€2 commemorative coins - Vatican City 2004, 75th anniversary of the founding of the Vatican City State.
This is the first €2 Commemorative Issue for Vatican City.
Commemorative 2 euro coins from Vatican City
Description: The inner part shows a schematic representation of the perimeter walls of the Vatican City with St Peter's Basilica in the foreground. Also in the inner part are the inscriptions '75 o ANNO DELLO STATO' and '1929-2004' as well as, in smaller letters, the name of the designer 'VEROI' and the initials of the engraver 'L.D.S. INC.'. The outer part of the coin features the twelve stars of the European Union and the inscription 'CITTA' DEL VATICANO'.
Reverse: left from the coin centre face value: 2, on the right inscription: EURO; in the background of the inscription a map of Europe; in the background of the map vertically six parallel lines ending on both sides with five-pointed stars (the reverse is common for all euro coins)
Issuing volume: max. 100,000 coins
Issuing date: 15 December 2004
Face value: 2 euro
Diameter: 25.75 mm
Weight: 8.50 g
Alloy: Bimetal: CuNi, nordic gold
Quality: Proof, BU, UNC
Design: Prof. Guido Veroi is credited with the design and Luciana De Simoni is credited as the engraver for the Vatican 2004 €2 Euro Commemorative coin.
Designer / Engraver Inscriptions: 'VEROI' - Last name of the designer.
'L.D.S. INC.' (INC. is the Italian abbreviation for 'engraver') - Initials of the engraver.
€2 Edge Inscription: The Vatican €2 coin edge inscription is '2', followed by one star, repeated six times alternately upright and inverted.
Mint Location: Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato (IPZS) (State Printing Office and Mint), in Rome, Italy.
Mint Marks: Mintmark of the Rome mint: the letter 'R'. Located on the right side, middle, inner circle.
National Identification: 'CITTÀ DEL VATICANO'; Local long form of Vatican City.
Lateran Treaty
The Lateran Treaty was one of the Lateran Pacts of 1929 or Lateran Accords, agreements made in 1929 between the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy See, settling the "Roman Question". They are named after the Lateran Palace, where they were signed on February 11, 1929. The Italian parliament ratified them on June 7, 1929. Italy was then under a Fascist government, but the succeeding democratic governments have all upheld the treaty. In 1947, the Lateran Pacts were incorporated into the democratic Constitution of Italy.
St. Peter's Basilica
St. Peter's Basilica (Latin: Basilica Sancti Petri; Italian: Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano) is a Late Renaissance church located within Vatican City.Designed principally by Donato Bramante, Michelangelo, Carlo Maderno and Gian Lorenzo Bernini, St. Peter's is the most renowned work of Renaissance architecture
and remains one of the largest churches in the world. While it is neither the mother church of the Catholic Church nor the Catholic Roman Rite cathedral of the Diocese of Rome, St. Peter's is regarded as one of the holiest Catholic sites. It has been described as "holding a unique position in the Christian world" and as "the greatest of all churches of Christendom".
By Catholic tradition, the basilica is the burial site of its namesake Saint Peter, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus and, also according to tradition, the first Pope and Bishop of Rome. Tradition and strong historical evidence hold that Saint Peter's tomb is directly below the altar of the basilica. For this reason, many Popes have been interred at St. Peter's since the Early Christian period. There has been a church on this site since the time of the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great. Construction of the present basilica, replacing the Old St. Peter's Basilica of the 4th century AD, began on 18 April 1506 and was completed on 18 November 1626.
St. Peter's is famous as a place of pilgrimage, for its liturgical functions. Because of its location in the Vatican, the Pope presides at a number of services throughout the year, drawing audiences of 15,000 to over 80,000 people, either within the Vatican Basilica, or in St. Peter's Square. St. Peter's has many strong historical associations, with the Early Christian church, the papacy, the Protestant Reformation and Counter-reformation, and with numerous artists, most significantly Michelangelo. As a work of architecture, it is regarded as the greatest building of its age. St. Peter's is one of the four churches of Rome that hold the rank of Major Basilica. Contrary to popular misconception, it is not a cathedral as it is not the seat of a bishop; the cathedra of the Pope (as Bishop of Rome) is located in the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran.