In 1978, on the occasion of the 600th anniversary of the death of Charles IV, the so-called Charles ducats were created, which were a continuation of the first republican St.Wenceslas ducats. These were the first gold coins issued in socialist Czechoslovakia since 1951. Today, these coins are numismatic attractions and have become the templates for the Czech Mint's replicas, which include a faithful new mintage of the gold five-ducat.

Charles IV was the first of the Czech kings to be crowned Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, but although he became one of the most powerful men in the world, he did not forget the Czech lands. He honoured the legacy of his Přemyslid ancestors and turned impoverished Prague into the heart of the Holy Roman Empire. From the disunited Bohemian kingdom he created a whole called the lands of the Bohemian Crown, whose vast territory, which included Bohemia, Moravia, the Silesian principalities, Cheb, Upper Palatinate, Upper and Lower Lusatia, Brandenburg and other fiefs in the German area, fell under the direct rule of the Bohemian monarch. He had the breathtaking St. Wenceslas crown made for the future Czech kings and secured them a privileged position in the multi-national empire, which was secured by the Golden Bull of Charles IV. This most important constitutional document of the medieval Holy Roman Empire was so elaborate that it remained in force until its dissolution in 1806. No wonder Charles IV was given the affectionate title Father of the Fatherland by the Czechs ...

Charles's five-ducat was meant to symbolise education. The author was to work with the symbols of Charles University - the Karolina building or the university insignia. Zdeněk Kolářský's design was realised, based on the seal of the largest Czech university, on which a kneeling Charles IV is handing over the foundation charter to St. Wenceslas. The pair is surrounded by the symbols of the faculties and the inscription UNIVERSITAS CAROLINA PRAGENSIS. The year 1348 refers to the date of the foundation of the university on 7 April 1348. The replica was made by the medal maker Mária Filová, DiS.

The new mintage is published in an edition of only 100 pieces and respects the specifications of the original.