Italy

2021

Commemorative coin

150th Anniversary of the institution of Rome Capital of Italy

Official Journal of the European Union

The design depicts a detail of the Dea Roma, a sculpture by Angelo Zanelli inserted in the center of the Altare della Patria, a large votive altar dedicated to the Italian nation set in the Vittoriano complex in Rome. Above, the legend ‘ROMA CAPITALE’; on the right, the dates ‘•1871•2021•’, the year of the proclamation of Rome as the Capital of Italy and that of the coin’s issue respectively; on the left, ‘RI’, acronym of the Italian Republic, and ‘R’, identifying the Mint of Rome; in exergue, ‘UP’, initials of the designer Uliana Pernazza. The coin’s outer ring depicts the 12 stars of the European flag.

Additional information

In the course of the Risorgimento, the Kingdom of Italy was created in 1861 with Florence as its temporary capital. Although Rome was chosen as the capital, it was still under the control of the Pope and French protection troops. When these were withdrawn due to the Franco-Prussian War, troops under King Victor Emmanuel II occupied the rest of the Papal States consisting of Lazio and Rome in 1870. In 1871, Rome was declared the capital of Italy. ''Roma capitale'' (Rome capital) holds a special status as a municipality: the state (of) Vatican City, located within the city limits, has been an independent landlocked state since 1929 - as the seat of the Pope as head of the Roman Catholic Church as well as of the Holy See, an independent subject of international law. The coin shows the head of the statue of the goddess Roma - with a she-wolf helmet referring to Romulus and Remus - which is in the centre of the 'Altare della Patria' (Altar of the Fatherland) of the national monument to Victor Emmanuel II, created in 1925 by the Italian sculptor Angelo Zanelli (1879-1942).

Edge lettering

Designer