SWISS MINT: 2021 numismatic program
- February 05, 2021
- by
- Pierre
Last update 02/05/2021
The Swiss Mint announced this week the issuance of two new coins for year 2021. The first one is a commemorative silver coin dedicated to Friedrich Dürrenmatt. The second one is a coin that is part of the series on Swiss forest wildlife. This year, SWISS MINT honors the fox. The coin is struck on a bimetallic blank.
20 francs silver commemorative coins
centenary of the Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s birth
The playwright, narrator, essayist, draftsman and painter Friedrich Dürrenmatt was born on January 5th, 1921 in Konolfingen in the canton of Berne and died on 14 December 1990 in Neuchâtel.
He began studying literature, philosophy and natural sciences in 1941. It was at this time that he produced his first literary texts, as well as pen and ink drawings and paintings. He abandoned his studies in 1946 and decided to become a writer.
He owes his notoriety in particular to his plays “La visite de la vieille dame” and “Les physiciens” as well as to his detective novels “Le juge et son bourreau” and “La promesse”. Dürrenmatt’s works, which have been translated into more than 40 languages and have been awarded numerous prizes, have made him one of the biggest names in German-language literature and have earned him worldwide fame.
His paintings and drawings, which are less well known than his writings, can be found at the Centre Dürrenmatt in Neuchâtel.
Coins specifications
Artist: Remo Mascherini, Flamatt
Alloy: silver 835/1000
Weight: 20 g
Diameter: 33 mm
Face value: 20 Swiss francs
On sale January 21, 2021
Mintages:
UNC version: 15,000 coins (including 14,000 in blister packs and 1,000 in folders)
Proof version with numbered certificate of authenticity: 5 000 coins
10 francs from the series “Swiss Forest Animals”: The Fox
Many fables and tales portray this fine-nosed predator as an intelligent and skillful animal.
The fox can live almost anywhere. It can withstand the North African heat as well as the Siberian cold, because it knows how to find food in difficult conditions. After featuring the deer and the hare, the series “Animals of the Swiss forests” presents a third and final piece, this time featuring the fox.
The obverse of the 10 francs commemorative bimetallic coin was designed by graphic artist and designer Naomi Andrea Giewald, who lives in eastern Switzerland. In the center of the image is the head of a fox. On the outer ring of the coin, the paw prints of a fox are also visible.
Coins specifications
Artist: Naomi Giewald, St. Gallen
Alloy: Bronze-aluminum and cupro-nickel
Weight: 15 g
Diameter: 33 mm
Face value: 10 Swiss francs
On sale January 21, 2021
Mitages:
UNC version: 28,000 coinss (including 19,000 in blister packs, 1,000 in folders, and 8,000 coins included in the annual coin set)
Proof version: 5,500 coins (of which 3,000 with numbered certificate of authenticity and 2,500 included in the annual coin set).
50th anniversary of female right of vote in Switzerland
Swiss women’s efforts to achieve equal political rights date back to the 19th century. After a long struggle, women’s suffrage (the right to vote and stand for election) was finally introduced in Switzerland during the federal referendum of February 7, 1971 and is officially entered into force on March 16 of the same year.
50 years ago, the Swiss voters (66%) widely accepted the right of women to vote and to stand for election at the federal. In the federal elections of October 1971, 11 women were elected.
In recent years, the percentage of women on the National Council has steadily increased and currently stands at 42%.
February 7th 2021 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the introduction of the voting right and of eligibility for women at the federal level. Swissmint commemorates this political event of national importance by issuing a gold 50 francs coin.
Karin Widmer, born in 1966 and residing in Wabern near Bern, designed and produced the the artistic aspect of the gold coin. She studied at the School of Applied Arts in Bern and then went on to worked for several years as a graphic designer and illustrator.
Since 1995, she has been directing his own workshop and produces illustrations, sketches and comic strips between Other for newspapers, educational materials, children’s and youth books or more CD covers. She also created a special stamp from the collection EUROPA.
Topic and design: 50 years of voting rights for Swiss women
Artist/engraver: Karin Widmer, Wabern
Alloy: gold 900/1000
Weight: 11,29 g
Diameter: 25 mm
Face value: CHF 50
On sale from April 29, 2021
Burnished flan quality, with case: 5,000 coins
Silver coin – Viaduct of Life
Swiss artist Sandro Del-Prete from Hettiswil bei Hindelbank is a master of trompe l’oeil. The Viaduct of Life, one of his best-known paintings, served as the model for the new 20 franc silver coin. About his work, Sandro Del-Prete says : “People are always moving in our direction”.
We never see them from behind. They follow the course of life. No one gets younger in the face of passing time, so no one can be seen from behind. The shape of the viaduct contains and illustrates one of the mysteries of the universe: where is the past? Where is the present? Where is the future?”
design: «Illusion – Viaduc de la vie»
Artist: Sandro Del-Prete, Hettiswil bei Hindelbank
Material: argent 0,835
Weight: 20 g
Diameter: 33 mm
Face Value: 20 swiss francs
On sale from april 29 2021
Minatges: UNC – 20 000 coins,
including 19 000 coins in blister and 1 000 coins in folder
proof – 5 000 coins
2021 coins sets
The Swiss Mint will issue the following coins sets in 2021.
Annual FDC (BU) set
Face value: CHF 18,85
Alloy: Cupronickel and aluminum bronze
Mintage: 8,000 sets
Issue date: January 21, 2021
Annual proof Set
Face value: CHF 18,85
Alloy: Cupronickel and aluminum bronze
Circulation: 2,500 sets
Issue date: January 21, 2021
Annual FDC Anniversary Set (BU)
Quality: FDC (BU)
Face value: CHF 8.85
Alloy: Cupronickel and aluminum bronze
Mintage: 2,000 sets
On sale January 1, 2021
Annual FDC Birth Set (BU)
Quality: FDC (BU)
Face value: CHF 8.85
Alloy: Cupronickel and aluminum bronze
Mintage: 7,000 sets
On sale January 1, 2021
2021 circulation coins
The number of circulation coins to be minted is determined annually by the Federal Department of Finance in mutual agreement with the Swiss National Bank. In the year 2021, for example, 50 million coins were minted.
As a rule, the mintage for a given year is specified in line with the anticipated volume of monetary transactions. Swissmint delivers the newly minted coins to the Swiss National Bank, which serves the Swiss Federation in the capacity of Central Coin Exchange Office.
The Swiss National Bank distributes the coins into the channels of banking and commerce while, at the same time, withdrawing worn or outdated coins from circulation.
At present, the overall volume of circulation coins amounts to 6.141 billion pieces, or the equivalent of approximately 3.5 billion Swiss francs, weighing nearly 22’259 tonnes.
2021 Mintage of circulation coins – for each face value
Sources: SWISS MINT and NUMISMAG.
You may also Like
2024 numismatic program of Luxembourg
2023 LATVIAN NUMISMATIC PROGRAM
