Banknotes, coins and euro badge

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Currency signs are a kind of graphemes that are built from individual letters of the Latin or Cyrillic alphabet. Some of them arose as a result of the improvement of writing, for example, the symbols of the pound and the Russian ruble. Others - as a result of decisions of the authorities (dollar and euro signs, Indian rupee and Armenian dram). But they all have one goal - to designate the currency as concisely and uniquely as possible.

Euro

Euro is the official currency of the countries that make up the "Eurozone" of the European Union. Probably, each of you knows what the euro icon looks like. Photos of the banknotes and coins themselves can be seen both on the Internet and on the pages of printed publications.

The introduction of this monetary unit into non-cash payments falls on January 1, 1999, into cash - exactly three years later. By 2014, the euro became the currency in 18 countries (out of 27) of the European Union. Like any other currency, the euro has its own means of individualization. The letter code is EUR and the euro symbol is €. Why exactly like this? More on that later.

What does the euro icon look like?

The Greek letter "upsilon" was taken as the basis for the euro graphic symbol. This letter "€" is very similar to the English "E" - the first letter in the word "Europe".

In 1996, the European Commission, which adopted this sign, announced that it is a combination of the Greek "upsilon", which symbolizes the importance of European civilization, as well as the letter "E", meaning Europe.

As for the two parallel lines crossing the icon, they are here for a reason. The lines symbolize the stability of the euro as a monetary currency. By the way, thanks to these straight lines, the euro icon is very similar to the symbol "is", which is included in the Slavic alphabet of the "round Glagolitic".

Euro controversy

The euro icon is perhaps the only graphic symbol that has caused a huge amount of controversy and criticism. We need to start with the fact that although this symbol was officially registered not so long ago, the history of its occurrence is muddy and dark.

According to the official version, this symbol was chosen in two stages. Initially, ten variants of the badge were proposed. Then, through polls and public opinion surveys, voting, etc., the two most acceptable applicants were selected. They were submitted to the European Commission, which eventually determined the winner (€) and approved it as the official sign of the currency. A team of four people was recognized as the authors of this symbol. However, theynames were classified.

But the official version is disputed by Arthur Eisenmenger, once the leading graphic designer of the European Union. He claims to have been the author of this symbol since the mid-70s. According to him, he created this symbol as a universal designation of Europe. So who is right here is still not known.

And the euro badge was officially introduced on December 12, 1996. At the same time, the International Standards Organization registered an official letter abbreviation for the euro - EUR.

Banknotes and coins

Euro is issued in the form of banknotes and coins. This currency

valid on the territory of all member countries of the Eurozone.

Coins are issued in the following denominations: 1 and 2 euros, as well as in the form of cents - 5, 10, 20 and 50. The coins are made of copper alloy and depict views of European cities.

Banknotes have a bright and unusual design. The following denominations are issued: 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500. In some countries, the last two are not issued, but you can still pay with them safely.

The drawings on the banknotes have not changed since their creation - these are images of windows, bridges, gates, twelve stars, a map of Europe and the flag of the European Union. Windows and gates symbolize the openness of the European nation, 12 stars symbolize harmony and dynamism, and bridges symbolize the unity of European states. Various architectural buildings and structures are a reference to the diversity of European styles (baroque, renaissance, classic, modern and others). The design of all banknotes was invented byAustrian national park artist Robert Kalina.

Checking banknotes for counterfeit

Euro notes are protected by a special serial number, which is present on each banknote. A number is eleven digits and one letter. There is a trick here. When adding all eleven digits, a two-digit number must be obtained. No more and no less. We check further. Now you need to sequentially add the numbers that make up this two-digit number. The result should be a single digit.

For example, adding all the digits of the serial number, you get the number 78. Add 7 and 8, and get the number 15. Then add 1 and 5, and get 6. This is a one-digit number, which, together with the letter in the serial number will indicate the country that issued the banknote. For example, the letter X is assigned to Germany. And the number should be X2, and not otherwise. Otherwise, you are definitely holding a fake in your hands. There is a special table that contains letters and numbers corresponding to countries. This table is publicly available.