncertain, historical research indicates that a significant portion of the gold in these post-war Vrenelis came from looted Belgian bars, with some possibly originating from other occupied countries like the Netherlands.

During the war, Germany had a method for disguising the origins of stolen gold. They would melt down looted Belgian bars, erase the original markings, and re-stamp them with Prussian insignia, effectively laundering the gold before shipping it off to neutral Switzerland. It is likely that, during this re-melting process, smaller amounts of Holocaust-related gold—possibly a few hundred pounds—were mixed in. However, Swiss authorities at the time, wary of the questionable origins of the gold, moved quickly to get rid of suspected “contaminated” bars, often transferring them to other central banks across Europe. There are records that even listed serial numbers of some of the tainted bars, though their exact fate remains murky.

While Switzerland tried to distance itself from the morally compromised gold during the war, the post-war period saw more troubling uses of these bars. Once negotiations and financial settlements were made, the Swiss appeared to use some of this gold in coin production. The Vreneli coins from 1947 and 1949 might therefore bear the legacy of wartime atrocities.

Meanwhile, the vast majority of gold looted from Holocaust victims ended up in the Reichsbank, and by the end of the war, much of it was stored in the Merkers mine, where Allied forces discovered an estimated 12 tons of this so-called Holocaust gold. After the war, much of this gold was redistributed through the Tripartite Commission, a body established to handle reparations. Some of the gold was returned to central banks, but much of it was spread across the world, integrated into the global gold supply. Today, it’s possible that remnants of this gold may be present in modern bullion coins or still held in bar form by various institutions.

The legacy of these Swiss coins is a chilling reminder of how tainted gold, born from human suffering, found its way into post-war markets and into the hands of collectors. The next time you see a Swiss Vreneli from 1947-1949, consider the dark history that may lie within its metal—a history tied to war, looting, and the Holocaust itself.

• 1949 Swiss 20 franc Gold coin value –
• 1949 helvetia gold coin –
• Swiss 20 Franc gold 1949.