Armenia: post-Soviet coinage

Started by <k>, March 01, 2014, 05:57:30 PM

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<k>

Armenia + Azerbaijan map.jpg


From Wikipedia:

Armenia is a mountainous country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia, located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe.

The Republic of Armenia recognizes the Armenian Apostolic Church, the world's oldest national church, as the country's primary religious establishment. Armenians have their own unique alphabet, which was invented by Mesrop Mashtots in 405 AD.

Armenia is a member of the Council of Europe and the Collective Security Treaty Organization. It supports the de-facto independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, which arose after a war in the early 1990s.

On 23 August 1990 Armenia declared independence, becoming the first non-Baltic republic to secede from the Soviet Union. When, in 1991, the Soviet Union was dissolved, Armenia's independence was officially recognized. However, the initial post-Soviet years were marred by economic difficulties as well as the break-out of a full-scale armed confrontation between the Karabakh Armenians and Azerbaijan (Nagorno-Karabakh War). The Karabakh war ended after a Russian-brokered cease-fire was put in place in 1994. The war was a success for the Karabakh Armenian forces who managed to capture 16% of Azerbaijan's internationally recognised territory including Nagorno-Karabakh itself. Since then, Armenia and Azerbaijan have held peace talks, mediated by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). The status of Karabakh has yet to be determined.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>

#1
Armenian flag.gif

The flag of Armenia.


From Wikipedia:

The official definition of the colors, as stated in the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, is:

The Red symbolises the Armenian Highland, the Armenian people's continued struggle for survival, maintenance of the Christian faith, Armenia's independence and freedom. The Blue symbolises the will of the people of Armenia to live beneath peaceful skies. The Orange symbolises the creative talent and hard-working nature of the people of Armenia.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>

#2
Armenia CoA.jpg

The Armenian coat of arms.

See: Wikipedia - Coat of arms of Armenia


Extract:

In the center of the shield is a depiction of the Mount Ararat with Noah's Ark sitting atop it. According to tradition, the ark is said to have finally rested on the mountain after the great flood. Ararat is considered the national symbol of Armenia and thus is of principal importance to the coat of arms.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>

#3
From Wikipedia:

The dram is the monetary unit of Armenia. It is subdivided into 100 luma. The word "dram" translates into English as "money" and is cognate with the Greek drachma and the Arabic dirham. The first instance of a dram currency was in the period from 1199 to 1375, when silver coins called dram were issued.

The Central Bank of Armenia, established on 27 March 1993, was given the exclusive right of issuing the national currency. In the immediate aftermath of the collapse of the Soviet Union attempts were made to maintain a common currency (the Russian ruble) among CIS states. Armenia joined this ruble zone. However, it soon became clear that maintaining a common currency in the unstable political and economical circumstances of the post-Soviet states would be very difficult. The rublezone effectively collapsed in July 1993 when Russia unilaterally started a currency reform. As result the states that were still participating (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Moldova, Armenia and Georgia) were 'pushed out' and forced to introduce separate currencies. Armenia was one of the last countries to do so when it introduced the dram on 22 November 1993.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>

#4
Armenia 50 luma 1994.JPG



Armenia 10 dram 1994.JPG


In 1994 Armenia issued its first independence coinage. The coins, made of aluminium, were issued in denominations of 10, 20 and 50 luma, 1, 3, 5 and 10 dram. The common obverse depicted the national coat of arms. The luma coins carried the year and denomination on the reverse, whilst the dram coins added a spray of stylised olive branches to the reverse design.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>

#5
Armenia 10d 2004.jpg



Armenia 20d 2003.jpg



Armenia 50d 2003.jpg


A new design series was released in 2003, comprising 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500 dram coins. A 10 dram coin was added in 2004. The reverse of each coin carried a different pattern around its outer rim.

Below you can see the 10, 20 and 50 dram coins. The images are not to scale.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>

#6
Armenia 100d 2003.jpg



Armenia 200d 2003.jpg



Armenia 500d 2003.jpg

Below you can see the 100, 200 and 500 dram coins.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>

#7
Armenia 10d 2004 reverse.JPG

Here is a larger image of the common obverse of the coins.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>

#8
From Wikipedia:

The Armenian dram is also used in the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. A separate currency, the Nagorno-Karabakh dram, which circulates together with the Armenian dram was introduced during 2005. Coins and banknotes ranging in nominal values from 50 luma to 10 dram were issued. Officially the Nagorno-Karabakh dram is legal tender in both Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. In practice it is however mostly sold as souvenirs due to the low nominal values of the coins and notes issued.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

<k>

The obverse legend on the coins of 1994 apparently reads "Hayastan". That is the Armenian name for Armenia, so I read, which is interesting, because of all the other "-stans" in the region.

When I translate the longer obverse legend of the later coins, the result is only "republic", so the online translator is obviously not functioning correctly. Can anybody give a correct translation?
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.

Siberian Man

Some more coins.
10 and 20 luma 1994.

Siberian Man

1, 3 & 5 dram 1994.

Siberian Man


Pabitra

Luma is dead unit of currency.
Smallest coin in 21st century has been 10 Dram.
The last year when coin were issued for circulation is 2005.
Only commem coins with face value ranging from 50 drams to 1000 drams have since been issued.

<k>

#14
Armenia 2003-4 set.jpg



Armenia 2003-4 set-.jpg

The last Armenian circulation set: 2003-4.
Visit the website of The Royal Mint Museum.

See: The Royal Mint Museum.