That coin will be issued in September. Here is a (draft) image of the winning design:



Looks good to me.

Christian

No, not bad at all. I like it. Any info about the design? Certain questions come to mind; what city is in the background? Why the star on the obverse? Why is the text/date weighted towards the right of the coin?

Can you go into the Post Office or a Bank and buy these at face value like the old DM coins? That was one thing I liked when I was in Germany was buying up all these silver coins to bring back as souvenirs. This is one I might like also, but don't want to pay E30 for it.

Yes, the silver pieces can be had at face value. Not all the banks have them, since these collector coins are practically irrelevant for cash transactions. (That was almost the same in DM times, but now it is worse since, unlike the regular euro/cent coins and the commemorative €2 pieces, the collector coins can only be used in the issuing country.) However, all Bundesbank branch offices and many commercial banks have those €10 coins, and you pay €10 to get one. The prooflike version is a little more expensive (€15), and you have to buy it from the Numismatic Office or a dealer.

@Sir Sisu: The designer of this piece is Erich Ott (who has designed several German commems). The ship is what in German is called a Kogge - the "typical" Hanse ship. Don't think that any specific city is depicted; the press release of the Ministery of Finance just talks about "additional design elements such as man, architecture and water". The edge inscription will be "Wandel durch Handel - Von der Hanse nach Europa" (Change through trade - from the Hanse to Europe). Don't know what the star represents. And the text is probably leaning towards the right because our new federal government is leaning a little further towards the right than the old one.

Christian

I like to think the city is Hansestadt Hamburg.

I like it!

ANd I bet akdrv would want one too, as he collects coins related to Hanze cities. Bolsward, the city I live is also a Hanze city

And that ship is called Kogge® here as well.

The city scene in the background could be Hamburg or Lübeck, for example, but it would actually make sense to depict a "generic" Hanse city.

@Trantor_3: Have a look at this ...
http://www.hanse.org/hanse_staedte_details...dte_id=97&lg=en

If anybody is interested in that coin, I can most probably get some. Keep in mind, though, that it will be issued in Sep-2006. So, no "orders" yet, please.

Christian

Yup, that's the city I live

All info given seems to be correct although some names have been translated a bit weird....



I am certainly interested.

I'd like to take an option on ordering one

btw: we have our own coin in Bolsward:



It's legal tender in Bolsward and worth one glass of pop or beer in the local establishments. There's two varietes , one minted in 1995 and one in 2000

see also: http://www.omnicoin.com/coin_view_enlarge.aspx?id=892955

I want it. I want it. I want it. I want it. I want it. I want it.

Isn't there a whole series of Hanse cities commems that's supposed to come out next year?

Oh MEMEMEMEMEMEMEMEMEME! As if you didn't know.

I love the ship, it's fantastic.

I do not live in a Hansa city, but I do live in a city that was founded specifically to compete with one. It was not a success in its day though.

And according to http://www.hanse.org Turku is also a member of the "modern Hanse" ... By the way, I still don't know what that star with the eight rays represents, but it can also be found on other coins. Here is an example from Danzig, made 70 years ago:
http://imagedb.coinarchives.com/img/peus/383/05139q00.jpg

@akdrv: Be patient. Be patient. Be patient. Be patient. Be patient. Be patient.

That series you mentioned is a little different. Beginning in February, Germany issues "state two-ers", sixteen €2 coins, one for each state. The first one in that series is Lübeck, the main Hanse city so to say, but the piece shows the "Holstentor" city gate. And in 2007, Lübeck will also be the theme of a €100 gold coin in the Unesco World Cultural Heritage series ...

Christian

Here are the other "winners" (second, third, fourth) of the design competition:
http://www.bbr.bund.de/index.html?/wettbewerbe/muenzen.htm

There were more participating artists, but these four won a prize. (Only #1 will be minted of course.) Of these four, I like the winner best. The second one would have been neat if the ship had been bigger. Of course then it would have difficult to read the names of Hanse cities in the background ...

Christian

Some of those boats remind me of the boat on the Danzig coin: simple and slightly stylized.