10 Euro Cents - Benedictus XVI 1st map

Benedict XVI's first euro coinage series was struck during an ecclesiastically charged moment — his pontificate had begun just months before the 2006 issues were prepared, following the death of John Paul II in April 2005. Vatican euro coins are legal tender but almost never circulate; annual mintage is tightly capped and sold directly to collectors, making genuine wear essentially nonexistent on any surviving example. The 2007 date is the final year of this "first map" design, as the EU's cartographic revision — incorporating the 2004 accession states into the reverse map — had already been mandated for all eurozone members.