Italy

2017

Commemorative coin

400th Anniversary of the completion of the Basilica of San Marco in Venice

Official Journal of the European Union

Façade of the Basilica of San Marco in Venice; in the exergue the dates ‘1617’ and ‘2017’, respectively year of the completion of the Basilica and year of the issue of the coin, beside the logo of the Italian Republic ‘RI’; below the inscription ‘SAN MARCO’; on the right ‘LDS’, initials of the author Luciana De Simoni; on the top the inscription ‘VENEZIA’, and the mintmark of the Mint of Rome ‘R’. The coin’s outer ring depicts the 12 stars of the European flag.

Additional information

The coin depicts the Basilica di San Marco, central state sanctuary of the Republic of Venice and church of St. Mark the Evangelist, the core of which was built in the 11th century and contains the largest cycle of mosaics in the Occident. The west façade shown here is considered a symbol of the triumph over Constantinople in the Crusade of 1203/1204. In the second half of the 14th century a phase of construction and decoration began, which changed the building in the spirit of Venetian Gothic. The five arched spires of the western façade are decorated with the city saints of Venice, Constantine, Demetrius, Mark, George and Theodor (from left to right), while the six tabernacles contain sculptures of the Archangel Gabriel, the Evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Mary. In the pediment of the central arch there is a golden relief of the striding Mark's lion with a book whose inscription reads: "Pax Tibi Marce Evangelista Meus" ("Peace to you Mark, my Evangelist"). The centre of the gallery on the upper floor bears replicas of the four horses of San Marco. Their originals, made of gilded cast copper and exhibited in the Museo Marciano since 1979, were originally parts of a quadriga on the triumphal arch of Emperor Nero in Rome, which the Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius II had brought to Constantinople, from where they were taken to Venice as spoils of war on the orders of the Doge Enrico Dandolo. In 1987 Venice and its lagoon were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Edge lettering

Designer