The Sovereign Military Order of Malta issues its own coinage not as a currency in any economic sense, but as an exercise of sovereign prerogative — one of the few non-territorial entities recognized under international law with the right to do so. The 1975 series appeared under Grand Master Angelo de Mojana di Cologna, who held the position from 1962 until his death in 1988 and oversaw a significant expansion of the Order's humanitarian operations during the Cold War period.
These issues were struck for collectors rather than circulation, which explains the near-pure silver specification — a standard no functioning monetary system would sustain.
The Sovereign Military Order of Malta issues its own coinage not as a currency in any economic sense, but as an exercise of sovereign prerogative — one of the few non-territorial entities recognized under international law with the right to do so. The 1975 series appeared under Grand Master Angelo de Mojana di Cologna, who held the position from 1962 until his death in 1988 and oversaw a significant expansion of the Order's humanitarian operations during the Cold War period.
These issues were struck for collectors rather than circulation, which explains the near-pure silver specification — a standard no functioning monetary system would sustain.