Germany: Ladybug features on second “Wonderful World of Insects” €5 colour coin

The German Federal Republic’s Ministry of Finance and Munze Deutschland have released the second coin in their numismatic series entitled “Wonderful World of Insects,” which focuses on the great biodiversity of the many insects we share our varied environments with. 80 percent of the planet’s insects belong to what is referred to as the “Big 4,” which is comprised of beetles, dipterans (flies and mosquitoes), hymenoptera (bees, wasps, ants), and butterflies. Insects have lived and evolved on Earth since the first dinosaurs around 480 million years ago. They owe their great biodiversity to co-evolution with flowering plants, more than 75 percent of which are pollinated by insects. Insects inhabit all terrestrial and freshwater habitats except the open oceans and perform important functions in all ecosystems. Many insects are considered pests by humans, especially in urban habitats but, in truth, humans also owe their existence to the many species of insects, especially those whose function is to pollenate countless plants and sources of agriculture. The native insect world is not only an indispensable part of the fauna in Germany; this is true for all of Europe and, of course, the rest of the world.  

Featured on the second coin is the siebenpunkt-marienkäfer, or seven-spotted ladybird. 

Designed by Anna Martha Napp, the obverse side depicts a ladybug in flight as if momentarily preparing to land on a plant in its natural habitat with open wings and hind wings visible. Digital printing is applied to the design, which includes vivid red and white to highlight the design. Towards the lower edge, below the primary design is the text SIEBENPUNKT MARIENKÄFER (“seven-spotted ladybird”), denoting the insect featured. The reverse side, which is adopted for all coins in the series, is designed by graphic artist Andre Witting of Berlin and features a stylised eagle centred with the issuer BUNDESREPUBLIK DEUTSCHLAND placed directly above along the edge. The denomination 5 EURO is just under the issuer. Also incorporated into the design are 12 stars below the eagle, which represent the European Union, and are arranged along the lower edge. The mintmark A is seen between the second and third stars, representing the Mint of Berlin, and the year of issue 2023 is seen between the ninth and 10th stars. Incused inscription on the edge of the coin reads WONDERWELT INSECTEN (“Wonderful World of Insects”).   

Denom.	Metal	Weight	Diameter	Quality	Mintage Total
5 euro	Cupro-nickel	9.68 g	27.2 mm	Prooflike with applied colour	100,000

Available from the 8th March, the coins can be ordered before their official release. The remaining seven coins will be released, with four coins each in 2023 and 2024, and will include nine coins in total. For more information, please click here.

The schedule is as follows:

Swallowtail (15th June 2023)  

Rusty Mason Bee (7th September 2023)  

Banded Demoiselle (9th November 2023)  

Green Hayhorse (1st Quarter 2024)  

Hoverfly (2nd Quarter 2024)  

Stag Beetle (3rd Quarter 2024)  

Steinhummel (4th Quarter 2024)  

A high-quality and lovingly designed souvenir album is available as a separate purchase and is an ideal way to store each of the five-euro coloured coins from the “Wonderful World of Insects” series. It not only offers space for all the coins but also includes an informative reference and text narrative in which all further information and interesting facts about the insects in the series can be found with their selected motifs and profiles. The nine encapsulated coins in the series can be easily inserted in and out of the album. For additional information, please click here.

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