Günter Felke

Günter Felke (4 November 1929 in Laufersweiler – 22 March 2005 in Sohren) was a German furniture manufacturer, numismatist and patron of culture.

Life Günter Felke was born as the youngest son of the industrialist Michael Felke and his wife Maria in Laufersweiler (State of Rhineland-Palatinate). In 1929 his family moved to Sohren, a village nearby, where his father expanded his furniture factory, the company Felke Möbelwerke. He studied at the Herzog-Johann-Gymnasium in Simmern, which he left in 1948 prior to the final exams to work for his father's company. With his two brothers Aloys and Walter Felke he worked as a junior boss alongside his father. In 1970 he became chief operating officer and technical director.

In 1960 Günter Felke discovered his fascination with the history of numismatics in Palatinate (Pfalz) and Mainz. As a collector of Roman, medieval and modern gold coins from the Rhineland, he presented a large collection of rare exhibits to museums in Veldenz, Simmern and Heidelberg. He also wrote several essays on coining in Veldenz.

Distinctions 1994 – Honorary Award of Simmern 2000 – Honorary citizen of Simmern 2001 – Order of Merit of Rhineland-Palatinate

Publications Die Münzen der Herzöge von Simmern, 1981. Die Goldprägungen der rheinischen Kurfürsten 1346–1478. Mainz, Trier, Köln, Pfalz. Münz-Zentrum, Köln 1989.