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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Stevearino, post: 3794094, member: 74571&quot;]Just an FYI for folks who might acquire some 1700s-1800s Danish/Norwegian/Swedish&nbsp; coins: for approximately 350 years Denmark controlled Norway, until Denmark chose the wrong side in the Napoleonic War and Norway was &quot;given&quot; to Sweden.&nbsp; The Norwegian &quot;holy day&quot; of Syttende Mai is usually wrongly called their Independence Day celebration.&nbsp; It is their &quot;Constitution Day&quot; celebration.</p><p><br /></p><p>On May 17, 1814 Norway wrangled their way to getting a constitution approved with Sweden&#039;s acquiescence (Sweden had an easy few weeks subduing the Norwegian Army and stopped their move to full independence). Having their own constitution mollified the Norwegians until they renewed their movement toward full independence in 1905.&nbsp; I&#039;ve visited a border fort in Norway built specifically for the expected impending war with Sweden which never happened.&nbsp; Sweden &quot;let&quot; Norway go.&nbsp; Strangely, that day is not celebrated.</p><p><br /></p><p>That is the background.&nbsp; It means that Norwegian coin inscriptions are in the Danish language until the Swedish took over.&nbsp; Norwegians traveled to Denmark for higher education for decades.&nbsp; So by then, the written Norwegian language was so heavily influenced by the centuries under Danish rule that the two written languages were essentially identical.</p><p><br /></p><p>An interesting transition took place in 1875.&nbsp; Oscar II, King of Sweden (and Norway) wanted to avoid war with Norway.&nbsp; Beginning with his reign until full independence, one can tell which country the coins were for by two methods:</p><p>&nbsp; 1.&nbsp; The country listed first;</p><p>&nbsp; 2.&nbsp; The spelling of &quot;ore&quot; :&nbsp; øre for Norway, öre for Sweden.</p><p><br /></p><p>Steve[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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