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1⁄100 Birr - Menelik II
| Issuer | Ethiopia |
|---|---|
| Year | 1897 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | KM#9, Schön#1 |
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| Reverse description | The denomination የብር መቶወኛ (One hundredth of a Birr) is inscribed in two large lines of Ge'ez script at the center of the field, enclosed within a fine inner dotted circle. A circular outer legend in Ge'ez script reads the imperial motto 'Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah,' flanked at the base by the mint mark 'A' (Monnaie de Paris) between two small decorative devices, the Ethiopian Era date ፲፰፻፹፱ (EE 1889) at the bottom, and cross ornaments at either side, all within a toothed outer border. |
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| Reverse lettering | ሞዓ ፡ አንበሳ ፡ ዘእምነገደ ፡ ይሁዳ የብር መቶወኛ A ✠ ፲፰፻፹፱ ✠ (Translation: Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah One hundredth of a Birr A EE1889 (10+8x100+80+9)) |
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| Additional information |
This coin was struck in 1897, the year Menelik II signed the Treaty of Addis Ababa following his decisive defeat of the Italian army at Adwa — one of the only instances in the colonial era of an African nation repelling a European invasion outright. The timing was deliberate. Establishing a national coinage was part of Menelik's broader assertion of Ethiopian sovereignty at precisely the moment the world was being forced to take that sovereignty seriously.
The Birr system introduced here replaced a chaotic mix of Maria Theresa thalers and commodity currencies, including the infamous use of salt bars in the interior.