1971 – 5 Lepta – Prague Mint – Greece

Denomination – 5 Lepta (0,05 Drachmas)

Country –  Greece

Year –  1971

Head Of State – Dictator Georgios Papadopoulos (Military Junta) – King Paul the 1st
Mint – Prague
Obverse – Center Holw with Crowned Olive Wreath – Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΟΝ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΑΣ (Kingdom of Greece) – 1971

Reverse – 5 Lepta – CrowGrain sprigs left of center hole

Metal –  Aluminium 

Condition – Uncirculated 

Creator –V.Falireas
Catalogue – KM#77

Edge – Smooth

Mintage – 1,002,174

Collection – Giannis Koromilas

Diameter  – 20,50  mm

Weight – 0,8499 gr

Interesting Facts – Agriculture was the foundation of the Ancient Greek economy and nearly 80% of the population was involved in this activity. During the early part of Greek history agriculture was based on cereals, such as barley, Durum wheat and, less commonly, millet or common wheat. Their value at the time was very small (you could buy a gum at the time – now however has a greater value (real and sentimental)

1971 5 lepta coins have a small hole on their center, smaller than the 1954 similar coins

NGC Value – 5.00$ (price for  MS-60 while price gets higher for better grades e.g. MS-63 is on 10$)

1832 – 1 Lepto – Munich Mint – Greece

Denomination –  1 Lepto

Country –  Greece

Year –  1832

Head Of State – King Otto Bavaria
Mint – Munich
Obverse – Inscription (Kingdom of Greece), Shield with crosee under crown

Reverse – Denomination (1 Lepto), Date (1832)

Metal – Copper 

Condition – Uncirculated

Creator –  Konrad Lange 

Edge – Reeded

Mintage – 2,200,000

Diameter  – 16,60 mm

Weight – 1.29 gr

Interesting Facts – All of Otto’s coins were minted with a reeded edge.In 1850, a meal including meat bought in a typical restaurant in Athens costed 30 lepta.At the same time a civil servant’s (high ranking officer at a ministry) monthly salary amounted to 300 drachmas .Otto’s copper coins were withdrawn from circulation in 1870 under law 356

Approx. Value – 900 Euros (Unc)

Blooomberg Editorial

My Humble Opinion:

Those f….king capitalists…

People may be suffering but all they care about is the stock market

Read this short piece of a Bloomberg Editorial for example…

“The possibilities range from runs on European banks to violent rioting in the streets of Athens — or even civil war… a prepackaged, well-managed bankruptcy, not unlike the ones arranged by the Obama administration for General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC in 2009, would be better than letting the chips fall where they may.”

2007 – 10 Euros – Athens Mint – Greece – (Commemorative National Park Of Pindus/Valia Kalda)

Denomination –  10 Euros

Country –  Greece

Year –  2007

Head Of State – Prime Minister Constantinos Karamanlis
Mint – Athens National Mint

Obverse – Closed zoom in to a typical view of the flowers and birds of the park.

Reverse – National emblem of Greece inside an artistic representation of a tree.

Designer – Georgios Stamatopoulos

Metal – 0,925 Silver

Krause – #KM 221

Condition – Proof

Mintage – 5,000

Diameter  –  40,00 mm

Weight – 34,00 gr

Interesting Facts – The river of Arkoudorema passes through the national park in Valia Kalda. The flora is just as impressive, with hundreds of types of trees, herbs, flowers and other plants which can only be found there. The geology and the flora are remnants of the ice age, as are twin lakes Flega at the centre of the park. There are no paved roads in the national park. Visitors can walk at the marked paths, the most famous of which is E6

Approx. Value – 58 Euros http://www.electacollections.com (as of February 2012)

2006 – 10 Euros – Athens Mint – Greece – (Commemorative National Park Of Olympus/Zeus)

Denomination –  10 Euros

Country –  Greece

Year –  2006

Head Of State – Prime Minister Constantinos Karamanlis
Mint – Athens National Mint

Obverse – In the obverse, The National Emblem Of Greece between flowers is depicted. On the top edge ‘Hellenic Republic’ is written in the Greek Alphabet. The face value of the coin is displayed along the lower edge.

Reverse – In Greek mythology, Zeus was the son of Cronus and Rhea and the highest-ranking god among the Olympian Gods. He was god of the sky and thunder and his attributes included thunder, the lightning bolt, the septer, and the eagle. Zeus (in Greek Dias) was the ruler of Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece and the home of the gods. In 1981 UNESCO declared Mount Olympus an “International Biosphere Reserve” and in 1987 it was declared a National Park of Greece. This is the main motif of the reverse of this coin

Designer – Georgios Stamatopoulos

Krause – #KM 219

Metal – 0,925 Silver

Condition – Proof

Mintage – 5,000

Diameter  –  40,00 mm

Weight – 34,00 gr

Interesting Facts – In Greek mythology, Zeus was the son of Cronus and Rhea and the highest ranking god among the Olympian gods. He was god of the sky and thunder and his attributes included thunder and the lightning bolt, the scepter, and the eagle. Zeus (in Greek Dias) was the ruler of Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece and the home of the gods. In 1987 the mountain was declared a National Park and in 1981 Unesco declared it an ‘International Biosphere Reserve’

Approx. Value – From 75 to 98 Euros (Taken From 2011 Ebay Auctions)

2003 – 10 Euros – Athens Mint – Greece – (Commemorative Hellenic Presidency Of The European Union)

Denomination –  10 Euros

Country –  Greece

Year –  2003

Head Of State – Prime Minister Constantinos Simitis
Mint – Athens National Mint

Obverse – Logo of the Greek presidency, together with the words ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΠΡΟΕΔΡΙΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΥΡΩΠΑΙΚΗΣ ΕΝΩΣΗΣon the top and “HELLENIC PRESIDENCY OF EU” on the bottom, is depicted

Reverse – National Emblem of Greece, sourrounded by the words ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΔΗΜΟΚΡΑΤΙΑ (Greek Democracy) and the face value of €10 is shown.

Metal – 0,925 Silver

Condition – Proof

Mintage – 75.000 Proof (50.000 in the Coinset 2003)

Diameter  –  28,25 mm

Weight – 9,75 gr

Interesting Facts – This coin was issued to commemorate the Treaty of Accession (2003), signed in Athens on 16 April 2003, with Greece holding the Presidency of the Council of the European Union.The Treaty of Accession 2003 was the agreement between the European Union and ten countries (Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,Malta, Poland, Slovenia, Slovakia), concerning these countries’ accesion into the EU . At the same time it changed a number of points which were originally laid down in the Treaty Of NiceThe treaty was signed on 16 April 2003 in Athens, Greece and it entered into force on 1 May 2004, the day of the enlargement of the E.U.

Value – 43,15 euros http://www.euro-coins.tv/Greece-10-Euro-silver-coin-EU-Presidency-2003-38090.php

Celebrating 10 years of Greek Euro Coins

This is the design for the new commemorative Greek 2 Euro Coin celebrating 10 years of Greek euro coins (2002-2012). Lets hope that there will be more anniversaries to come… Otherwise drachma had a greater history and some speciments were good looking too…

1976 – 20 Drachmas – Athens Mint – Greece

Denomination –  20 Drachmas

Country –  Greece

Year –  1976

Head Of State – Prime Minister Konstantinos G. Karamanlis
Mint – Athens
Obverse – The Parthenon, Inscription (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία) “Hellenic Republic”, Date 1976, 20 Drachmas

Reverse – Pericles wearing helmet (head left)

Metal – Copper – Aluminium – Nickel

Condition – Uncirculated – PCGS Certified and Graded MS-66

Creator –Theodoros Papagiannis (Obv) – L.Orfanos (Rev)
Catalogue – KM#120

Edge – Lettered  ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΔΗΜΟΚΡΑΤΙΑ “Hellenic Republic” followed by a star

Mintage – 17,825,000

Collection – Giannis Koromilas

Diameter  – 29,00  mm

Weight – 11,15 gr

Interesting Facts – The 20 drachma coin has been issued for 1976-1978-1980-1982- 1984-1984-1988.For the 1982 issue, three Varieties exist as to the number of flutings and reedings in the columns of the Temple.In order of rareness these varieties are:

Five Flutings and Six Reedings

Four Flutings and Five Reedings

Seven Flutings and Eight Reedings

In contrast to the then usual practice,at 1976, the 50 lepta up to the 20 Drachma coins beared the denomination, the date of minting and the inscription Greek Democracy on the obverse, as provided for in the Decree, whereas the device on the reverse

Krause Value – 5.00$ (MS-66 price may be a bit higher since prices depend on grade)

1964 – 30 Drachmas – Kongsberg Mint – Greece – (Commemorative Royal Weddings)

Denomination –  30 Drachmas

Country –  Greece

Year –  1964

Head Of State – Prime Minister Georgios A. Papandreou – King Constantine II of Greece (House of Glucksburg)
Mint – Kongsberg
Obverse – Constantine and Anne Marie of Denmark Kings Of Hellenes – Bust Left – Wedding – Inscription “ΚΩΝCΤΑΝΤΙΝΟC ΑΝΝΑ ΜΑΡΙΑ ΒΑCΙΛΕΙC TΩΝ ΕΛΛΗΝΩΝ”

Reverse – Denomination 30 Δρχ – Two Headed Eagle – Date 1964 – Rosetta Under Crown

Metal – 83,5% Silver – 16,5% Copper

Condition – Uncirculated – PCGS Certified and Graded MS-64

Creator – Vasos Falireas
Catalogue – KM#87

Edge – Lettered – Inscription (ΙCΧΥC ΜΟΥ Η ΑΓΑΠΗ ΤΟΥ ΛΑΟΥ) (My power is the love of the people)

Mintage – 1,000,000

Collection – Giannis Koromilas

Diameter  – 31,00  mm

Weight – 12,00 gr

Interesting Facts – 2 Varieties exist (Kongsberg and Berne Mint) Some of the main differences are: On Berne Mint the Engraver’s initials are below epaulette, the edge lettering is small, the details overall are finer while the hair on Anne Marie forehead are shown lower. On the Kongsberg mint , engraver’s initials ΒΦ are on top of shoulder, the digits 1,6,4 on date are smaller,the letter Δ on Δρχ is thinner and the eagle’s details are not so sharp.

This commemorative coin was also issued by the Bank Of Greece is special commemorative carton blister with the flags of Greece and Denmark and text presented in three languages (English, German and French)  

Krause Value – 12.00$ (BU) (2011 Krause)

Vasos Falireas

Contemporary Greek sculptor. Born In Athens (1905-1979). In 1929 he graduated with a Distinction Grade from the Fine Arts School of Athens and the next yeatr he left for Paris.

He stayed there for six years and presented his works at several exhibitions, earning a silver and a gold medal. He was widely recognized and he made sculptures for several important personalities of  French public life. Many of his works were ruined during the Second World War. Apart of  his works as a sculptor he was also responsible for the design of many modern Greek coins.

Returning to Greece, he was honoured with the Golden Cross of George A in 1965 while in 1955 he created/designed the monument of Leonidas the Spartan found in Thermopylae. In January 1967 he became a member of the French Academy of Fine Arts.