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This section
gathers some precious and ancient San Marino coins and medals
issued between 1864 and 1939, as well as recently purchased
medals, mainly papal and of the Risorgimento.
The State started to mint its own coins only in
the second half of the 19th century, following the first
convention signed with Vittorio Emanuele II in 1862, which
allowed the free circulation of San Marino coins in the
Kingdom of Italy. With a subsequent convention, concluded in
1939, San Marino accepted to interrupt minting, except for
gold coins. San Marino ordinary minting resumed only in 1972.
The most ancient coin minted
by San Marino is a 5-cent piece dated 1864. Particularly rare
and interesting is the silvered copper proof of “San
Marino Scudo”
(5 lira), designed by the San Marino artist Pietro Tonnini and
engraved by Pietro Thermignon from Turin (1867), which,
however, has never been minted.
Only six proofs of this coin
are known, among which the only silver one was part of the
collection of Vittorio Emanuele III.
Among the medals minted by San
Marino, the most ancient one dates back to 1865 and celebrated
the 600th anniversary of Dante Alighieri’s birth.
Among the medals not minted by the Republic
praiseworthy is the three-medal set celebrating the 100th
Anniversary of the first convention signed with the Kingdom of
Italy on 11 April 1862.
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