A Welcome Addition to My Pre-Euro Finnish Collection

[Bimat]

Just a small query: Were these Finnish collector coins made available for face at the time of issue? Even if they weren't, I don't think I'll stop collecting them.

Aditya

[chrisild]

Hmm, I think that the earlier silver collector coins, such as 10 Mk Paasikivi, were issued at face. Not sure but if you look at the mintage figures ... some of them had mintages of half a million to a million. And Finland has a population of a little more than five million.

Christian

[milkshakespeare]

Just a small query: Were these Finnish collector coins made available for face at the time of issue? Even if they weren't, I don't think I'll stop collecting them.

Aditya

All the silver 10, 25 and 50 markkaa coins were available for face value from banks, and so were the 100 markkaa coins of 1980's and early 1990's.

[Bimat]

All the silver 10, 25 and 50 markkaa coins were available for face value from banks, and so were the 100 markkaa coins of 1980's and early 1990's.

Thanks! I just have these two, so quite a big job to be done!

Aditya

[Bimat]

Added two more nice pre-euro collector coins to my Finnish collection.

50 Markkaa (1981), KM# 59, 20g, 500/1000 Fine Silver (0.3215 Oz ASW), 30 mm, Mintage: 500,000.

Can someone tell me the exact theme of the coin?

Aditya

[Bimat]

... And the second one:

50 Markkaa (1982), KM# 60, 23.10 g, 500/1000 Fine Silver (0.3713 Oz ASW), 35 mm, Mintage: 400,000.

Aditya

[chrisild]

Can someone tell me the exact theme of the coin?

Urho Kekkonen was the longest serving president of Finland. This piece commemorates 25 (!) years of presidency.
http://rahapaja.rahapaja1.smilehouse.com/eng/urho-kekkosen-presidenttikauden-25-vuotisjuhlaraha/15546/dp

Christian

[Figleaf]

Can someone tell me the exact theme of the coin?

KM says the theme is the 80th birthday of president Kekkonen. It sounds a bit royal and my take is somewhat more complicated. In 1981, Kekkonen's health deteriorated quickly. He was clearly in his last term and dying. The coin would have been a fitting thank you, delivered during his life.

My idea is reinforced by the reverse. The horses racing towards you through the water are scared. There may be a chariot behind them. Whoever rides it must keep the horses working as a team, or the whole thing will fall apart and the driver may well be killed. The survival of the horses and driver depend on the skill of the driver.

It seems to me that this is a metaphor for Finland's position and political situation. It is constantly threatened by the Soviet Union, regarded as third rate by NATO countries and in danger of becoming a cold war victim. The invisible rider is Kekkonen. He must keep the government and the opposition working as a team or the country will collapse. The scene is an apologetic view of Kekkonen's strong-arm tactics, his controversial amassing of power for the president and his monopolistic view of Finland's foreign policy. At the same time, it honours Kekkonen's achievement in steering Finland through a very difficult period (Kekkonen saw and understood what happened in Hungary in 1956 and in Czechoslovakia in 1968) and acknowledges his success in keeping Finland independent.

Few coins achieve such a depth of meaning.

Peter

[Bimat]

Urho Kekkonen was the longest serving president of Finland. This piece commemorates 25 (!) years of presidency.
http://rahapaja.rahapaja1.smilehouse.com/eng/urho-kekkosen-presidenttikauden-25-vuotisjuhlaraha/15546/dp

Thanks Christian! I was pretty sure that this coin has something to do with the person whose portrait appears on the obverse but was bit confused by the reverse design. What is the significance of those horses was my question. Now since Peter has explained it quite well, I guess I have the answers to my questions. Thanks both!

As far as the second coin is concerned, we all know how obsessed Finns are about Ice Hockey.

Aditya

[Figleaf]

What I like about the second piece is how the sculptor has achieved depth in a flat object and overcome the round edge. Your brains tell you the puck is in front of the player, but your eyes see them all at the same level. Why? Your brain interprets the body position in three dimension from the right elbow to the left hand. Once you accept that third dimension, seeing the puck in depth is natural.

With the deliberate vagueness of the design (I bet you saw the player's nose) and the body position the artist even manages to convey a sense of speed and action. This is so much better than a map, a logo or a coat of arms...

Peter