A Viking explorer named Erik Thorvaldsson was given the nickname "Red" because of the color of his hair and beard. Erik the Red also had a fiery temper to match. In the early 980s, he had heard of land in the Northwest that was discovered by a Norwegian sailor named Gunnbjörn Ulfsson about 100 years earlier. Erik packed up his clan and sailed to the land and explored the coastline. He decided to name this land Greenland Grænland in Icelandic, or Grønland in Danish and the Norwegian languages.
In 985, Erik the Red returned to Iceland and recruited people to move to Greenland. In a medieval 12th-century account from the Saga of Erik the Red, Erik is quoted as saying why he named the island Greenland: "It would encourage people to go there that the land had a good name." Erik the Red convinced a number of Norwegians and Icelanders to join him, ushering 25 ships to Greenland; unfortunately only 14 ships survived the voyage. Much of the economy in these lands centered around survival, but the practice of whaling was important. Whales were used for their meat, bones, blubber, and their skins. The Dorset peoples were the first inhabitants of Greenland; they did not hunt whales, and the Vikings had probably first encountered them when they arrived on the island. Inhabitants also hunted seals and walrus in the same manner. However, walrus ivory was the most lucrative source of income for the Vikings and became known as "Arctic gold."
Greenlands Economy Was Hot
The Vikings used ivory to make buttons, belt buckles, carvings, and religious relics. Demand for walrus ivory became insatiable across Europe, which became its largest consumer. The Vikings exchanged walrus ivory for timber, iron, silver, gold, and livestock. Around the year 1200, the Thule peoples, ancestors of the modern Inuit (Arctic Circle natives), had made their way to Greenland, as they were seafaring like the Vikings. The Dorset, Thule, and Vikings interacted with each other through commerce and personal relationships.
The Vikings had overhunted Greenland's walrus population, soon becoming almost non-existent. Norsemen were forced to travel deeper into the Arctic Circle to find walrus, which became taxing and risky. Scientists postulate that a mini ice age began in the mid-14th century, when Europe was devastated by a fatal pandemic caused by a bacterium known as Yersinia pestis and carried by fleas and rats. The pandemic became known as the "Black Death" and killed between 25 million and 50 million people in Europe during a seven-year period spanning from 1346 through 1353.
The Vikings' source of income from walrus ivory came to a screeching halt around 1400. The Dorset peoples also vanished from Greenland around this time, however the Thule peoples survived due to their advances in adaptation. Harsh conditions in Greenland reduced the land's population by large numbers and Greenland was no longer a burgeoning country. By 1500, the Viking Norsemen were almost non-existent on the island of Greenland.
Come Sail Away
Between 1605 and 1607, Christian IV, who was king of Denmark and Norway, sent expeditions to Greenland for exploration of the Arctic Circle and Greenland to find lost Viking settlements. The Norsemen bequeathed Greenland to the Dano-Norwegian government, and they sought to reclaim these lands. During 1729, the Danish East India Company was dissolved, and the Danish Asiatic Company (in Danish, Asiatisk Kompagni) was established in 1730. This company was granted a 40-year monopoly in all trading with India, China, and all the countries that were then considered part of the "Far East."
The first ship that sailed as part of this trade arrangement was the Den gyldne Love (The Golden Lion), which sank off the Northeastern Coast of Ireland. Locals held the silver cargo for safekeeping and demanded a salvage fee. Before the deal was to take place, a local gang overpowered the Danish guards and took their entire cache of silver. This event strained relations between the Dano-Norwegian and Great Britain. The second voyage on the ship named Cron Printz Christian (Crown Prince Christian) was successful in reaching Guangzao (Canton) China, and they mainly traded for tea, porcelain, and zinc oxide. Trade became successful with multiple voyages. Between 1732 and 1738, the Danish Asiatic Company went to Danish Tranquebar, which was Tharangambadi, in Kerala, India, and it was located close to Ceylon (Sri Lanka). Several denominations were struck in Danish Tranquebar, like the PCGS MS64 1756 Royalin silver coin. In 1772, the Danish Asiatic Company's trading rights expired, and the Danish Crown took over trade. Prior to this transition, one of the greatest numismatic crowns was produced: the Greenland Dollar.
Greenland Dollars
The coin shown is known as the Danish Asiatic Company Piastre or the Greenland Dollar. Its pedigree is quite fascinating, tracing ownership back to Peter Christian Hauberg (1844-1928), the chief inspector for the Royal Danish National Museum's coin and medal collection. An artist himself, Hauberg authored many important works on Danish coinage. His personal collection he amassed during his lifetime was auctioned in 1929. This specimen traveled to the Zinck family, who owned a large collection of Danish and Norwegian coins. Soon after the coin eventually landed in the hands of Andy Lustig, who noted, "And to this day, once or twice a year, the seller tells me how much he regrets selling it, and I tell him I feel the same way about letting it slip through my hands. I think it's just one of those few great coins that should never be willingly sold."
This Greenland Dollar was sold for $162,000 at an Ira & Larry Goldberg offering in 2011. The Goldbergs noted, "Of this issue only 543 pieces were struck in 1771, with the bulk of the issue being restruck in 1774. Discerning between the two emissions by die combination analyses, it has been determined that only 5 of the 1771 strikes are known. Of 1774 mintage, which comprised some 44,900 pieces, only 20 pieces are known to have survived. Of these, half are in museum collections. Truly one of the ultimate classic numismatic rarities."
As the 1770s rolled along, the Danish Asiatic Company made many subsequent trips to Danish Tranquebar in India, which in 1779 became a Danish Crown colony. The voyages continued to Asia until 1834; in 1845, Great Britain forced Denmark to sell its colonies within India and the Danish Asiatic Company ceased to exist after its last board of directors term ended in 1847.
The Budding Greenlandic Numismatic Scene
In 1806, Peder Christian Abildgaard was traveling the southern fjords when he found a major cryolite deposit that spawned the southwestern Greenland town of Ivittuut. The Inuits used cryolite as a cleaning and degreasing agent, and the mineral helped to cure animal skins so it would not decompose. Cryolite, also known as soda ash, was highly sought after by manufacturers of aluminum. A Danish company known as Oresund mined and processed cryolite, and they were one of the first companies to issue zinc mining tokens from 1859 through 1865. Five denominations were struck, beginning with the skilling up to the rigsdaler.
One of the first trading and mining firms that made a commitment to set up in Eastern Greenland was Anthony Gibbs and Sons in 1863. Unfortunately, this plan never came to fruition but three token denominations were manufactured in brass: a skilling, 24 skilling, and a 1 daler. All of these pieces are highly collectible today. The 1 daler denomination is the scarcest and has a value in excess of $3,000 in a grade of PCGS MS63. The Invigtut Croyolite Mining and Trading Company of Greenland also issued zinc tokens from 1875 to the 1890s, with denominations ranging from 1 ore to 20 kroner. There are three series and some of the larger denominations are exceptionally rare in the third series.
In 1910, a Danish-Inuit named Knud Rasmussen and Peter Freuchen founded a trading station at Cape York, in Northwestern Greenland near Mount Dundas. Rasmussen issued aluminum token denominations from the 5 ore to the 10 kroner. Most of the tokens had a frozen date of 1910, with the exception of the 5 and 10 kroner, bearing a date of 1932. These tokens were to be redeemed at Rasmussen's trading post, which was set up for the Thule peoples. Rasmussen was a humanitarian who traveled over 18,000 miles via dogsled across Greenland, and he is known as the "Father of Arctic Anthropology." He and his teams made several "Thule Expeditions," which studied the native Inuit peoples and polar bears.
The first coins of Greenland as a Danish Colony were struck in 1926. Four denominations were introduced, including the 25 ore and 25 ore with a hole (the latter a scarce variety), which are both made from copper nickel. The polar bear motif, hearkening to the animal's appearance in Greenland's coat of arms, is a design that's popular with collectors; a 1926 25 Greenland Ore graded PCGS MS65 could be had for less than $100. The remaining two denominations, the 50 ore and krone, were struck in aluminum-bronze, and these two pieces in PCGS MS65 can also be purchased for about $100.
PCGS MS65 "1910" (1913) 25 Ore Thule Kap York Trading Post Token struck in aluminum. Click image to enlarge.
The Vikings pursued a physically active lifestyle in harsh conditions. They were farmers, seafarers, explorers, warriors, and supported their families. Their time on the island of Greenland was relatively short, lasting a little over 400 years. Once the walrus ivory trade dried up, the Vikings abandoned Greenland. Those who survived the Mini Ice Age migrated to Iceland and Norway to continue their lives. In 2026, the population of Greenland stands at fewer than 60,000 people.
Greenland is an autonomous nation within the Kingdom of Denmark, and their unit of currency is the Danish krone. Ninety percent of the population consists of the native Inuit (Arctic Circle) peoples. While cryolite is no longer mined on the island, Greenland possesses many other natural resources like platinum, tungsten, gold, rare earth magnets, and the precious stone ruby was discovered there in 2017. Fishing accounts for 90% of the country's exports with shrimp and fish being the most lucrative. Today, the walrus is a protected species that thrives on the island. Greenland is indeed a place rich in history, teeming with life, and whose independent spirit echoes the legacy of the many peoples who have called this unique Arctic Circle country home.