Coin Commemorates the Home of the Famous Leaning Tower of Pisa
By the Italian Mint ……
On May 4, a silver coin with a face value of 5 euros was issued by the Italian Mint to commemorate the 900th anniversary of the medieval Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta of Pisa.
The Cathedral, with its Baptistery and famous Leaning Tower, testifies to the prestige reached by the city when it was one of the most important Maritime Republics. The architectural masterpiece, begun in 1063 by the architect Buscheto–the inventor of the Pisan Romanesque style–rises in the center of Piazza dei Miracoli (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) in an extraordinary way classical, Gothic, Lombard-Emilian, Byzantine and Islamic elements.
The coin was designed by the engraver artist Annalisa Masini and coined at the State Mint. It has a circulation of 4,000 pieces for the “proof” version.
On the obverse, the view of Piazza dei Miracoli, with the Baptistery, the Leaning Tower and the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assumption, the medieval Cathedral of Pisa. At the base of the Leaning Tower, the author’s name “A.MASINI”; encircling the design are the words REPUBBLICA ITALIANA (“ITALIAN REPUBLIC”).
On the reverse side is a detail of the Cathedral of Pisa, flanked by a bronze tile of the Porta di San Ranieri del Duomo, built by Bonanno Pisano. Above, the dates “1118 2018”, the year of the consecration of the Duomo of Pisa and the year of issue of the coin, respectively; in the field on the right, in the exergue, is the value “5 EURO”; the inscription “CONSECRATION OF THE CATHEDRAL OF PISA” surrounds the abovementioned design.
These issues are already available on the Mint Catalog page, as well as on the Department of the Treasury. The other issues of the year are available on the website of the State Mint:
- 20 euros AU Artemisia Gentileschi – “Women in Art” Series
- 10 euro AG Cathedral of Trani – Puglia, Italy Series of the Arts – PROOF
- 5 euro bimetallica Artistic Treasures of Amatrice – FDC
- 5 euro AG 50th Anniversary of the birth of the National Police – FDC
- 5 euro AG Veneto Villas – Veneto, Italy Series of Arts – PROOF
- Series 10 pieces with 5 euro AG glazed 70th Anniversary of the entry into force of the Italian Constitution – PROOF
