Romania. New Reproduction Collector Series Launches With Historic 1880 Silver Coin.

The first coin featured is one of the countries’ most recognised and admired silver coins, the 5 Lei crown-size piece dated 1880. This was the last year which Romania’s coinage included the designation of Prince for the ruler’s coinage.

Carol I (1839 – 1914) was the first king of Romania whose long reign as prince from 1866 until recognised as King in 1881 brought notable military and economic development to this largely rural Balkan country. Born a German prince from the House of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Karl Eitel Friedrich was educated in Dresden and Bonn and served as an officer of the Prussian army. After the deposition of Romania’s reigning prince, Alexandru Cuza in February 1866, Prince Karl was elected to replace him in April that same year by parliamentary plebiscite and officially offered the throne of Romania. Before the invitation to become the country’s monarch, the 27-year old German Prince had never even heard of Romania and was scarcely familiar with Balkan political affairs. As France was a crucial diplomatic supporter of Romanian autonomy, the approval of Paris was needed for Prince Karl to accept the offer, which was granted with the firm approval of his cousin, the French emperor Napoleon III. He was recognised as a Sovereign Prince of Romania as the country had not yet achieved independence as a kingdom from the Ottoman Empire. The State of Romania comprised both the principalities of Walachia and Moldavia which in 1877 proclaimed their full independence from the Ottoman Empire, marking the end of formal suzerainty.

The first coins minted during the initial years of Prince Carol’s rule were produced at the Bucharest Mint and dated 1867 with small denominations depicting the new royal crest on the obverse. As Romania was a member of the Latin Monetary Union, the coins were minted under the same specifications as the coinage of Belgium, France, Greece, Italy, Spain and Switzerland, all were freely interchangeable. The first gold and silver coins to include an effigy of Carol I were dated 1868 and 1870 which denoted him as Domnul Romaniei or, Prince of the realm. Coinage denoting Carol I as King was first minted in 1881 with the legend Rege al Romaniei and with an effigy engraved by Friedrich Wilhelm Kullrich whose last name appears below the portrait. King Carol I died after a reign of 48 years and was succeeded by his nephew Prince Ferdinand, son of Carol I’s elder brother Prince Leopold.

The silver proof coins are produced by the Monetăria Statului, Romanian State Mint at their facilities in Bucharest on behalf of the National Bank. The coin is a faithful replica of the dsigns seen on the 5 Lei silver coins dated 1880. The obverse side includes an effigy of Prince Carol I facing to the left. The legend around the Prince’s likeness reads CAROL I DONMUL ROMANIEI. Below the King’s portrait is the name of the engraver KULLRICH and just to the left is the letter R denoting the coin is a modern replica. The primary design is surrounded by a beaded border encircling the circumference of the coin. The reverse side depicts the crowned royal coat of arms of Romania centred. Below the crest is the motto NIHIL SINE DEO (Nothing without God). Above the crest and along the rim is the text ROMANIA and below is the original year of issue, 1880 along the lower rim. The coins’ denomination is shown with the numeral 5 placed to the left of the crest and the letter L shown on the right representing the Lei currency. Along the lower left rim is the mintmark B denoting the Bucharest Mint and on the opposite side, a wheat stalk privymark. The primary design is surrounded by a beaded border encircling the circumference of the coin.

Available from the 16th March, each coin is encapsulated and accompanied with a certificate of authenticity written in Romanian, English and French and containing the signatures of the NBR governor and the central cashier. They are available directly through the Bucharest, Cluj, Iasi, and Timişoara regional branches of the National Bank of Romania. For additional information, please visit the numismatics webpage of the National Bank.