Next year the Portuguese mint (INCM) starts a new series of collector coins. Instead of the currently used €5 and €10 denominations, the new pieces will have a €2.50 face value. Such collector coins do not really have much to do with "real" euro coins, as they are legal tender in the issuing member state only. This "regional money" hardly ever occurs in circulation but is often nicely designed.

Future silver issues will, according to this article published by the Dutch Mint, not be available at face value any more: Some will be issued as proof-only silver coins, in other cases there will also be a Cu-Ni version which can be had at face.

Christian

The first coin to be issued will be about the Douro Region... that´s were the famous Porto Wine comes from. I already saw the coin and I liked it.

Hmm, I thought the first 2.50 piece will be the Fado coin? (Património Cultural - O Fado) That one shows a Fado singer and a guitar. Anyway, another one will be dedicated to the Beijing/Pequim olympics, and then ... also from the Património Mundial series, a "Centro Historico do Porto" coin.

The Alto do Douro Vinhateiro piece looks fairly abstract and a little sober to me. The Porto coin seems to have a very wide empty rim, but the design with the bridge/city on one side and the "city shadow" on the other side is very interesting.

Christian

From my source which showed me the sketch, told me that the proof is going to be made nearly in January. The coin will show the upper Douro valley where Port wine grapes grow.
I thought the Douro coin was the first of the series... And I think that "Ribeira" deserves a commemorative coin. I only saw that portrait in a token of D. Luiz bridge.

Here are some images of the planned designs. Please don't ask me whether those issue dates are correct or not. First, the €2.50 collector coins:

Pequim/Beijing Olympics (March)
http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/7408/pt...schespiehu1.jpg

European Cultural Heritage - Fado (May)
http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/5451/pt...elleserbsg7.jpg

Unesco World Heritage - Porto (October)
http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/1665/pt...weltkultnx3.jpg

Unesco World Heritage - Alto Douro (November)
Hm, the last digit of the year looks like a 5 to me, but that should say 2008 ...
http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/7512/pt...weltkultyu2.jpg

Then, a €1.50 collector coin - legal tender in Portugal only, like the ones above:
AMI - a medical help organization, see http://www.fundacao-ami.org (April)
http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/9079/pt20...daumacaupl3.jpg

This will be the €2 commemorative coin (legal tender in Euroland):
60 Years Declaration of Human Rights (June)
http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/3535/pt...enrechteuo4.jpg

There will also be a gold coin, and the annual sets, of course.

Christian

I predict a terrible and dark year for the Portuguese Numismatic
I´m so sad with INCM for abandon the silver coinage and replace them for niquel.

With designs like that, I think I will stick to my German and Dutch €10's.

Well, its just the excuse i need to stop collecting commem. Portuguese coins, the quality has been going downhill since the late 90's anyway.
...the ironic part is that both mintage and interest in these coins has been dropping so much that in a few decades some of the later silver issues will be scarce.

Jose

Quite a few recent Portuguese collector coins have sober if not minimalistic designs. In some cases I like that - for example, the €8 "Defesa" coin issued in 2004 and featuring a football player holding the ball: http://www.incm.pt/imagens/2004481.jpg Others are, ummm, dull and IMO not an adequate visualization of the theme, like this €8 Henry the Navigator coin 2006: http://www.incm.pt/imagens/2005655logo.jpg

Many of the "Património Mundial" coins look nice in my opinion, and I have several of them. Equally, several German and some Dutch collector coins are dull while others are OK.

And yes, Orlock, I also believe that the decision to switch from Ag500 to Cu-Ni for the pieces that can be had at face value is a problematic one. If such collector coins actually circulated (and were legal tender in all euro countries), one might say, fine, these are the "everyday" pieces, if collectors want a better quality, they can buy the silver/proof version. Except that those coins are not made for, and hardly ever show up in, circulation ...

Christian

Hmm, the Porto coin looks neat. The Alto Douro piece I would have to see "IRL" (well, a photo of the actual coin) to judge whether I like it. But in general, I don't think that the switch from silver to CuNi was wise: Germany did that when silver got expensive in 1979, but collectors did not really like the copper-nickel pieces. (There was no choice like what you have though.) So the government decided to go back to silver - but with higher face values - in 1987. Made sense, I think.

Christian