2022-09-06
Bank of Lithuania commemorates the centenary of the Constitution of the State of Lithuania with a gold coin
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Kolekcinės monetos, skirtos Lietuvos Valstybės Konstitucijos 100-mečiui, pristatymas Konstituciniame Teisme -
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Kolekcinės monetos, skirtos Lietuvos Valstybės Konstitucijos 100-mečiui, pristatymas Konstituciniame Teisme -
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Kolekcinės monetos, skirtos Lietuvos Valstybės Konstitucijos 100-mečiui, pristatymas Konstituciniame Teisme -
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Tomorrow, 6 September, the Bank of Lithuania will issue a new collector coin dedicated to the centenary of the Constitution of the State of Lithuania. The €50 gold euro coin is issued in a mintage of 3,000.
“The new gold collector coin of the highest fineness, weighing a quarter of an ounce, commemorates the centenary of the Constitution of the State of Lithuania. 100 years ago, on 1 August 1922, the Constituent Seimas adopted the first permanent Constitution, which established the independent democratic Republic of Lithuania,” says Gedminas Šimkus, Chairman of the Board of the Bank of Lithuania.
According to Šimkus, the importance of this anniversary is also reflected in the fact that a gold coin has been dedicated to it. The Bank of Lithuania issues gold coins rather rarely: of the 139 litas and euro collector coins issued since 1993, only 20 coins, including the new coin, are gold.
“The modern Constitution of the independent State of Lithuania, based on the legal traditions of Western countries and adopted by the Constituent Seimas on 1 August 1922, which is commemorated with the new collector coin, reflects the Lithuanian nation’s desire for independence, social and political aspirations, and establishes a democratic constitutional order. The centuries-old traditions of Lithuanian constitutionalism are the foundation for the current 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania and the source of inspiration for its creators,” says Danutė Jočienė, President of the Constitutional Court.
The 1922 Constitution consists of a preamble and 108 articles, divided into 15 chapters. Its first paragraph clearly states that: “The State of Lithuania shall be an independent democratic republic. Sovereignty shall belong to the Nation.” The Seimas was the supreme governing body, while the Cabinet of Ministers and the President, elected by the Seimas, held executive power. It remained in force until 1928, when Antanas Smetona promulgated a new Constitution after the coup d’état of 17 December 1926.
The reverse of the €50 gold coin dedicated to the centenary of the Constitution of the State of Lithuania depicts the democratic foundations of state-building enshrined in the Constitution of the State of Lithuania, conveyed in a symbolic way. The obverse of the coin features a stylised symbol of the coat of arms of the Republic of Lithuania, the Vytis. Below, there is the denomination, and at the top of the coin, in a semicircle, lies the inscription LIETUVA (LITHUANIA).
The gold coin weighs 7.78 g and is issued in a mintage of 3,000. The design of the coin was created by Egidijus Rapolis. It was minted at the Lithuanian Mint. The text of the accompanying brochure was written by historian Dr. Saulius Kaubrys.
The gold coin, priced at €530, can be purchased on the Bank of Lithuania e-shop (http://coins.lb.lt), and as of tomorrow at the Bank of Lithuania cash offices in Vilnius and Kaunas.