Catalog
10 ECU - Seville Expo '92
| Issuer | Spain |
|---|---|
| Year | 1992 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 160 × 70 mm |
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| Obverse description | Central vignette of a twelve-pointed star enclosing an ornate decorative design, set against a multicolour guilloche underprint. To the right, a white dove on a pink background. The note was issued as a specimen souvenir in connection with the European Community Pavilion at Expo '92 in Seville. |
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| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Twelve-pointed star enclosing an intricate decorative central design, with a white dove on a pink background to the right. To the left, a circular vignette with a classical representation of the Rape of Europa. The denomination 10 ECU is printed below the central design. |
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| Comments |
The ECU — European Currency Unit — was never legal tender in Spain or anywhere else. It existed as a basket currency and accounting unit within the European Monetary System, which made any physical ECU banknote a novelty item rather than a functioning monetary instrument. Spain issued this piece to coincide with the Seville World Exposition of 1992, a year the country was aggressively positioning itself as a modern European nation — the Barcelona Olympics ran the same summer.
Giesecke & Devrient's involvement signals this was produced to a high security standard despite its commemorative nature, which is worth noting given that several other ECU fantasy notes of the period were printed on lightweight stock by minor commercial printers.