Slovakia

2023

Commemorative coin

The 100th anniversary of the first blood transfusion in Slovakia

Official Journal of the European Union

The design features an equilateral cross as an internationally recognised symbol of medical aid, hope and humanity. Inscribed in each arm is one of the four blood groups: A, B, 0, and AB. Incused within the cross are two more equilateral crosses, one within the other, with a drop of blood appearing at the centre of this image. Depicted around the central cross are the equally spaced lower parts of eight test tubes, each containing an incused stylised blood drop. Between each tube is a blood drop in relief. To the right of the bottom tube are the stylised initials ‘MP’, referring to the national side’s designer Mária Poldaufová; to the left is the mint mark of the Kremnica Mint (Mincovňa Kremnica), consisting of the letters ‘MK’ placed between two dies. Around most of the edge of the coin’s inner part is the inscription ‘PRVÁ TRANSFÚZIA KRVI 1923 – 2023’ (in English the words mean ‘first blood transfusion’). Along the lower part of the edge is the name of the issuing country ‘SLOVENSKO’, with a dot on either side separating it from the inscription. The coin’s outer ring depicts the 12 stars of the European flag.

Additional information

The Viennese doctor Karl Landsteiner defined the AB0 system of blood groups in 1900, which includes the characteristics A and B, which can be combined to form the main groups A, B, AB and 0 (neither A nor B). Worldwide, their frequency is: 0 = 45%, A = 40%, B = 11% and AB = 4%. The researcher, who received the Nobel Prize for Medicine for this in 1930, also discovered the rhesus factor in 1937 during experiments with rhesus monkeys, which causes a possible rhesus incompatibility in pregnancies. 88% of people are rhesus-positive and 12% rhesus-negative. The frequency distribution of blood group characteristics according to the AB0 and Rhesus systems varies greatly depending on ethnicity. The most common combination 0+ applies to 48% of the population in several countries, whereas the rarest AB- applies to only 0.03% in East Asia. On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the first blood transfusion in Slovakia, ''Mária Poldaufová'' designed a central circle with a Greek cross, symbol of the aid organisation Red Cross', with a (blood) drop in the middle as a coin motif. On the four bars of the cross are - clockwise - the letters "A", "B", the number "0" and "AB", surrounded by 16 drops arranged in a circle, the tips of which point alternately - embossed in relief - towards the centre or - embossed in relief - away from the centre. The circular inscription "- SLOVENSKO -" (Slovakia) is at the bottom of the pill and above it the occasion of issue "PRVÁ TRANSFÚZIA KRVI 1923-2023" (first blood transfusion 1923-2023, the second number also representing the year of issue). The circular mint mark ("MK" between two dies) of the ''Mincovňa Kremnica'' in Kremnica and the ligature "MP" of the designer's initials flank the lowest drop on the left and right respectively.

Edge lettering

Designer