2 Euro commemorative coins Vatican City

Vatican City

2 Euro

C o m m e m o r a t i v e C o i n s

Vatican City
The edge lettering on the Vatican City 2‐Euro‐commemorative coins is :
Image	Country		Date	Feature	Ref.	Volume
🔎		Vatican City	16 Dec. 2004	75th anniversary of the Foundation of the Vatican City State	20001 20002 20005	85,000	•
	Description : The coin was minted to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the creation of the Vatican state and depicts St Peter's Basilica, built between 1506 and 1626, it is considered the most renowned work of Renaissance architecture and is the largest church in the world. Also depicted is St Peter's Square designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, together with the colonnades and the Vatican obelisk. The outline also shows the territory of the Vatican City, the smallest generally recognised state in the world and the only one with Latin as its official language. This territory does not include the extorial possessions of the Holy See such as the Patriarchal Basilicas and the Papal summer residence Castel Gandolfo. Since 1929 it has been an independent landlocked state within the city limits of Rome, the seat of the Pope as head of the Roman Catholic Church. To the left of the central motif are the words "75° ANNO DELLO STATO" (75th year of the State), the reason for issuing the coin and on the right the dates "1929 • 2004". In the same location is the letter "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome, the logos of the designer Guido Veroi "VEROI" and "L.D.S. INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) of the engraver Luciana De Simoni. At the top of the outer circumference are the twelve European stars and at the bottom the country name "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City).

🔎		Vatican City	06 Dec. 2005	20th World Youth Day, held in Cologne in August 2005	20001 20002 20005	100.000	•
	Description : Cologne Cathedral with its two 157 m high towers is one of the largest cathedrals in Gothic style. Its construction began in 1248 and was only completed in 1880, after more than 600 years. A national symbol for Germany, the (apparently) intact cathedral was seen as an emotional symbol of the will to live in the middle of the heavily bombed city after the end of the Second World War. The coin shows the cathedral on the banks of the Rhine, which has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996, with a comet appearing above it as a celestial symbol resembling the star of Bethhehem. The issue celebrates "XX GIORNATA MONDIALE DELLA GIOVENTÙ" (20th World Youth Day) which is found in a circular arc around the central design. At the bottom of the coin, arranged in a semicircle are the words "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City), at the top is the letter "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome and below the date "2005" ‐ flanked on both sides by six European stars. The logos "LONGO" of the designer Daniela Longo and "E.L.F. INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) of the engraver Ettore Lorenzo Frapiccini can be found below left and right respectively.

🔎		Vatican City	09 Nov. 2006	500th anniversary of the Swiss Guard	20001 20002 20005	100,000	•
	Description : The coin, designed by Orietta Rossi, depicts a Swiss Guardsman taking an oath of allegiance to the Pope. The flag of the Guard is grasped with the left hand to move it above the horizontal flagpole, while the oath is taken with the right hand raised and three fingers spread (which, among other things, symbolises the Trinity). The swearing‐in of the new recruits takes place on May 6th (the anniversary of the sacking of Rome in 1527) and for the first time in 2006 in St Peter's Square. The inscription "GUARDIA SVIZZERA PONTIFICIA" (Pontifical Swiss Guard) forms a semicircle around the Guard, under the flag is "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City). On the left is "1506", the year the Guard was founded, on the right the year of issue "2006" and below is the letter "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. The logos "O. ROSSI" of the designer and "M.C.C.INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) of the engraver Maria Carmela Colaneri can be found on the left and right above the flag.

🔎		Vatican City	23 Oct. 2007	80th birthday of Pope Benedict XVI	20001 20002 20005	100,000	•
	Description : Pope Benedict XVI, bourgeois Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger (born 1927 in Marktl, Bavaria) was head of the Catholic Church from 2005 until his resignation in 2013. Since then he has lived in seclusion as Pope emeritus in the Vatican. His portrait is framed by the inscriptions "BENEDICTI XVI P.M. ÆTATIS ANNO LXXX" (80th anniversary of Pope Benedict XVI) on the right and "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City) on the left. The lower left‐hand side shows the "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome and below it the year of issue "2007". The logos "LONGO" of the designer Daniela Longo and "MCC INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) by engraver Maria Carmela Colaneri appear on the shoulder and lapel of the Pope respectively.

🔎		Vatican City	16 Oct. 2008	2008 ‐ Year of Saint Paul the Apostle	20001 20002 20005	106,084	•
	Description : A Greek‐educated Jew and law‐abiding Pharisee with Roman citizenship, Paul († ∼64 AD) initially persecuted the followers of Jesus Christ. It was only through his Damascus experience that he is said to have been converted to Christianity and called to be an apostle to the nations. The coin designer Guido Veroi has represented this with a ray of light that falls on Paul and his rearing horse. In the background is the city wall of Damascus with three defence towers and a city gate. Two arch‐shaped inscriptions surround the motif, on the right "ANNO SANCTO PAULO DICATO" (in the year dedicated to St. Paul) the reason for issuing the coin and on the left "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City). The year of issue, "2008", is shown on the right, with the letter "R" below, which is the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. Below the horses hoove's are the logos "VEROI" of the designer and "L.D.S.INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) of the engraver Luciana De Simoni.

🔎		Vatican City	18 Nov. 2009	International Year of Astronomy	20001 20002 20005	106,084	•
	Description : The coin designed by Orietta Rossi depicts an astrolabe which reproduced the rotating sky so enabled the calculation of the positions of stars. It is divided into four quadrants. The first quadrant (top right) shows Michelangelo (1475‐1564)who painted the creation of the sun, the moon and the plants on the ceiling fresco of the Sistine Chapel (painted around 1510). In the second quadrant (upper left) the two telescopes (90 and 130 cm long respectively) built by the polymath Galileo Galilei in 1609 and houses in the Museo Galileo in Florence. In the third quadrant (lower left) below the astrolabe indicator can be seen the mint mark "R" of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome, in the fourth quadrant (lower right) a reflecting telescope. Below it a sun with a halo of rays, a crescent moon, planets and stars and the year of issue "2009" are shown. The logos "O.ROSSI" of the designer and "M.C.C. INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) of the engraver Maria Carmela Colaneri appear to the right and left of it respectively. At the bottom there is a semi‐circle with "ANNO INTERNAZIONALE DELL' ASTRONOMIA" (International Year of Astronomy) and at the top right there are the words "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City).

🔎		Vatican City	12 Oct. 2010	Year of Priesthood	20001 20002 20005	111,000	•
	Description : The coin celebrating the Year for Priests 2009 which was proclaimed on the 150th anniversary of the death of Jean‐Marie Vianney (1786‐1859). Vianney, called the Curé of Ars (pastor of Ars), was a Catholic priest who devoted himself to his ministry. He has been the patron saint of priests since his canonisation in 1929. It motif depicts a shepherd (symbolizing a priest) who snatches a lamb from the mouth of a lion ‐ a good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep (John 10, 11). In David and Goliath we read that the servant who tended his father's sheep killed a lion who stole a sheep from the flock and saved the sheep from its death (1 Samuel 17, 34‐35). Above is the name of the issuing country "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City), below is the reason for the commemoration "ANNO SACERDOTALE" (Year for Priests) and on the left "2010". Below is the letter "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. On the right are the logos "VEROI" of the designer Guido Veroi and "E.L.F. INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) of the engraver Ettore Lorenzo Frapiccini.

🔎		Vatican City	18 Oct. 2011	26th World Youth Day in Madrid 2011	20001 20002 20005	115,000	•
	Description : After being in Cologne in 2005 and Sydney in 2008, the World Youth Day in Madrid took place from the 15th to the 21st of August 2011. In the motif at the centre of the coin three young people are depicted waving flags with the coats of arms of the Vatican City and Spain. Above this is the reason for issuing the coin, "XXVI G. M. G." (G. M. G. = Giornata mondiale della gioventù, World Youth Day), below this is "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City) the issuing country. The year of issue, "2011", is on the left and below it the letter "R" which is the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. The logo "O.ROSSI" of the coin designer Orietta Rossi appears at the bottom and on the top right the initials "M.C.C. INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) by the engraver Maria Carmela Colaneri.

🔎		Vatican City	16 Oct. 2012	7th World Meeting of Families ‐ Milan 2012	20001 20002 20005	103,000	•
	Description : After Rome 1994, Rio de Janeiro 1997, Rome 2000, Manila 2003, Valencia 2006 and Mexico City 2009, the VII World Meeting of Families was held in Milan from the 29th of May to 3rd of June 2012. The coin motif, designed by Gabriella Titotto, shows a family ‐ a couple with three children ‐ in front of the Milan Cathedral built between 1386 and 1813. In the upper right‐hand corner, the issuing country is "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City), and in a semicircle at the bottom, the reason for commemoration "VII INCONTRO MONDIALE DELLE FAMIGLIE" (7th World Meeting of Families). It was minted at the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome, whose mint mark "R" is at the bottom right. The year of issue "2012" is shown on the right. The logo of the designer "G.TITOTTO" and "LDS INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) of the engraver Luciana De Simoni are on the left.

🔎		Vatican City	03 Jun. 2013	Sede vacante MMXIII	20001 20002 20005	125,000	•
	Description : The surprising resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, who had been in office since 2005, caused a sedis vacancy ‐ which means "vacant seat" (Petri). The coin motif shows the emblem of the Apostolic Chamber which is above the coat of arms of the Cardinal Treasurer Tarcisio Bertone and underneath his motto "Fidem custodire, concordiam servare" (keep the faith, keep harmony). On the left of the motif is the issuing country "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City) and on the right the reason for commemoration "SEDE VACANTE MMXIII" (2013 vacant seat), at the 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock position is a cross pattée each. The lower one is flanked by, on the left "P. DANIELE" the logo of the designer Patrizio Daniele and on the right the initials "M.C.C. INC." (INC. = incisore / engraver) of the engraver Maria Carmela Colaneri. The coin was produced by the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome, whose mint mark "R" is on the left.

🔎		Vatican City	15 Oct. 2013	28th World Youth Day ‐ Rio de Janeiro	20001 20002 20005	115,000	•
	Description : The coin designed by Patrizio Daniele celebrates the XXVIII World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro, has as its central motif five cheering young people in front of the statue of Christ the Redeemer on the Corcovado mountain. The 30‐metre high statue was built between 1922 and 1931 and designed by Heitor da Silva Costa and Paul Landowski. Above th motif is the issuing country, "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City), to the left is the reason for commemoration "XXVIII G.M.G." (Giornata Mondiale della Gioventu, World Youth Day) and "Rio • 2013" is on the right. The coin was produced by the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome, whose mint mark "R" is on the left and underneath this is "P.DANIELE" the logo of the designer. On the left are the initials "m INC." (INC. = incisore / engraver) of the engraver Roberto Mauri.

🔎		Vatican City	14 Oct. 2014	25th anniversary of the collapse of the Berlin Wall	20001 20002 20005	103,000	•
	Description : The central motif depicts the Brandenburg Gate crowned by Victoria (goddess of victory) riding in a quadriga bringing peace to the city. In front are stones from "the wall" behind which is bared wire symbolising oppression and confinement together with an olive branch symbolising peace. Inscribed on the stones from the wall are the reason for commemoration "XXV ANNIVERSARIO DEL CROLLO DEL MURO DI BERLINO" (25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall). On the right of the motif is the date "1989" marking the fall of the Berlin wall and "2014" the year the coin was issued. At the top of the motif is "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City), and at the bottom is the initial "R", the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. The logos "G. TITOTTO" of the designer Gabriella Titotto and "C.M.INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) of the engraver Claudia Momoni appear on the left.

🔎		Vatican City	06 Oct. 2015	VIII World Meeting of Families ‐ Philadelphia 2015	20001 20002 20005	114,000	•
	Description : The motif shows two families, each consisting of three people, embracing the globe. The outlines of both Americas can be seen on the globe. The motif is framed by two inscriptions: above "VIII INCONTRO MONDIALE DELLE FAMIGLIE" (VIII World Meeting of Families) and below "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City). On the left are the logos "C.Principe" of the coin designer Chiara Principe and "E.L.F. INC." (INC. = Incisore / engraver) of the engraver Ettore Lorenzo Frapiccini and at the top, the year of issue "2015" and on the right the initial "R", the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome.

🔎		Vatican City	02 Jun. 2016	200th anniversary of the Gendarmerie Corps of Vatican City State	20001 20002 20005	98,000	•
	Description : The coin, designed by Daniela Longo to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Gendarmerie Corps, shows a gendarme in front of the dome and the facade of St. Peter's, designed by Carlo Maderno and completed in 1614. On the balustrade you can see (from left to right) the statues of James the Elder, John the Baptist, Jesus of Nazareth and the apostles Andrew, John and James the Younger. At the top of the motif in a semi circle are the words "CORPO DELLA GENDARMERIA" (Gendarmerie Corps) and the dates "1816•2016" and at the bottom the words "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City). To the left of the mitif is the initial "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome and below it the initial "SP INC." (INC. = Incisore / engraver) of the engraver Silvia Petrassi, and on the right the logo "D. Longo" of the designer.

🔎		Vatican City	13 Oct. 2016	Jubilee of Mercy	20001 20002 20005	98,000	•
	Description : The design of the coin commemorating the Holy Year of Mercy is by Mariangela Crisciotti and shows Martin of Tours (316‐397), a soldier of the Roman Imperial Guard from 331 to 356. He is depicted on horseback with his cloak and sword, out of kindness he gives half of his cloak to an almost naked and freezing poor man whom he met at the city gate of Amiens. The following night, Jesus Christ is said to have appeared to Martin in a dream, clothed with that half cloak. He was baptised in 351 and after being appointed bishop of Tours in 371, he founded the monastery of Marmoutier. King Clovis of the Franks promoted Martin to the status of national saint and patron of the Franco‐Merovingian kings. To the left of the motif is the reason for commemoration "GIUBILEO DELLA MISERCORDIA" (Jubilee of Mercy) and on the right "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City) and the year of issue "2016". Below is the initial "R" the mint mark of the Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome together with the logos "M. CRISCIOTTI" of the coin designer and "MOMONI INC." (INC. = incisore / engraver) of the engraver Claudia Momoni.

🔎		Vatican City	01 Jun. 2017	1950th anniversary of the martyrdom of Saint Peter and Saint Paul	20001 20002 20005	98,000	•
	Description : The central motif was designed by Gabriella Titotto who was inspired by classical iconography relating to the two apostles Simon Peter († um 67) and Paul of Tarsus († um 67). On the left, with a rounded head and curly hair and beard, next to his iconographic saint symbol, the key to the Gate of Paradise of the Kingdom of Heaven is Simon Peter and to the right is Paul of Tarsus who was executed by sword on the orders of Emperor Nero. He has longer features and a longer beard than that of Peter and has a sword as a symbol. At the top of the motif are the words "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City), and at the bottom in a semicircle "1950º DEL MARTIRIO DEI SANTI PIETRO E PAOLO" (1950 anniversary of the martyrdom of Saints Peter and Paul). The year of issue is "2017" at the bottom left and the initial "R" at the bottom right is the mint mark of the Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. Underneath are the logos "G TITOTTO" of the designer and "MOMONI INC." (INC. = incisore / engraver) of the engraver Claudia Momoni.

🔎		Vatican City	05 Oct. 2017	Centenary of the Fátima apparitions	20001 20002 20005	98,000	•
	Description : The central motif shows, in the background, the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary ("Basilica Antiga") built between 1928 and 1953 and visited by pilgrims. In the foreground are three shepherd children from left to right Lúcia dos Santos, Francisco Marto and Jacinta Marto (based on a photograph taken in 1917) to whom it is said the virgin Mary appeared on the 13th of May 1917 in Cova da Iria near Fatima. The Marto brother and sister died in 1919 and 1920 respectively as victims of the flu pandemic. Lúcia dos Santos became a nun ‐ she wrote the Three Secrets of Fatima and died in 2005. On the left is the sculpture of Stephen I (969‐1038) standing on the colonnade of the basilica, he founded Hungary and was its first king from 1000 to 1038 ‐ venerated by the Roman Catholic Church and was canonized by Pope Gregory VII. At the top of the motif are the words "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City), and below it on two lines "1917" and "FATIMA". On the right the motif is the year of issue "2017" and on the left the initial "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome, below it is "O.ROSSI" the logo of the designer Orietta Rossi. Next to it are the initials of Silvia Petrassi followed by "INC." = incisore / engraver.

🔎		Vatican City	01 Jun. 2018	European Year of Cultural Heritage	20001 20002 20005	94,000	•
	Description : The central motif depicts the marble statue of the Laocoon group housed in the Vatican Pius‐Clemens Museum, a Roman marble copy made in the 1st century AD of a Greek bronze sculpture of Hagesandros, Athanadoros and Polydoros from Rhodes created in the 2nd century BC, which no longer exists. Found on the Esquiline hill in Rome in 1506, this work of art influenced the art of the Italian Renaissance through the aesthetics of Hellenism and immediately aroused Michelangelo's admiration. The statue shows Laocoon, according to Greek mythology a priest in Troy, who was sentenced to death by Athena with his sons Antiphas (right) and Thymbraeus (left) because he warned his fellow citizens about the Trojan horse. In the book Aeneid by Vergil describes their desperate fight with two sea snakes resembling pythons. At the bottom of the motif is the name of the issuing country "CITTÁ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City) and around the outside the words "ANNO EUROPEO DEL PATRIMONIO CULTURALE" (European Year of Cultural Heritage), below it is the year of issue "2018" and the initial "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. At the bottom right is the logo of the coin designer Daniela Longo, "D. Longo", at the bottom left are the initials "C.M.INC" (INC. = Incisore / engraver) of the engraver Claudia Momoni.

🔎		Vatican City	04 Oct. 2018	50th anniversary of the death of Padre Pio	20001 20002 20005	94,000	•
	Description : Pio of Pietrelcina (1887‐1968) belonged to the order of Friars Minor Capuchin. Known as Padre Pio, he was canonised by Pope John Paul II in 2002. He is considered one of the most popular saints in Italy. At the top of the motif in a simicircle is the name of the issuing country "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City), at the bottom "Padre Pio", on the left the year of his death "1968", and below it the logo "P.DANIELE" of the coin designer Patrizio Daniele. On the right is the year of issue "2018", and below it are "V.D.S.INC." (INC. = Incisore / engraver) of the engraver Valerio de Seta and the initial "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome.

🔎		Vatican City	07 May 2019	90th anniversary of the founding of the Vatican City State	20001 20002 20005	84,000	•
	Description : In 1929, the Lateran Treaty was signed at the Lateran Palace between the Holy See under Pope Pius XI and the then Kingdom of Italy (represented by Prime Minister Benito Mussolini). They clarified the Roman Question inside the city limits of Rome and secured the territorial sovereignty of the Vatican City following the dissolution of the Papal States in 1870, together with the status of extraterritorial possession of the Holy See which included the Lateran and Castel Gandolfo, among others. The motif shows Pius XI as the Bishop of Rome, the head of the Roman Catholic Church, wearing a crown in front of the side view of the Lateran Palace (restored in 1586), where the popes were crowned until the 19th century and the Lateran obelisk standing in Piazza San Giovanni. The obelisk, part of the obelisk temple of Amun in Thebes, was built for Pharaoh Thutmois III (1479‐1425 BC). In 337 it was shipped from Karnak to Alexandria to be erected in Constantinople, the new capital of the Roman Empire, but under Emperor Constantius II it was transported to Rome on a specially constructed ship and placed on the spina of the Circus Maximus. Destroyed in an earthquake, it was excavated in 1587, restored, shortened by 2 metres and erected in its present location. On the right of the motif is depicted the lateral facade of the Lateran Basilica, the renovation of which started in 1646. At the top, marking the reason for this issue, "STATO DELLA CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City State), is shown in a semi circle. At the bottom, the dates "1929" and "2019" are in two lines, flanked on the left by a branch of an olive tree with fruit and on the right by a branch of laurel, and underneath the dates is the logo "FUSCO" of the coin designer Daniela Fusco. To the right of the laurel branch is the initial "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome together with the logo "CASSOL INC." (INC. = Incisore / engraver) of the engraver Maria Angela Cassol.

🔎		Vatican City	07 Oct. 2019	25th anniversary of the restoration of the Sistine Chapel	20001 20002 20005	83,000	•
	Description : On the 25th anniversary of the restoration of the Sistine Chapel, built between 1475 and 1483, the Vatican City minted a commemorative coin with a motif from the ceiling fresco of the Last Judgement with Mary and Jesus Christ, created by Michelangelo (1475‐1564) in 1540. It depicts the Abrahamic religions' eschatological concept of a divine judgement that ends world events and is closely linked to the idea of resurrection as the judgement of all living and dead. On the left of the motif in a semi circle are th words "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City) being the issuing country, on the right "CAPELLA SISTINA ‐ FINE DEI RESTAURI" (Sistine Chapel ‐ end of restoration) and underneath "1994‐2019". Beneath the dates is the initial "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. The logos "D. LONGO" of the designer Daniela Longo and "INC.A.M." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) by the engraver Annalisa Masini are at the bottom of the motif.

🔎		Vatican City	23 Jun. 2020	100th birthday of Pope John Paul II	20001 20002 20005	79,000	•
	Description : The motif depicts Pope John Paul II (1920‐2005) in front of a laurel branch and behind the parish church of Ofiarowania Najświętszj Maryi Panny in the Polish town of Wadowice together with the house where he was born, which is now a museum. A brick church built around 1450, destroyed in the town fire of 1726, was replaced in 1792‐1798 by a late Baroque basilica ‐ dedicated to the Offering of the Virgin Mary ‐ where Karol Józef Voijtyła was baptised. The eight‐pointed star emblazoned on the coin is considered the supreme allegory of Christ, a physical representation of the concept of divinity and truth, and at the same time it symbolises the Virgin Mary, to whom John Paul II dedicated his pontificate. Since an eclipse occurred on the day of his birth (a partial one, in Australia), as well as on the day of his funeral (a hybrid one, in Panama / Colombia / Venezuela), the star also represents an eclipsed sun by concentric segments of a circle. Above the star is "PAPA GIOVANNI PAOLO II" (Pope John Paul II), on the right "1920" the year of his birth and "2020" the year of issue, together with the initial "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. At the bottom, is the country of issue "CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City), and above it the Logos "G. TITOTTO" of the designer Gabriella Titotto and "M.A.C. INC." (INC. = incisore / engraver) of the engraver Maria Angela Cassol.

🔎		Vatican City	16 Oct. 2020	500th anniversary of the death of Raffael	20001 20002 20005	79,500	•
	Description : Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (1483‐1520) was a painter of the Italian High Renaissance, active in Florence and at the papal court in Rome and after the death of Donato Bramante in 1514, as architect construction manager of St. Peter's Basilica. Raphael became famous mainly as a painter for his harmonious and well‐balanced compositions and lovely Madonna pictures. The coin motif shows a self‐portrait painted in 1511, a detail of the fresco The School of Athens in the Stanza Della Segnatura (Room of the Signatura) which is situated in the Apostolic Palace of the Vatican City. On the right of the motif the coin designer, Daniela Longo has depicted the two angels from the painting Sistine Madonna (today in the galery Alte Meister in Dresden) painted in 1513 ⁄ 1514. To the upper right are the words "RAFFAELLO SANZIO", below it the year of his death, "1520" and the year of issue "2020". The issuing country "CITTÁ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City) is below the angels together with the initial "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. At the bottom of the motif are the designer's logo "D.LONGO" and the initials "SP INC." (INC. = Incisore / engraver) of the engraver Silvia Petrassi.

🔎		Vatican City	25 Jun. 2021	450th birthday of Caravaggio	20002 20003 20005	86,300	•
	Description : After the one already issued by San Marinos, this is the second commemorative coin celebrating the 450th birthday of Michelangelo Merisis da Caravaggio (1571‐1610). The Italian painter of the early Baroque period with his realistic pictorial design is considered ‐ together with Annibale Carracci ‐ to have overcome Mannerism and to be the founder of Roman Baroque painting. His most important painting innovation was the chiaroscuro painting. Chiara Principe chose the painting Fanciullo con canestro di frutta (Boy with Fruit Basket, which today is exhibited in the Galleria Borghese in Rome) created by Caravaggio in 1593, as the motif for the coin she designed. The model was 16‐year‐old Mario Minniti, who later became a Baroque painter in Sicily. The masterfully depicted fruit mirrors the horticulture of the time, right down to the pests that left their mark on fruit and leaves. Depicted from left to right are grapes of different colours, apples and figs, small pears on a branch, a peach overflowing with light red, two medlars, red seeds of a broken pomegranate and two quinces, together with dark peach leaves, vine leaves and two stalks with mint leaves. The reason for the issue, including the year of birth and year of issue, are noted in two lines at the bottom of the bottom on the coin: "CARAVAGGIO 1571‐2021", and the issuing country "CITTÁ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City) at the top. On the left is the initial "R", the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome, on the lower right are the stylised initials "CP" of the designer together with the mark "UP.INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) of the engraver Uliana Pernazza above it.

🔎		Vatican City	26 Oct. 2021	700th anniversary of the death of Dante Alighieri	20002 20003 20005	86,300	•
	Description : Durante degli Alighieri called "Dante" (1265‐1321), Italian philosopher, was one of the most important poets of the European Middle Ages. With the Divine Comedy, written in Old Italian (or Tuscan), he overcame the Latin that had dominated until then and made Italian a literary language. The work is considered an Italian national epic. Dante was born in Florence. His family belonged to the Guelfish‐minded city nobility. Ghibellines and Guelfs fought fierce feuds that revolved around the relationship between imperial and papal power and authority (described as the two swords theory). Depending on the current government in the municipalities, supporters of one or the other party were expelled from the city and sent into exile. In 1296 and 1301 Dante was a member of the city council "Council of the Hundred". He opposed the attempt to annex Florence and Tuscany to the Papal States and was consequently fined and excluded from all public office on the 27th of January 1302. As he stayed away from Florence and did not pay the fine, his property remaining in the city was confiscated. In March 1302, he was sentenced to death by burning if he returned to the city. His wife Gemma di Manetto Donati did not follow him into exile, while his three sons ‐ in contrast to one daughter ‐ had to leave Florence when they turned 13 years of age. In 1315, he refused an offer from his hometown, which he considered shameful, to be allowed to return to Florence if he paid a fine and made a public apology. After years in Upper and Central Italy, he died in Ravenna in 1321. The commemorative coin designed by Patrizio Daniele to mark the 700th anniversary of his death shows, on the left, an image of Dante inspired by the statue created by Enrico Pazzi in 1895 in front of the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence and Palazzo Vecchio, the seat of the Signoria, the government of the Republic of Florence, in the background. This was built in 1299‐1314 and thus only completed after Dante's banishment. Since 1872, the Palazzo Vecchio has served as Florence's city hall and today also as a museum. Dante's death mask is exhibited there. Since 1992 the old town of Florence has been given UNESCO‐World heritage status. At the bottom of the coin, "Dante" is written in handwriting‐like characters illustrating the reason for the issue, and below that "1321‐2021" the years of death and issue respectively. At the top right the issuing country is "CITTÁ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City) and above it is the initial "R", the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome. The designer's name "P.DANIELE" is below the bust, the initials "A.M.INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) of the medallist Annalisa Masini are to the right of it.

🔎		Vatican City	06 Sep. 2022	125th birthday of Pope Paul VI	20003 20005	79,250	•
	Work in progress

🔎		Vatican City	06 Sep. 2022	25th anniversary of the death of Mother Teresa of Culcutta	20003 20005	79,250	•
	Work in progress

🔎		Vatican City	20 Jun. 2023	150th anniversary of the death of Pietro Perugino	20003 20005 20009	78.500	•
	Description : Pietro Vannucci (∼1448‐1523), called 'Perugino' (from Perugia), was an Italian painter of the Renaissance. He was considered the most important master of the Umbrian School and was Raphael's teacher. His own teachers were probably Piero della Francesca and Andrea del Verrocchio, in whose workshop Leonardo da Vinci, among others, was trained. In 1481, he painted his most famous painting, "Christ hands the keys to Peter", one of the works from the wall fresco cycle in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, in which the most celebrated painters in Italy at the time collaborated. The perspective depth stretching particularly impressed the people of the time. A detail of another of Perugino's frescoes to the right of the altar in the Sistine Chapel, the "Baptism of Christ" painted in 1482, is depicted on the left of the commemorative coin: John the Baptist baptising Christ in and with the waters of the Jordan, under the hovering dove of the Holy Spirit. On the right foreground, the coin designer Daniela Fusco has placed a self‐portrait of Perugino, which he painted between 1497 and 1500 as a fresco in the 'Collegio del Cambio' of the Palazzo dei Priori (Prior's Palace) in Perugia. Below is written in two lines "PERUGINO" and with "1523 ‐ 2023" his year of death and the year of issue. In the upper right corner, in the shape of an arc, the issuing state "CITTÁ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City); on the left the initial "R" the mint mark of the Italian mint Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome is depicted, on the left next to the portrait with "FUSCO" the name of the designer and on the right with "A.M.INC." (INC. = Incisore / Engraver) the logo of the medallist Annalisa Masini.

🔎		Vatican City	27 Oct. 2023	150th anniversary of the death of Alessandro Manzoni	20003 20005	78.500	•
	Work in progress

References :
20001	Images taken with authorisation by the ECB ‐ Mail dated 20.Feb.2020 © "European Central Bank"	20002	Data mirrored from Wikipedia Page "2_euro_commemorative_coins" with friendly support of the guardians of that page.
20003	Images taken with authorisation by H....... Hamburg	20004	Coloured version of this Commemorative Coin in circulation EU‐legal‐technical specifications do not recongnise colour prints. The EU nevertheless tolerates them, as their numbers are very small and they are sold in special packs and therefor are very unlikely to be used as currency.
20005	enlarged Images taken with authorisation by Gerd Seyffert © "Gerd Seyffert 2021"	20006	Not Applicable
20007	Images taken by Münzen Kreuzberg © "Münzen Kreuzberg 2021"	20008	enlarged Images taken by Münzen Kreuzberg © "Münzen Kreuzberg 2021"
20009	Text with kind permission by Gerd Seyffert © "Gerd Seyffert 2023"	20010	Not Applicable