Then you probably will not like this one: USSR 1 Rouble. And it is actually "classical" with triangular arrangements like "The Oath of the Horatii" and others. But at least they are walking to a new sunrise... And touching each other, human contact, personal reassurance, which seldom happens on a coin.
I have a problem with calling any Hungarian coins post-Horthy, classical coins. The classical period ended along with the Kingdom of Hungary with the provisional national government of 1945. WWII saw a fairly clean transition between silver coinage into war time compositions, and then after 1946 the modern coinage metals were established (copper-nickel, aluminum-bronze, nickel, and aluminum). The modern forint system was also introduced in 1946, which is still in use today. I would say Hungarian coins starting in 1992 were ultramodern (the major issues of 1989-1991 were still using the old designs). Most of the modern minor coinage designs were first issued in 1946 under the Second Republic (the 5 fillér was designed under Horthy but only as a pattern). These designs persisted until the late 90s. The general design of the 5 forint also remained consistent from 1946 through 1990. While the coinage definitely changed under the Soviets in 1949 and again after the failed revolution of 1956, these are all still modern issues.
I've always been fascinated by Russian and eastern bloc coins of that era that feature glorified and heroic depictions of the proletariat (I think art types call it Socialist Realism). As a genre, I think they're some of the more interesting coins of the 20th century. While one might be at odds with their philosophical underpinnings, it's hard to deny the artistry that went into them. Here's one more:
I thought that this image was very cool. It was a possible choice to put on the Liberty medal. Or maybe something like this...... (Sellers pic)
This is Classical: Dramatic moment, woman weeping... but not a lot of action. Everything is made up of triangles. The dark background says that bad things are coming (in case you did not know), but we do not see what they are. Nothing scary here. This is Romantic. Just a guy... but scary... And you do not know why and that makes it even scarier. Plus the lines and texture are moving and deep and varied. It is alive. Now... funny thing, the Oath of the Horatii was done in 1784. Then, there was a revolution. Twenty years later, the same artist painted this: It is sloping, slanting pulling your eyes up to new heights as Napoleon points the way forward. And the moment is frozen, but the motion is ready to explode. The horse's wild eyes make you tremble with excitement for the charge to come. This is Romanticism. This is Classicism: Ok... What do they look like?
I like that. She speaks to the times, just as the Walking Liberty and Peace Dollar heralded a new aesthetic in the 1920s, albeit in a classical motif. They were modern women. Nah... I am going to pass on that. She needs a shield on her arm, a sword in scabbard belted to her waist, and a rose between her teeth. I just mean that the wings and all that are over-developed. It is kitsch. We go bananas over Saint Gaudens. He was better than his predecessors, no doubt about that. But if the Parthenon had not been built, where would he have found his ideas? A few years ago, some of us tried to place him in France when this arrived from Greece: Have you ever seen it before? Well, ok, have you seen it more than a million times?
In my opinion there are some good examples among the Hungarian circulation coins from those years. Look at this 50 filler piece for example (with another Danube bridge). And this 2 forint coin has an attractive rim design, and the way the CoA and the country name are placed is "innovative" as well. And among the collector coins you find some gorgeous designs. Granted, one might say that (just like collector coins from other Comecon countries) they were made to be appealing enough for "Western" collectors. Well, they are. Christian
A slip. Meant to say classic. Sorry, posting from my phone today. Reread my post above with that correction.
Here's a type evolution view of my modern Hungarian set, including patterns. Basically every type chronologically by ascending denomination (regular circulating non-commemorative issues): https://collectivecoin.com/Jaelus/QimYF0cnYemPQ2r6tXkw Or if you prefer, modern types organized by coinage period: https://collectivecoin.com/Jaelus/CIf3mt1nVnfKDneB0eMI Also, modern Hungarian patterns by coinage period: https://collectivecoin.com/Jaelus/IPiBD3khgLzaUHxcmjK9
Thanks! I will go with the bridge. At least it is in perspective, so there is some motion implied. Also, the Olympics offer the opportunity for action shots. Jaelus 50 filler Chrislid 50f and Jaelus 10th year of forint --- just in time for the failed 1956 revolt (not a bad coin, just a bad government...)
Good choices. Out of the modern Hungarian coins, my favorites are: The reverse of the 1946 2 fillér: The obverse of the earlier 50 fillér type (largely unchanged from 1948-1967): And the simplicity and beauty of the obverse of the first 100 forint issued in 1992 (unfortunately on the way out already by 1996):
Nice... (Hungary's national emblem tells several stories at once. The cross at the top is tilted because it was bent when the crown was stashed while stolen. The vertical and horizontal lines at left are the four rivers: Duna (Danube), Tisza, Drava, and Szava. Hungary is in a basin, but the three mountains are there, whatever their names and places. And there is another crown with a double-cross, commemorating something or other in the past. If you do not know all of that, the symbols do not transmit much knowledge. The guy resting on the anvil must be on strike. He is not working. And it cannot be a comfortable seat for long... And the wheat, if you view it abstractly, could be a microscopic bug kind of predator, like a paramecium or something... Just so that we are clear on this, en is Magyar vagyok. But aesthetics supersedes ethnic affiliations.) Among the more interesting designs I found from researching the COIN OF THE YEAR Awards are these: (Italy 2 euro 2010 from Fleur de Coin online.) and The embedded gemstones are novel, but not much use in commerce. Still, the production method opens a lot of doors to new issues.
That Italian coin was issued as part of a common design; the EU (well, euro area) does that every couple of years. The basic design is the same for each euro area member state; what varies is the country name of course and any other text if there is any. The winning design is usually picked in an online competition where EU citizens/residents can choose from several finalists. This 2012 issue commemorates the tenth anniversary of the introduction of the euro cash; it was designed by Helmut Andexlinger (Austrian Mint). On one hand I like the idea of such common issues. Problem for coin collectors is, in order to be "complete", you have to get/buy 19 almost identical pieces (or 23 if you collect Germany by mintmark). These days, only one is fine for me. Did that with the European Flag anniversary (2015), will do that with the "Erasmus" anniversary coin planned for 2022 ... Christian
A lot of the 2 Euro commems are quite interesting, and I enjoy collecting them from the EU countries I've visited.
The epiphany that changed my life as a coin collector . . . the day I asked myself, "Wait, do I really need a bunch of examples of the same coin that only differ in details such as date or mint mark?"
I don't like the eagle on the reverse of the American eagle, they should replace it with the eagle from the Morgan, then the coin would have classic art on both sides.
I like these modern coins: Austria 2015 Niobium (not colorized) Cosmology: Kazakhstan 2006 Tantalum Space
These Austrian silver-niobium pieces I find attractive too, but when they went from one color for the center to more, I stopped collecting them. Yes, niobium looks gray-ish, and the color comes from the oxidation process ... What I also like is the "copper-nickel-polymer" coins from Germany. They consist of Cu-Ni in two different alloys, and a colored (€5) or transparent (€10) polymer ring. The color shade even varies with the mintmark. Below (embedded image) is this year's 10 euro coin: This particular design may not be thrilling, but the ring is cool - and yes, if you hold a finger behind it, you see parts of that finger through the "plastic". Problem is, many innovative or experimental designs are limited to such collector coins while the regular circulation coins do not profit (or suffer ) from them. If you look at Krause's COTY award for example ... they have quite a few different categories, but only one, I think, for coins that actually end up in people's pockets. Christian