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Pre-euro coinage of the Republic of Greece, 1976 to 2001

Started by <k>, September 24, 2020, 07:12:42 PM

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<k>



Athens, capital city of Greece.


From Wikipedia:

Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country located in south-east Europe. Its population is approximately 10.7 million as of 2018. Athens, the nation's capital, is its largest city, followed by Thessaloniki.
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<k>



Map of Greece.


From Wikipedia:

Situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, Greece is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. It shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the northeast. The Aegean Sea lies to the east of the mainland, the Ionian Sea to the west, the Cretan Sea and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Greece has the longest coastline on the Mediterranean Basin and the 11th longest coastline in the world at 13,676 km (8,498 mi) in length, featuring many islands, of which 227 are inhabited. Eighty percent of Greece is mountainous, with Mount Olympus being the highest peak at 2,918 metres (9,573 ft). The country consists of nine traditional geographic regions: Macedonia, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, Thessaly, Epirus, the Aegean Islands (including the Dodecanese and Cyclades), Thrace, Crete, and the Ionian Islands.
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<k>



The Greek national emblem.





The Greek flag.


From Wikipedia:

The national flag of Greece has a blue canton in the upper hoist-side corner bearing a white cross. The cross symbolises Eastern Orthodox Christianity, the established religion of the Greek people of Greece and Cyprus. According to popular tradition, the nine stripes represent the nine syllables of the phrase Ελευθερία ή Θάνατος ("Freedom or Death"). White and blue have been interpreted as symbolising the colours of the sky and sea.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>

From Wikipedia:

King Constantine II's dismissal of George Papandreou's centrist government in July 1965 prompted a prolonged period of political turbulence, which culminated in a coup d'état on 21 April 1967 by the Regime of the Colonels, headed by Georgios Papadopoulos. Under the military junta, civil rights were suspended, political repression was intensified, and human rights abuses, including state-sanctioned torture, were rampant.

Economic growth remained rapid, before plateauing in 1972. The brutal suppression of the Athens Polytechnic uprising on 17 November 1973 set in motion the events that caused the fall of the Papadopoulos regime, resulting in a counter-coup which overthrew Georgios Papadopoulos and established brigadier Dimitrios Ioannidis as the new junta strongman. On 20 July 1974, Turkey invaded the island of Cyprus in response to a Greek-backed Cypriot coup. This triggered a political crisis in Greece that led to the military regime's collapse and the restoration of democracy.


See: Greece 1973: the fascinating story behind Series A and B.



In 1976 Greece issued a new series of coins, to replace those that had been issued by the military dictatorship.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The two lowest denominations of the new coin series were the 10 and 20 lepta coins.

These were the only two aluminium coins of the series.

Their common obverse design, seen above, featured the national emblem.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The aluminium 10 lepta coin was 20 mm in diameter.

The reverse design featured a charging bull.

This design was taken from an ancient stater of the Greek city of Sybaris.
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See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The aluminium 20 lepta coin was 22 mm in diameter.

The reverse design featured a horse's head.


The 10 and 20 lepta coins were not minted after 1978.
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See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The 50 lepta coin was made of nickel-brass and had a diameter of 18 mm.

The reverse design featured Markos Botsaris.

He was a Greek general and hero of the Greek War of Independence.
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See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The 1 drachma coin was made of nickel-brass.

It had a diameter of 21 mm.

The obverse design featured the brigantine 'Konstantinos Kanaris'.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The reverse design of the 1 drachma coin featured Konstantinos Kanaris.

He was a Greek Prime Minister, admiral and politician.

In his youth was a freedom fighter in the Greek War of Independence.
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See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The 2 drachmai coin was made of nickel-brass.

It had a diameter of 24 mm.

The obverse design featured two crossed muskets and an olive branch.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The reverse design of the 2 drachmai coin featured Georgios Karaiskos.

He was a famous Greek military commander and a leader of the Greek War of Independence.
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See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The 5 drachmai coin was made of copper-nickel and had a diameter of 22.5 mm.

The reverse design featured Aristotle.

He was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece.
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See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The 10 drachmai coin was made of copper-nickel and had a diameter of 25.6 mm.

The reverse design featured Democritus.

He was an Ancient Greek philosopher.

He is primarily remembered today for his formulation of an atomic theory of the universe.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>



The 20 drachmai coin was made of copper-nickel.

It weighed 11 grams and had a diameter of 29 mm.

The obverse design featured the Parthenon..
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.