Liechtenstein's Only Silver Commemoratives Since its beginnings as a sovereign country in 1806, Lichtenstein has rarely issued any coins. It uses the coins and currency of neighboring Switzerland. However, from 1903 to 1988 Lichtenstein has authorized the striking of gold commememoratives from time to time. These three Proof 37mm silver (0.87 troy oumces) commemorative 10 Franken coins are the only non-gold coins Lichtenstein has issued in over 85 years! In 1988 Lichtenstrein authorized the issuing of this silver proof 10 Franken to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the reign of Prince Franz Josef II. The Prince is on one side and the national arms on the other (photo courtesy of Joel's Coins - joelscoins.com): http://www.joelscoins.com/images/licht20r.jpg In 1990 Liechtenstein authorized the minting of this silver Proof 10 Franken coin to commemorate the succession of Prince Hans-Adam II to the throne. One side pictures the Prince while the other shows the nation’s arms (photo courtesy of Don's World Coin Gallery - worldcoingallery.com): http://worldcoingallery.com/countries/coine.php?image=img11/234-22&desc=Liechtensteiny2210Franken(1990)PrinceHansAdamII&query=Liecht* In 2006 Liechtenstein issued this silver Proof 10 Franken coin to celebrate the 200th anniversary of its sovereignty. Liechtenstein was formed by uniting two lordships that were part of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1806 it gained its sovereignty and joined the Rhine Confederation. In 1815 it joined the German Confederation and in 1866 became fully independent. It abolished its army in 1868 and has stayed out of European conflicts since then. It managed to avoid Nazi occupation in World War II by convincing the Germans that they would look silly invading such a small, unarmed nation. The coin has a modernistic portrait of Johann I, who helped achieve Liechtenstein's sovereignty and ruled the nation until his death in 1836. The reverse features the Arms of Liechtenstein (photo courtesy of Joel's Coins - joelscoins.com): http://www.joelscoins.com/images/liecht06r.jpg Hope you enjoyed seeing these silver proof commemoratives... Clinker
Thanks for the post, Clinker! A while ago I got their latest issue, the 2006 coin you show here. I am not really fond of the design (a little cartoon-ish in my opinion) but heck, it was the first coin from Liechtenstein in my collection ... By the way, until 1924 Liechtenstein had a currency union with Austria; in May '24 they switched over to the Swiss Franc/Franken. Here are two coins - which I do not have - that illustrate this nicely: http://worldcoingallery.com/countries/nmc/234-3.jpg 2 KR (Kronen) thus "Austrian" http://worldcoingallery.com/countries/nmc3/234-9.jpg 2 FR (Franken) thus "Swiss" Apart from that, the designs of the two are almost the same. Another interesting "oddity" is the two gold pieces, dated 1961, which were supposed to commemorate 100 years of the Liechtensteinische Landesbank. Well, they were not issued until 1986, for the 125-year jubilee ... Christian
Good to know I can count on you to add something valuable to one of my posts. Thanks, again... Clinker
