2015-09-18
The Bank of Lithuania Money Museum’s catalogue, Coins of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania at the Money Museum of the Bank of Lithuania, presents all of the coins held at the Museum, representing the entire period of the GDL — two and a half thousand coins from the first Lithuanian bars to the last coins minted at the Vilnius Mint in 1666.
“This is an actualisation of the long and consistent work of the Money Museum — collecting of the GDL coins for the past 20 years. This new publication is unique in the fact that it publishes all of the coins collected by our museum, even those held in storage, not available for viewing by the public. We can say that with this book we reveal our collected treasure trove of GDL coins,” said the author of the book, Vincas Ruzas, Senior Specialist of the Money Museum.
The publication also briefly introduces the different periods in the history of the GDL, overviews the development of Lithuanian money. It also publishes Lithuanian counters of treasurers, minted at the Vilnius Mint, other museum material illustrating the history of the money of the GDL.
“This catalogue is a unique publication from the Money Museum, as no other museum in Lithuania has prepared a catalogue covering all of the exhibits in the museum. This new book will be a true textbook for other Lithuanian museums, since it will help identify existing coins and get additional information about them”, said Eduardas Remecas at the book’s presentation event. He is a numismatist at the Numismatic Department of the National Museum of Lithuania and contributed his consultations to the Catalogue’s creation.
According to Zigfridas Jankaukas, a collector and the Director of UAB Totorių gatvės antikvariatas, the catalogue of GDL coins will be of interest not only to museums, but also collectors and anyone else interested in the coins of the GDL. “The book presents in a succinct manner useful and interesting information about each period in monetary history, the text is easy to read. This publication will definitely not gather dust on the bookshelf; I believe that it will have its place on the desk of every numismatist”, claimed Z. Jankauskas.
The catalogue Coins of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania at the Money Museum of the Bank of Lithuania was prepared in two languages: Lithuanian and English. The publication was printed in 500 copies. It is distributed free of charge to Lithuania’s museums and libraries. An electronic version of the books can be downloaded from the Money Museum’s website.
