Friedländer's entire family embraced Protestant Christianity in 1820.After studying at the universities of Bonn and Berlin, and traveling in Italy (1838–1839), he obtained a position at the Königliche Sammlung der Antiken-Münzen in Berlin in 1840.During his travels to Italy (1844–1847) with his friend Theodor Mommsen he acquired further numismatic material which he brought to Berlin.From his literary remains Rudolf Weil published Repertorium zur Antiken Numismatik, a supplement to Théodore Edme Mionnet's Description des Médailles Antiques, Berlin, 1885.In 1891, in occasion of the 5th convention of German numismatists in Dresden a medal was issued in his honour.
