A few years ago I collected 3 Ecus, when it looked like the common European currency was going to be Ecus. 2 from Gibraltar and 1 for 10 Ecus from the Netherlands. The 2 from Gibraltar are listed in the Standard Catalog of World Coins, but this one from the Netherlands is not. Can anybody tell me why?
The ECU coins were, with very few exceptions, not legal tender issues. So listing them in a coin catalog would not make much sense. Now there are a couple of Belgian ECU coins, for example, that actually had a legal tender status. You would not buy newspapers or vegetables with them but you could return them to the central bank and get the face value equivalent back. Maybe that also applied to the Gibraltar pieces ... Christian
By the way, while your Dutch "Liberation Anniversary" piece was not legal tender, it was at least made by the Royal Dutch Mint (KNM). See the mercury staff which is the Utrecht mintmark, and the bow/arrow, sign of the mintmaster C. van Draanen. So it could be worth a little more than "private" ECU medals ... What is also interesting is that yours was issued in 1995, possibly in April/May since 5 May is Bevrijdingsdag/Liberation Day in NL. In the very same year, the ECU became history: On 15-16 December 1995, the Council agreed on the name "euro" for the new currency. By the way, I just checked, and the Belgian ECU coins that I mentioned before ceased to legal tender on 1 January 1999 (when the euro was launched). As for Gibraltar pieces, the Schön catalog lists them too, and says that the "Gibraltar ECU" was an official second(ary) currency there. Its value was the same as the official ECU rate. Guess that worked the same way as for Isle of Man euro "coins" issued in 1996-98: The value of 1 IoM Euro on day X corresponded to whatever the ECU was worth, in pound sterling, at the stock exchange in London on that day. Christian
Thanks for the info! I guess I'll just have to wait a while before I can sell this one for a new Jag.
What you could get for them will probably be sufficient to get you one of these Jaguars. http://www.kreativ-handwerk-sartor.net/resources/Oldtimer1_gr.jpg Guess there is a market, at least in NL, for the Dutch "rounds", but don't expect much ... Christian
Those have a similar status as the Dutch pieces, I think. They were made by the Mint (FNMT-RCM), and have the mint logo (crowned M), but they did not have legal tender status. Eight "ECU" series were issued between 1989 and 1996, and the mint even issued two "euro" series, in 1997 and 1998. A catalog that focuses on coins would not list these pieces, but some Spanish books (such as the Aledón) cover them too ... Christian
The 10 Ecu Netherlands coin reminds me a lot of this 1914 Dutch Steun-Penning issued at the beginning of WW1...
What the two have in common is the lion with the sword and the arrows - and that is part of the Dutch coat of arms. You will find it on many coins and medals issued in the past 400 years. (Image: worldcoingallery.com) The seven arrows represent the seven provinces of the Union of Utrecht. On Dutch circulation coins that CoA was depicted until 1980 when Beatrix became queen. Christian
