Shopping Cart
A 2 euro commemorative coin of the Vatican City State, issued in 2019 in a circulation of 91,000 copies. Dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Vatican City State. The author of the design is Daniela Fusco. Bimetallic, diameter 25.75 mm, weight 8.5 g. Minted at the IPZS in Rome.
Obverse
The center of the coin depicts a profile portrait of Pope Pius XI (1857-1939) - the pontiff, who in 1929 was the sovereign of the newly created state. The Pope is depicted looking to the left. In the background is the Lateran Palace (Palazzo del Laterano) in Rome with a characteristic obelisk, where the Lateran Treaties were signed on February 11, 1929. At the top, in a semicircle from left to right, is the inscription "STATO DELLA CITTÀ DEL VATICANO" (Vatican City State). At the bottom are the years "1929" and "2019", below them is the name of the author "FUSCO". On the outer ring are the 12 stars of the European Union.
Reverse
The reverse is the common side of the 2 euro coins of the second type, designed by Luc Luix. It depicts a map of Europe as a single continent without internal borders. On the left is a large denomination "2" and the inscription "EURO", on the right is a map. On the outer ring are the 12 stars of the EU. The band is finely fluted and the inscription "2 ★", repeated six times alternately upright and inverted.
Historical context
The Vatican City State (Stato della Città del Vaticano) is a sovereign city-state founded on 11 February 1929 by the signing of the Lateran Treaties between the Holy See, represented by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Gasparri, and the Kingdom of Italy, represented by Benito Mussolini. The agreements consisted of three parts: the Treaty, which recognized the Vatican as a sovereign state; the Concordat, which regulated the relations of the Catholic Church with the Italian Kingdom; and the Financial Agreement. This put an end to the "Roman Question" that had existed since 1870 (the capture of Rome by the Italian army and the fall of the Papal States). Pope Pius XI, who reigned from 1922 to 1939, is considered the founder of the modern Vatican City State, the smallest sovereign country in the world, with an area of 0.44 km² and a population of about 800 people.