10 Lei Toma Caragiu

Toma Caragiu died in the Bucharest earthquake of March 4, 1977 — a 7.2-magnitude event that killed over 1,500 people and collapsed the apartment block where he was sleeping. He was 47 and at the height of his career, widely considered the finest comic actor in Romanian theater and film. The National Bank has issued commemorative silver pieces honoring cultural figures at irregular intervals for decades; Caragiu has been a recurring subject of public campaigns pushing for exactly this kind of official recognition.