<p><a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Switzerland" title="Switzerland">Switzerland</a>. AR 5 <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Swiss_franc" title="Swiss franc">Swiss francs</a> (37mm, 25.14 g, 6h). <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Bern" title="Bern">Bern</a> mint. Dated 1908 (series issued 1888–1916). 
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<dl><dd>Diademed and wreathed female head left</dd>
<dd>Shield with coat of arms, star above, 5 F across field, all within wreath. Mintmark B
<dl><dd><dl><dd>KM 34</dd></dl></dd></dl></dd></dl><p>The vertical hatching indicates heraldic tincture (gules), but also establishes the proportions of the cross, 14 bars along the length of an arm, and 12 bars along the width, establishing a 7:6 ratio. This design of the Swiss cross had been seen in coins since 1826, but other designs preferred a cross of five equal squares, and the decision was discussed controversially in 1888/1889 triggered by the issue of this coin. The Federal Council in November 1889 proposed the official definition of the 7:6 proportion of the Swiss cross in November 1889, ratified by the Federal Assembly on 12 December 1889.
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The shape of the heraldic shield, on the other hand, was deliberately left unspecified.
Karl Schwenzer (1888 design); Classical Numismatic Group, Inc. (photograph)
<a rel="nofollow" class="external autonumber" href="http://www.cngcoins.com">[1]</a>