Christian will be very pleased to know that Germany is issuing a silver 10 Euros to commemorate the 175th. anniversary of the birth of Wilhelm Busch.It won't be a medal-coin,as you will be able to buy it as the branches of the Deutsche Bundesbank at face value. Here's an article; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilhelm_Busch . Aidan.
Sure I know about that Busch piece. The coin, designed by Othmar Kukula, will be issued on 14 June. Hi-res images: http://www.pressedienst-numismatik.de/images/stories/2007_12/1-10e-busch-rs-download.jpg http://www.pressedienst-numismatik.de/images/stories/2007_12/1-10e-busch-vs-download.jpg The coin, minted in Munich, shows Wilhelm Busch with some of his most famous characters: the "Pious Helen" on the left and "Max & Moritz" on the right. The coin is not a commemorative coin (those are legal tender in all of Euroland) but a collector coin, legal tender in the issuing member state only. Then again, hardly anybody uses them for cash payments anyway. But since they can be had at face value, you can always get your money back in case you (what a horrible thought) get tired of coins ... Christian
Here are some pictures of circulation coins (1 cent - 2 euro) and commemorative coins (2 euro): http://www.ecb.int/bc/euro/coins/common/html/index.en.html Christian
Just curious... but is there any place in germany (i may go there this year) where I could get such coins at face value?
Rahul,I did mention that you can buy them from the Deutsches Bundesbank.That is where you can get them from. Aidan.
Any branch office of the Bundesbank will have them. Not the ones from previous years of course, just the latest issue(s) - you pay €10 and get a €10 coin. Commercial banks may also have them, but they cannot make any money by "selling" those collector coins, so some do and some don't. Christian
Sort of maybe. Many others have pointed out numerous times that a term like "medal-coin" is confusing rather than precise or helpful here. As I wrote above, the Wilhelm Busch piece is what in Euroland is called a collector coin - legal tender in the issuing member state only. All other coins (circulation pieces and €2 commems) can of course be used anywhere in the currency union. At least you can get the silver German (and Dutch, and Portuguese, most Austrian and many Spanish) collector coins at face value. Just don't expect to come across them in circulation. Christian
Thanks Aiden & Christian! I'll try to get myself to a branch if I go... They are very pretty but I dont really want to pay the large premium that they sell for here in the US.
spoke too soon was given 'funny money' at work today, was found in the till, turns out it is the 5 cent euro from Spain....lol thanks for the pics Chris
Cindy,you not only saw your first Euro coin,but you were given it.The 5 Euro-Cents is easily confused with a Canadian 1c. coin in terms of their size.Spain,Belgium,France,& the Netherlands all started striking Euro coins in 1999.Monaco started getting them struck during 2001. Aidan.
France was actually the first country that minted euro circulation coins - the Monnaie de Paris started in May 1998, about a week after the specifications had been published in the EU Official Journal. Germany followed in August 1998, Belgium in early September, Finland and Austria in fall 1998, the Netherlands in early December. Problem was that in February 1999 the specifications were slightly modified. The 10 and 50 cent coins got a different edge, following a suggestion of the European Blind Union, and the 50 cent piece was made heavier according to a suggestion of the vending machine industry. @Twiggs: Nice find! Funny that you came across that coin right after your post, hehe. Christian
Yeah it was funny..but Ive notice the head cashier looks through her coins ..so Ive trained her well...plus she hands them over to me lmao
Cindy,no doubt you've managed to work out the nearest equivilant in C$ what each coin is worth in terms of the exchange rate. Here's a handy converter to help you out; www.xe.com/ucc/ . Aidan.
