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1902, Ethiopia, Emperor Menelik II. Silver Gersch (1/20 Talari) Coin. VF-

Reference: KM-12. Emperor: Menelik II Mint Place: Paris (A)   Denomination: Gersch  Mint Year: 1902/1903 (EE 1895) Condition: Scratches in obverse, light toning spots and deposits, otherwise VF. Diameter: 16mm Weight: 1.39gm Material: Silver

Obverse: Crowned bust of Emperor Manelik II right. Date (1895 of the Eastern Calendar) below.

Reverse: Crowned lion left, holding cross-topped banner with right foreleg. Mint initial (A) below.

Emperor Menelik II GCB, GCMG, baptized as Sahle Maryam (August 17, 1844 – December 12, 1913), was Negus of Shewa (1866-1889), then n?gusä nägäst of Ethiopia from 1889 to his death.

Menelik II is considered by Pan-Africanist scholar Ali Mazrui to be one of the most powerful black men in history, along with Ramesses II, who Mazrui believes to have been of the same race as Menelik. (This point is disputed between Egyptologists, with some agreeing with Mazrui's assessment of the Pharaoh's race and others disagreeing.)

Menelik II was fascinated by modernity, and like Tewodros II before him, had a keen ambition to introduce Western technological and administrative advances into Ethiopia. Following the rush by the major powers to establish diplomatic relations following the Ethiopian victory at Adowa, more and more westerners began to travel to Ethiopia looking for trade, farming, hunting and mineral exploration concessions. Menelik II founded the first modern bank in Ethiopia, the Bank of Abyssinia, introduced the first modern postal system, signed the agreement and initiated work that established the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway with the French, introduced electricity to Addis Ababa, as well as the telephone, telegraph, the motor car and modern plumbing. He attempted unsuccessfully to introduce coinage to replace the Maria Theresa thaler.

During the 1890s, Menelik heard about the modern method of executing criminals using electric chairs, and he ordered 3 for his kingdom. When the chairs arrived, Menelik learnt they would not work, as Ethiopia did not yet have an electrical power industry. Rather than waste his investment, Menelik used one of the chairs as his throne, sending another to Lique Mequas Abate. During a particularly devastating famine caused by Rinderpest early in his reign, Menelik II personally went out with a hand-held hoe to furrow the fields to show that there was no shame in plowing fields by hand without oxen, something Ethiopian highlanders had been too proud to consider previously. He also forgave taxes during this particularly severe famine.

Later in his reign, he established the first Cabinet of Ministers to help in the administration of the Empire, appointing trusted and widely respected nobles and retainers to the first Ministries. These ministers would remain in place long after his death, serving in their posts through the brief reign of Lij Iyasu and into the reign of Empress Zauditu. They played a key role in deposing Lij Iyasu.