Coin of the Week: 1986 Portugal 20 Escudos

Obverse (Image: Portuguese Coat-of-Arms)

Reverse (Image: Nautical wind-rose)

Before introducing the Euro in 2002, Portugal's currency was the escudo, with 100 centavos equaling 1 escudo. The escudo had been in use since 1910, when the Portuguese monarchy was abolished and a republic was established.

The 20 escudos coin depicts the Portuguese coat-of-arms on the obverse. The coat-of-arms was adopted in 1911 and is based on the coat-of-arms used by the Portuguese Kingdom in the middle ages. The border consists of 7 castles, representing the Moorish castles conquered by the Portuguese Kingdom during the Reconquista. In the middle, the coat-of-arms has 5 escutcheons (or shields), forming the shape of a cross. Due to the numerous changes to the coat-of-arms over the centuries, there is no official explanation why 5 escutcheons are depicted (there had been as many as 11). Some scholars interpret them as the five wounds of Jesus Christ.

Since Portugal was once a powerful seafaring nation, the reverse of the 20 escudos coin shows a nautical wind-rose, or wind-star. The wind-rose was used as a compass by ancient seafarers before the magnetic needle compass was introduced. The 16 points represented the major winds that blew around the Mediterranean Sea. North was depicted by a fleur de lis, and east was shown as a Christian cross, indicating the direction of Jerusalem from Europe.

Updates to the Blog

Some of you may have noticed that I added some links and a page to the blog:

World Coin Gallery

This is a link to a site that I use occasionally to view pictures of coins. There are over 40,000 coin pictures available.

My Music Videos

I've listed on this page the instruments and equipment I use to record songs and make videos. The most fascinating part for me is the Ibach piano. RUD. IBACH SOHN GmbH & Co. KG, located in Germany, was the oldest piano manufacturer in the world. Founded in 1794, the family-owned business had to close in December 2007 due to low-cost competition.

MusicVille

MusicVille is being developed to create a new way for music businesses, bands, customers and fans to connect. The initial functionality will allow connections using QR Codes.

MusicVille Blog

The MusicVille blog was started to explain how MusicVille was born and provide updates on this start-up.

Coin of the Week: 1979 San Marino 10 Lire

Obverse (Image: Sammarinese coat-of-arms)

Reverse (Image: Crypt of Saint Marinus)

San Marino, the oldest republic in the world, covers an area of about 24 square miles, has an estimated population of a little more than 30,000 and is completely surrounded by Italy. From the 1860s until 2002, San Marino's currency was the lira, equivalent to the Italian lira. Since 2002, San Marino has the Euro, although it is not a member of the European Union.

The 10-lire coin has a depiction of the Sammarinese coat-of-arms on the obverse and one of the crypt of Saint Marinus, the founder of San Marino, on the reverse. The coat-of-arms consists of a shield with three towers on three peaks. The shield is flanked by a wreath, and a crown is on top. A scroll with the word "Libertas" (liberty) completes the coat-of-arms.

According to tradition, Saint Marinus escaped to Italy to avoid anti-Christian persecution. He then built a small church on Monte Titano (Mount Titan), the highest peak in what is now Saint Marino. The city state was officially founded on September 3rd in the year 301.

Coin of the Week: 1936 German Reich 5 Marks

Obverse (Image: Paul von Hindenburg)

Reverse (Inscription: The German Reich, 5 Marks) 

The Reichsmark was Germany's currency from 1924 to 1948 and was the legal tender that replaced the Papiermark at an exchange rate of 1 trillion Papiermark to 1 Reichsmark (actually, the Rentenmark, backed by the Rentenbank, replaced the Papiermark).

The first version (1935-1936) of the commemorative 5 Mark piece depicted the German eagle on the reverse. The later version also included the Nazi insignia. The 5 Mark coin commemorated Paul von Hindenburg, a Prussian general and second President of Germany from 1925 to 1934. Although Hindenburg defeated Adolf Hitler in the presidential elections of 1932, he was instrumental in bringing the Nazis to power by, among other activities, appointing Hitler as Chancellor in 1933. It should be noted that Hindenburg was in his 80s at the time and lapsing in and out of senility. Though remembered by most as a strong and powerful military hero, the biographers John Wheeler-Bennett and Andreas Dorpalen have argued that Hindenburg was actually a weak-willed and not very intelligent man who depended greatly upon the advice of others to make decisions for him.

In 1948, the Reichsmark was replaced by the Deutsch Mark in West Germany and East German Mark in East Germany.

Coin of the Week: 2002 Greece 2 Euro

Obverse (Image: Mythological Story of Europa)

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Reverse (Image: Europe, Denomination and 12 Stars)

[[posterous-content:pid___0]]With my employer constantly checking economic forecasts for the Euro / USD exchange rate, I decided to look through my Euro coin collection. I picked out Greece, one country that has led to the exchange rate being so volatile over the past few years.

All 2 Euro coins have the same reverse with a depiction of Europe, the denomination and the 12 stars on the flag of Europe. The coins alloy mixture creates two colors, silver and gold. The obverse is country-specific, but must show:

1) the year of issue and
2) the 12 european stars.

The Greek obverse depicts the abduction of Europa by Zeus, in the form of a bull. The continent "Europe" derived its name from this mythological character, a Phoenician who became the first queen of Crete. Zeus later portrayed the bull in the stars, the constellation we now know as Taurus.

An interesting aside - since Greece uses an alphabet other than Latin, it is allowed to show the denomination in Greek on the obverse side.

Coin of the Week: 1974 Egyptian 10 Piastre

Obverse (Image: October War Anniversary)

Reverse (Top Inscription: Arab Republic of Egypt)

With the military committing to democracy in Egypt today, I thought it'd be interesting to show an Egyptian coin minted before former President Hosni Mubarak's reign.

Although one of the oldest civilizations in the world, Egypt used barter as a form of exchange until approximately 2000 BC. When Alexander the Great conquered Egypt in 332 BC, he introduced a monetary system, and Egyptians began using coins. Over the years, Egyptian coins have reflected national pride, depicting symbols like the three great pyramids of Giza. The reverse of each coin has the denomination in the center, the Gregorian date on the bottom left and the Muslim date on the bottom right.

The 10 Piastre coin honors the first anniversary of the October War against Israel (or the Yom Kippur War). On October 6, 1973, the Egyptians crossed the Suez Canal and recovered the Sinai peninsula from Israel. The image on the obverse depicts an Egyptian soldier standing before the Suez Canal. He carries a weapon over his right shoulder, in his left hand he holds an olive branch. The inscription reads "In Memory of the 6 October 1973 War". 

Coin of the Week: 1984 Iceland 10 Kronur

Obverse (Image: Atlantic Salmon)

Reverse (Image: Iceland's Coat of Arms)

Iceland's currency is the krona, meaning "crown", and is related to that of other Nordic currencies (such as the Danish krone, Swedish krona and Norwegian krone). Fishing has played an important role in Iceland's economy and is represented on a number of its coins. The 10 kronur depicts the Atlantic salmon, which is common in Iceland. The reverse depicts Iceland's coat of arms, composed of the country's four protectors: a bull, a giant, a dragon and an eagle. According to one legend, a Danish king who wanted to invade Iceland sent an evil spirit in the form of a whale to attack the island. When the whale reached Iceland, it saw the four protectors and returned to Denmark to report this to the king. The king then decided not to invade Iceland.