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250 Shillings Hansa Trading Cog
| Issuer | Somalia |
|---|---|
| Year | 1998 |
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| Composition | Trimetallic: brass core, copper-nickel middle ring and brass outer ring |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The central brass core bears a detailed full-color polychrome depiction of a medieval Hanseatic trading cog, shown in broadside view with a tall mast, furled rigging, a red-and-gold diamond-patterned strake along the hull, and a harbor townscape with half-timbered buildings visible in the background against a golden sky. The legend HANSA TRADING COG curves above the vessel within the inner field, and the historical date 1250 appears in the lower portion of the core. The copper-nickel middle ring carries the series title A HISTORY OF WORLD SHIPPING around the upper arc, while the issue year 1998 is inscribed at the base of the outer brass ring. A beaded border encircles the entire composition. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Somalia's 1990s novelty coinage program was a straightforward commercial venture — the government licensed its mint authority to foreign producers targeting the collector market, with little connection to domestic circulation or monetary policy. These trimetallic pieces were never intended for use in Mogadishu.
The Hanseatic cog depicted here was the workhorse of medieval Baltic and North Sea trade from roughly the 12th through 15th centuries, and the Hanseatic League at its peak connected over 200 cities across northern Europe. Somalia's issuance of this subject is purely opportunistic — the thematic series was aimed at European collector demand, not Somali history.