Seborga is a small hilltop village in Liguria that has claimed independence from Italy since 1963, when Giorgio Carbone — a flower grower — argued the principality was never legally incorporated into the unified Italian state and had itself elected Prince Giorgio I. The luigino takes its name from the historical coinage struck by the real Principality of Seborga in the 17th century, when the territory was briefly held by the Cistercian monks of Lérins Abbey and issued silver luigini for circulation across the Mediterranean.
Italy has never recognized the claim. The 1995 issue is effectively a fantasy piece — Seborga has no recognized monetary authority.
Seborga is a small hilltop village in Liguria that has claimed independence from Italy since 1963, when Giorgio Carbone — a flower grower — argued the principality was never legally incorporated into the unified Italian state and had itself elected Prince Giorgio I. The luigino takes its name from the historical coinage struck by the real Principality of Seborga in the 17th century, when the territory was briefly held by the Cistercian monks of Lérins Abbey and issued silver luigini for circulation across the Mediterranean.
Italy has never recognized the claim. The 1995 issue is effectively a fantasy piece — Seborga has no recognized monetary authority.