Belgium

Commemorative coin

2015

The 30th anniversary of the EU flag

(Part of the joint issue " The 30th anniversary of the EU flag ")

Official Journal of the European Union

To celebrate thirty years of the EU flag, euro-area Finance Ministers decided that euro-area Member States would strike a 2-euro commemorative coin using a common design on the national side. Euro-area citizens and residents have selected by public web-voting the winning design. Voters had a choice of five designs, which had been pre-selected by a professional jury following a design competition among European Mints, and they choose the design created by Mr Georgios Stamatopoulos, professional designer at the Bank of Greece. The designs shows the EU flag as a symbol that unites people and cultures with shared visions and ideals for a better common future. Twelve stars that morph into human figures are embracing the birth of a new Europe. At the top right, in semi-circle, are the issuing country in the three national languages ‘BELGIE-BELGIQUE-BELGIEN’ and the years ‘1985-2015’. At the right side, in between the flag and the years are the mint master mark and the mint mark, a helmeted profile of the archangel Michael. At the bottom right are the initials of the artist (Georgios Stamatopoulos). The coin’s outer ring depicts the 12 stars of the European flag.

Additional information

Since 1950, the Council of Europe has been working on the design of a flag for Europe. The proposal to adopt the emblem of the Pan-European Union, founded by Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi in 1922, was rejected because of its supposed Christian symbolism. In 1955 it was agreed that the European flag, also adopted by the European Community on 29 June 1985, should be the European flag with the twelve (a number of twelve is considered a sign of perfection) golden stars in a circular (symbolising unity) arrangement on a blue background. The coin shows twelve stylised persons in a circle around a European flag with the twelve Euro stars.

Edge lettering

Designer