200 Lire Hand with Transistor

San Marino's 1986 coinage program ran under a rotating thematic series that the republic renewed by treaty with Italy every several years, with each cycle assigned a unifying subject. The 1986 series took science and technology as its theme — hence the transistor motif, an unusual choice for a state whose numismatic output more typically drew on Renaissance art and classical allegory.

Aluminium bronze was the standard alloy Italy had assigned to its own 200 lire denomination since 1977, and San Marino's issues mirrored that specification by agreement, allowing both to circulate interchangeably on the peninsula.