5 Scudi San Marino-Japanese Friendship

San Marino has issued commemorative gold since the 1970s, but this 2007 piece marks a specific diplomatic occasion: the 100th anniversary of formal relations between San Marino and Japan, established in 1907 when Japan extended recognition to the tiny republic. For two nations with almost nothing geographically or culturally in common, that early 20th-century diplomatic handshake was notable — San Marino was one of the first European microstates Japan formally acknowledged.

Struck to 22-karat standard at the San Marino State Mint, which operates under tight annual mintage caps imposed by the republic's coinage agreements with the European Union.