Krause Publications Announces 2015 Coin of the Year Nominees

Krause Publications in association with FW Media, sponsors of the Coin of the Year awards or COTY, have just announced the much anticipated nominations for the 2015 COTY awards which will be presented as part of the World Money Fair held in Berlin Germany.

Among just some of the coins nominated – many of them covered here in CoinUpdate.com – include Fiji’s “Malachite Room” Hermitage collection coin in the category of Most Artistic coin along with Finland’s “Multicultural” 20 Euro silver coin.

Nominated in the Best Bi-metallic category this year is Japan for instance, for its “Hiroshima” prefecture series as well as Luxembourg’s “Beaufort Castle” coin in its on-going series.

In the Best circulation coin category, Denmark’s “Ole Romer” scientist 20 kroner coin was among those coins nominated along with the likes of Greece’s 2 Euro coin in tribute to “Plato”. Nominees also favored the United States quarter dollar coin “Mount Rushmore National Memorial” which is part of the ongoing national parks series.

Nominated in the Best contemporary event category were Canada’s Superhero coins celebrating the 75^th anniversary of the creation of “Superman” as well as Lithuania’s “Sajudis Independence Demonstration” 25th Anniversary. Spain’s coin issued to mark King Juan Carlos’s 75^th birthday was also included in the nominations.

Andorra – who will be adopting and issuing the Euro in due course also made the nominations in the Best Crown category for its “Aguila Daurada Eagle” along with other coins such as the British Antarctic Territory’s Emperor Penguin “Three Penguin Chicks” coin. Ireland’s “James Joyce” silver crown also made the list – this nomination is Ireland’s first in this category.

In the Best Gold Coin category, nominees chose among some of their favorite coins such as Austria’s “Klimt & His Women, The Expectation” in the Art series. Italy’s “Botticelli’s Personification of Spring” made the list as well as Slovakia’s “Maximilian, 450th Anniversary of Coronation in Bratislava” in their historical rulers series.

The Most historically significant coin category coin, which is for many voters, one of their favorite categories, among some of the coins nominated were Canada for their “HMS Shannon & USS Chesapeake ~ Battle of Boston Harbor, War of 1812 commemorative. Denmark was nominated a second time for their “Scientist” series with the Neils Bohr 500 Kroner coin making the list. Poland’s “History of Polish Coins, Denarius of Boleslaw I” coin was also included.

The Most innovative coin category has the least amount of nominees but even so, the numismatic innovation continues to out-do the year before with new and bold ideas which many Mints are making their names in these days of setting the bar ever higher in production techniques and design. Australia’s “Red One Penny Stamp Centennial Coin” made the list along with other coins which stood out on the crowd such as Niue’s “Fortuna Redux” featuring Mercury coin produced as a circular bar.

Among some of the new countries nominated in this years COTY categories – specifically in the category of Most Inspirational coin is Estonia, their first ever for the 2013 silver crown celebrating the 100^th anniversary of birth of composer Raymond Valgre.   Portugal was also nominated in this category for their “International Committee of the Red Cross 150th Anniversary” coin.

The final category, and again one of the award’s favorite categories, that of the Best Silver coin includes such diverse coins as the Cook island’s “New York Grand Central Terminal Clock” coin, France’s tribute to internationally renown Ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev and the United States much loved Silver American Eagle coin – Enhanced strike.

Many Mints such as the Royal Australian Mint, Austrian Mint, the Monnaie de Paris and the Royal Canadian Mint received multiple nominations and have consistently received awards in their respective categories. Out of the final winners in each of the ten categories, voters will then choose the ultimate Coin of the year award which will be honored at the presentation which is to be held on Saturday, 31^st January 2015 – all of the coins nominated in the categories were all dated “2013”. This year’s Guest of Honor at the WMF will be the Royal Australian Mint who will also be celebrating their 50^th anniversary in 2015.

CoinUpdate.com will have all of the highlights from the presentation along with images and comments from the winning Mints.


Full list of the nominated coins:

MOST ARTISTIC:

Australia — Land Down Under, Surfing, 1 Dollar
Austria — Austrian Wildlife, Red Deer, 100 Euro
Canada — Canadian Maple Canopy, 20 Dollars
Fiji — Malachite Room, Hermitage, 10 Dollars
Finland — Multicultural, 20 Euro
Kazakhstan — Hedgehog. 50 Tenge
Latvia — Rudolfs Blaumanis, 150th Anniversary of Birth, 1 Lats
New Zealand — Maori Art, 1 Dollar
Slovenia — Postojna Cave Discovery, 800th Anniversary, 2 Euro

BI-METALLIC COIN:

Austria — Tunneling 24, Euro
France — Pierre de Coubertin, 150th Anniversary of Birth, 2 Euro
Germany — German States, Baden-Württemberg & Maulbronn, 2 Euro
Japan — Hiroshima Prefecture, 500 Yen
Lithuania — Distaff (Spinning Tool) 2 Litai
Luxembourg — Beaufort Castle, 5 Euro
Netherlands — Kingdom, 200th Anniversary, Guimaraes, 2 Euro
Palau — 30th Anniversary of Panda Coinage, 2 Dollars
Portugal — Cathedral Tower View, 2 Euro
Switzerland — Silvesterchlausen, 10 Francs

BEST CIRCULATING COIN:

Australia — Mechanisms of Mining, 20 cents
Denmark — Ole Rømer, 20 Kroner
Finland — Parliament ~ 150th Anniversary, 2 Euro
Great Britain — London Subway, 150th Anniversary, 2 Pounds
Greece — Plato, 2 Euro
Italy — Giuseppe Verdi, 200th Anniversary of Birth, 2 Euro
Lithuania— Stelmuze Oak, 2 Litai
Singapore — Lion & Flora, 1 Dollar
United State of America — Mount Rushmore National Memorial, 25 cents

BEST CONTEMPORARY EVENT:

Australia — Korean War Ends, 60th Anniversary, 1 Dollar
Belarus — BPS-Sberbank, 90th Anniversary, 1 Ruble
Canada — Superman, 75th Anniversary (Lenticular Image of Classic & Modern Superman) 50 Cents
Croatia — Entry Into European Union, 25 Kuna
France — Franco-German Friendship, 50th Anniversary, 10 Euro
Great Britain — Elizabeth’s Coronation, 60th Anniversary, 5 Pounds
Lithuania — Sajudis Independence Demonstration, 25th Anniversary, 50 Litu
Poland — Society for the Mentally Handicapped, 50th Anniversary, 2 Zlotych
Russia — Victory Over Germany at Battle of Stalingrad, 70th Anniversary, 100 Rubles
Spain — King Juan Carlos, 75th Anniversary of Birth, 10 Euro

BEST CROWN:

Andorra — Aguila Daurada Eagle, 5 Diners
British Antarctic Territory — Emperor Penguin, Three Penguin Chicks, 2 Pounds
Finland — Sophie Mannerheim, 150th Anniversary of Birth, 10 Euro
Great Britain — Christening of Prince George, 5 Pounds
Hungary — Weöres Sándor, 100th Anniversary of Birth, 5000 Forint
Ireland — James Joyce, EUROPA series, 10 Eur0
Lithuania — Uprising of 1863-1864, 150th Anniversary, 50 Litu
Poland — Animals of the World, European Bison, 20 Zlotych
Russia — Female Athlete Holding Kazan Universiade Banner Above City Skyline, 3 Rubles
South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands — Blue Whale, 2 Pounds

BEST GOLD COIN:

Austria — Klimt & His Women, The Expectation, 50 Euro
Canada — Eagle Head, 50 Cents
China — Sacred Buddhist Mountain, Mount Putuo, 100 Yuan
France — Notre Dame, 850th Anniversary, 50 Euro
Great Britain — Benjamin Britten, 100th Anniversary of Birth, 50 Pence
Italy — Botticelli’s Personification of Spring, 20 Euro
Mongolia — Howling Wolf, 500 Tugruk
Netherlands — Rietveld Schroder House, 10 Euro
Slovakia — Maximilian, 450th Anniversary of Coronation in Bratislava, 100 Euro
South Africa — Nature, Zebras, 10 Rand

HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT:

Australia — The Land Down Under, Captain James Cook, 1 Dollar
Canada — HMS Shannon & USS Chesapeake, Battle of Boston Harbor, War of 1812, 50 Dollars
Denmark — Niels Bohr & Atomic Theory, 500 Kroner
Germany — Heinrich Hertz & Electric Rays, 125th Anniversary, 10 Euro
Guyana — 1763 Slave Revolt, 250th Anniversary, 2000 Dollars
Netherlands — 1713 Peace Treaty of Utrecht, 5 Euro
Peru — Sol Coinage, 100th Anniversary, 1 Nuevo Sol
Poland — History of Polish Coins, Denarius of Boleslaw I The Brave, 5 Zlotych
Slovakia — Jozef Karol Hell, 300th Anniversary of Birth, 10 Euro
Spain — Balboa Discovers the Pacific Ocean, 500th Anniversary, 50 Euro

MOST INNOVATIVE COIN:

Australia — Red One Penny Stamp Centennial Coin Packaged With $10 Commemorative Stamp, 50 cents
France — Tour de France, 100th Anniversary (Four Different Colored Cyclists’ Jackets) 10 Euro
Latvia — Last Lats, Linear Calendar, 1 Lats
Mongolia — Wolf Laser Cutout, 500 Tugruk
Niue — Fortuna Redux, Mercury, 50 Dollars
Niue — Moon Gilt Within Rays + 12 Crystals, 100 Dollars

MOST INSPIRATIONAL COIN:

Australia — ANZAC Day, Engineers, 1 Dollar
Belarus — Christianization of the Rus, 1025th Anniversary, 1 Ruble
Canada — Grandfather & Grandson Fishing, 3 Dollars
Estonia — Raimond Valgre, 7 Euro
Finland — Frans Eemil Sillanpåå, 10 Euro
France — Dove & Peace in Various Languages, 250 Euro
Israel — Yad Vashem, 60th Anniversary, 1 new Sheqel
Portugal — International Committee of the Red Cross, 150th Anniversary, 2.50 Euro
Slovakia — Saints Cyril & Methodius, 2 Euro
Vatican City — World Youth Day, Rio, 2 Euro

BEST SILVER COIN:

Australia — Holey Dollar & Dump, 200th Anniversary, 1 Dollar
Austria — European Writers, Stefan Zweig, 20 Euro
Canada — Three Bison, 100 Dollars
Cook Islands — New York Grand Central Terminal Clock, 10 Dollars
France — Rudolf Nureyev, 10 Euro
Latvia — Richard Wagner, 200th Anniversary of Birth, 1 Lats
Mongolia — Argali Sheep With Crystal Eyes, 500 Tugruk
Niue — Tropical Coral Fish, Puffer, 1 Dollar
Turkey — 90th Anniversary of Statehood, 50 Lira
United States of America — Enhanced Uncirculated Silver American Eagle, 1 Dollar