We were discussing industrial infrastructure on coins in another thread. The power station element in that thread, coupled with current events in Japan and my interest in the abandoned town of Pripyat', brought this commemorative to mind:
(http://i.ucoin.net/coin/25/251/25181_1s/ukraine_200000_ukrainian_karbovantsiv_1996.jpg)
(http://i.ucoin.net/coin/25/251/25181_2s/ukraine_200000_ukrainian_karbovantsiv_1996.jpg)
Ukraine, 200,000 karbovantsiv 1996, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster. This is a coin I'd like to get hold of one day because it ties in with another interest.
We're also coming up to the 25th anniversary of the accident, on 26 April.
I know there are plenty of coins commemorating the ends of wars and deliberate atrocities like the Holocaust, Katyn and so on. But are there any others that remember accidents and natural disasters?
Belgium issued a 10 euro coin in 2006 commemorating the mine disaster of 1956 at the Bois du Cazier-mine in Marcinelle. 262 people died in the accident.
Some of the usual suspects (Kiribati, Liberia, Somalia, Turks & Caicos) did a series of pseudo issues on the Titanic. Others (Congo, Cuba, Dominica, Isle of Man, Liberia, Spanish Sahara) showed the Graf Zeppelin on "coins". A somewhat more credible commemorative with the Zeppelin was issued by Germany (1930.) The UK recently issued a piece for the Mary Rose. Alderney followed suit. Surprisingly, no one thought of issuing a coin for the Wasa. There were issues for the Pamir, though. Armenia and Russia both commemorated the Spitak earthquake (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1988_Spitak_earthquake).
Peter
The 1930 Zeppelin coin I would not include here, as it commemorates the 1929 flight around the world, not any disaster. But if we talk about flying, well, Poland just issued a series of coins commemorating the Smolensk plane crash one year ago. Here is the 2 zl coin (left), and one of the 10 zl pieces (center and right):
(http://www.nbp.pl/banknoty_i_monety/monety_okolicznosciowe/2011/2011_04___smolensk-pamieci_ofiar_10_kwietnia_2010_2_zl_r.gif) (http://www.nbp.pl/banknoty_i_monety/monety_okolicznosciowe/2011/2011_04___smolensk-pamieci_ofiar_10_kwietnia_2010_20_zl_a.gif) (http://www.nbp.pl/banknoty_i_monety/monety_okolicznosciowe/2011/2011_04___smolensk-pamieci_ofiar_10_kwietnia_2010_20_zl_r.gif)
Christian
For a similar reason to that given by Christian in respect of the Graf Zeppelin, I don't think the UK Mary Rose coin counts here. The coin isn't commemorating the sinking (it shows the ship in its pre-sinking completeness and the date isn't an obvious anniversary of the event, for example) but rather the fact of the ship's existence, regardless of how, when or whether it met its end.
The Smolensk coins definitely qualify, though.
I wonder whether the UK will issue a Titanic commemorative next year...
Quote from: FosseWay on April 10, 2011, 02:49:12 PM
I wonder whether the UK will issue a Titanic commemorative next year...
The UK? It would be considered cheesy. But for Somaliland, Liberia, E. Dogchit, it is par for the course and I am sure they are already working up designs for them.
In my opinion : The theme of these coins reminds us about "Safety first" motto ..................... but control against natural calamities & mother nature is difficult phenomenon.
May be the cause of accidents differ on each event depicting disasters , one common thing in all the cases irrespective of country , location , nationalities , races, religions ...........
Loss of human life.
Cheers ;D
Here are a couple of Australasian disasters on medals - the sinking of the Wahine inter-island ferry at the entrance to Wellington harbour in 1968, and the fifth anniversary (why? other than a convenient excuse for a medal?) of the HMAS Voyager disaster in 1964:
and obverses:
Quote from: Saor Alba on April 10, 2011, 03:03:31 PM
The UK? It would be considered cheesy. But for Somaliland, Liberia, E. Dogchit, it is par for the course and I am sure they are already working up designs for them.
Not too cheesy for Alderney, it seems. 8) This piece, face value £5, can be had in Cu-Ni and in silver:
(Ag, proof) http://www.royalmint.com/store/WorldSilver/TT12SP.aspx
(Cu-Ni, unc) http://www.royalmint.com/store/WorldBase/TT12BU.aspx
Christian
And of course the theme is not too cheesy for the Canadian Mint either. A colored quarter, a mildly colored 50c piece (silver-plated), and a silver $10 piece.
Christian
Fiji $10 (2013): 1980 disaster (explosion of Mount St. Helens in southern Washington)
Commemorating 33th anniversary of disaster is a strange idea indeed... ;)
Aditya
(Image Source: here (http://www.coinworld.com/Articles/ViewArticle/fiji-coin-marks-1980-disaster))
Don't think that the piece commemorates any anniversary. It is basically a theme coin (Volcanoes - Breath of Fire (http://www.powercoin.it/lang-en/oceania-south-pacific/1149-mount-st-helens-volcanoes-breath-of-fire-silver-proof-locket-coin-10-fiji-2013.html)) issue ...
Christian
Does man-made disasters belong here?
Ukraine, 5 Hryvnia, 2007, Ukrainian Famine
(http://api.ning.com/files/Z5VV7E3rnCCur8B8CPm51SorT2uplddyWHaD*RWSlC7-OqFQv0cX5B9K-lSF3zbHxqpSczWMfsszvf5O07P*uStfsbRCfoBN/19321933UkraineFamineGenocideComm.jpg?width=650&height=322)
Quote from: SquareEarth on August 08, 2013, 07:34:06 PM
Does man-made disasters belong here?
Ukraine, 5 Hryvnia, 2007, Ukrainian Famine
This is not a man-made catastrophe. It was a genocide against the ordinary people in the Soviet Union.
The Holodomor ("Extermination by hunger" derived from "to kill by starvation") was a famine in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1932 and 1933 that killed about 4 million Ukrainians. During the famine, which is also known as the "Terror-Famine in Ukraine" and "Famine-Genocide in Ukraine", millions of citizens of the Ukrainian SSR, the majority of whom were Ukrainians, died of starvation in a peacetime catastrophe unprecedented in the history of Ukraine.
Since 2006, the Holodomor has been recognized by the independent Ukraine and several other countries as a genocide of the Ukrainian people.
The 1988 Armenian earthquake, also known as the Spitak earthquake occurred in the northern region of Armenia (then part of the Soviet Union) on Wednesday, December 7, 1988 at 11:41 local time.
At the epicenter of the earthquake - Spitak - force tremors reached 11.2 points (on 12-point scale). Killed about 150,000 people.
It was a disaster and the death toll is beyond belief. However, it was also the first time the Soviet Union (under Gorbachov) allowed outside help, an unprecedented opening of an inward looking country. It was, moreover, the first time I remember musicians making a joint appeal for money to help.
Is it a coincidence that the mountain on the coin seems to match the one in your avatar?
Peter
Not remotely numismatic AFAIK, but wasn't Live Aid in 1984/5 the first large-scale musical aid effort?
Quote from: Figleaf on October 31, 2014, 05:40:24 PM
It was a disaster and the death toll is beyond belief. However, it was also the first time the Soviet Union (under Gorbachov) allowed outside help, an unprecedented opening of an inward looking country. It was, moreover, the first time I remember musicians making a joint appeal for money to help.
Is it a coincidence that the mountain on the coin seems to match the one in your avatar?
Peter
Yes, the USSA had a "makeover" and the whole world helped.
Earthquake - it very terrible. On my motherland on Kamchatka settlement, where I was born, was fully destroyed by an earthquake 21.04.2006. This settlement will not never restore.
On my avatar - image Everest in Tibet.
On a coin - Mount Ararat in Turkey (see photo).
Mount Ararat is a snow cone in Turkey. It has two peaks: Greater Ararat (the highest peak in Turkey 5137 m) and Lesser Ararat (3.896 m).
Italy 5 euro 2015.jpg
Italy, 5 euro, 2015. Centenary of the Avezzano earthquake.
Here is a numismatic story about the eruption of the Vesuvius:
https://garethharney.wordpress.com/2013/06/07/the-forgotten-coin-dating-the-destruction-of-pompeii-and-herculaneum/
(http://www.worldofcoins.eu/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=33335.0;attach=57849;image)
UK, 2 pounds, 2016. The Great Fire of London, 1666.
Are there enough designs to make a topic of fire and/or flames?
Hello
Is wonderful is always someting to learn on this forum ,thank you
Best regards Gerard
Was it an Isle of Man crown that you say shows a Zeppelins? I know an air ship was on a 2 pound coin, but it wasn't a Zeppelin.
IoM1994Zeppelin.jpg
This is the Isle of Man piece (1 Crown 1994) with Zeppelin and a zeppelin. :)
Thanks! There always seems to be a crown to get from Isle of Man!