Tag: Religious
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Saint Anthony of Padua Medal
A very large medal I hopefully won’t lose (Painting of St Anthony, from Catholic.org) St Anthony of Padua St. Anthony of Padua is one of the Catholic Church’s most popular saints. Saint Anthony of Padua, patron saint of lost and stolen articles, was a powerful Franciscan preacher and teacher. He’s typically portrayed holding the child…
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19th Century German Baptism Medallion
A beautiful old pewter medallion Heads or tails? Some coins and medallions have a clear obverse and reverse. On some it is harder to define. The US Mint, I think only partly helpfully, explains: “Obverse (heads) is the front of the coin and the reverse (tails) is the back”. Ok, so if it has a…
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Proverbs: “A friend loves at all times” medallion
A positive piece to give a friend. Medallions with bible quotes One of my favourite collections is my folder of pieces with biblical quotes. I posted earlier this year about a medallion depicting The Last Supper my daughter gifted me for Christmas. This time, I have another piece with a biblical reference, which I am…
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1978 Vatican 500 Lire Sede Vacante September
A coin to mark a once in 400 year event This is my entry for Day 22 “V” of the Blogging from A-Z April Challenge!V = Vatican City. The Papacy The coat of arms of Vatican City, from Vatican.va Matthew 16:18, Jesus said to the Apostle Peter: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will…
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2017 Austria 5 Euro Easter Lamb
A commemorative coin for the most important holiday This is my entry for Day 1 “A” of the Blogging from A-Z April Challenge!A = Austria. Obverse Austria joined the “Euro” at its commencement in 2002, replacing the Schilling (made up of 100 Groschen). The European Central Bank set the regulations for normal circulating coins in…
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Christ died for our sins medallion
The meaning of Easter and Christianity in one image Obverse As a humble numismatist, I don’t think I am qualified to teach on theology. As a Christian, I can hopefully pen a few words on one of the key aspects of our faith without botching it too badly though! The Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and…
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Ward Beam’s Daredevils / Lord’s Prayer
Two seemingly contrasting themes from a different time Obverse Here is an interesting token with two quite different sides. Bert Ward Beam was an event promoter from Celina, Ohio. In the 1920s, he started promoting “wreck-it” races in which $50 jalopies would race to the finish, but crash along the way. B.Ward Beam is credited…
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St. Eloi, Patron du Materiel medallion
St. Eloi is patron to more than numismatics Patron Saint I have written several pieces on Saint Eloi (Saint Eligius) as the Patron Saint of Numismatics. Saint Eloi is also revered as the patron of several other groups and professions. Today’s piece explores some of those. NewmanMinistry records St Eligius as Patron Saint of: That…
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The Last Supper medallion
The 100th piece on the site, a present from my daughter This is the 100th post on the site and I hope you’re enjoying these little snippets about coins and exonumia. I’ve been trying to think how best to mark this milestone – my most expensive coin? A coin from a country I haven’t covered…
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1919 Thailand 10 Satang
Beautiful traditional Thai design which skipped a whole monarch This coin stumped all our newsletter and social media followers. The beautiful pattern is described on Numista as a “Chakra with 8 blades”. Thailand is overwhelmingly Buddhist, 92.5% according to a 2021 report. I must confess, that not being overly familiar with the symbology used in…
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The Lord Bless You and Keep You medallion
A beautiful verse on a medallion. In the Old Testament, the book of Numbers presents an account of the 38-year period of Israel’s wandering in the desert following the establishment of the covenant of Sinai. The covenant of Sinai is detailed in the book of Exodus. It was God’s agreement with the Israelites, after Moses…
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Pope Leo XIII Medallion
A year in very long Roman Numerals When covering the medallions of the popes between the last Papal States coins, and the first Vatican City coins, I was tempted to include this one, but I thought it deserved its own post. I’ve seen variations of this medallion listed in several places and apparently in several…
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1931 Vatican 5 Centesimi
The first coin from the new Vatican City State I recently shared an 1866 Papal States 2 Soldi, one of the last coins issued by the Papal States before the (then fairly new) Italian Kingdom invaded the vatican and seized the lands formerly controlled by the pope. Do read that post for more info on…
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1866 Papal States 2 Soldi
One of the last Papal States coins Pope Pius IX was head of the Catholic Church from 16 June 1846 – 7 February 1878. At over 31 years and 7 months, it is the longest verifiable Papacy. Saint Peter, the first Pope was “head” of the church for 34 or 37 years (30 A.D. to…
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St Eligius banknotes
A collection of banknotes from the St. Eligius Numismatists Brotherhood honouring our Patron Saint Sir Frank Galindo, Knight of St. Eligius, has been involved in Numismatics for many years. He is the president of the Gateway Coin Club in San Antonio, Texas (USA). In 1995, Frank, and wife Karla, founded the Saint Eligius Numismatists Brotherhood,…
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Byzantine 5 Nummi, Justin I 518-527
Early Christian coins are fascinating for me as someone of faith, 1500 years later. Reverse The Chi-Rho ☧ is one of the earliest Christian symbols. Combining the Chi (X) and Rho (P), the first two letters of the Greek word ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ or Christos. Chi-Rho is a Christogram, a monogram forming an abbreviation of the name…
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Mother Teresa canonisation medallion
At 18, Mother Teresa moved to Ireland and the India, where she lived most of her life. On 4 September 2016, she was canonised by the Catholic Church as Saint Teresa of Calcutta. The anniversary of her death, 5 September, is her feast day. The Missionaries of Charity manages homes for people who are dying…
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1028-1034 Romanus III Byzantine Follis
Here is a coin which neatly fits both my interest in Roman coins AND in Christian themed pieces. Issued under Byzantine emperor Romanus III, this Follis is generally called an “Anonymous” follis because it doesn’t include the emperor’s name. My piece is, admittedly, not in the condition it left the Constantinople mint (Modern day Turkey)…
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1763 Hungary Poltura
Here is a “Poltura” from Hungary, dated 1763: The obverse of the coin features Maria Theresa (Mária Terézia). Maria Theresa was ruler of the Habsburg dominions from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position suo jure (“Suo Jure” meaning she held the title independently of her husband, Francis…
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With God all things are possible, token
One collection I have started to build, is of religious coins, tokens and medals. I am particularly working on collecting as many pieces with bible references as I can find. This piece not only includes a quote from scripture, but the biblical reference as well: With GOD, all things are POSSIBLE, is from Mark 10:27.…
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Saint Eligius Medallion
Here is my first medallion of Saint Eligius (which is also featured on my Saint Eligius page). The medallion features Saint Eligius working at his desk with coins. The desk is adorned with a Byzantine style cross. The other side shows a representation of one of the coins engraved by Eligius during his time as…