Greece

2020

Commemorative coin

2.500 years since the Battle of Thermopylae

Official Journal of the European Union

The design depicts an ancient Greek helmet. Inscribed along the inner edge are the words ‘2500 YEARS SINCE THE BATTLE OF THERMOPYLAE’ and ‘HELLENIC REPUBLIC’. Also inscribed in the background are the year of issuance ‘2020’ and a palmette (the mintmark of the Greek mint). Visible down and right of the helmet is the monogram of the artist (George Stamatopoulos). Although ending in defeat for the Greeks, the Battle of Thermopylae remains a timeless symbol of heroic resistance. The coin’s outer ring depicts the 12 stars of the European flag.

Additional information

In 480 B.C., at the beginning of the Second Persian War, a Persian army of at least 50,000 men stood before Thermopylae under King Xerxes I. This narrow section of the only way along the coast to Inner Greece - according to Herodotus only wide enough for a wagon - blocked a Greek army of almost 7000 men. At first they inflicted heavy losses on the Persians, but Ephialtes of Trachis is said to have led Persians on a footpath over the mountains into the back of the Greeks. The subsequent retreat of a large part of the Greek army was still covered by 700 Thespians and 300 Spartans under Leonidas I, until their death. On the local monument dedicated to Leonidas is written "Ὦ ξεῖν ̓, ἀγγέλλειν Λακεδαιμονίοις ὅτι ὅτι τῇδε κείμεθα τοῖς κείνων ῥήμασι πειθόμενοι" ("Oh stranger, tell the Lacedaemonians that we lie here, obedient to their words"). The coin depicts the helmet of a Hoplite with a horsehair comb.

Edge lettering

Designer