Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
500 Liras
| Issuer | Sovereign Military Order of Malta |
|---|---|
| Year | 1999 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | 39 mm |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Central device comprising the eight-pointed Maltese Cross displayed within a circular wreath of laurel branches, surmounted by a princely crown topped with a small cross pattée. A scroll beneath the wreath bears the legend KNIGHTS OF MALTA, flanked by the date 1999 in the lower field. The denomination 500 LIRAS appears along the lower rim, with the initials O.S.J. immediately above it. The circular legend SOVRANO OSPEDALIERO ORDINE DI MALTA runs along the upper periphery, with a beaded inner border encircling the entire design. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
The Sovereign Military Order of Malta occupies a peculiar position in numismatics: a sovereign entity without territory, issuing currency that is legal tender by declaration yet circulates nowhere. Its coinage program, which expanded significantly through the 1990s, was largely collector-driven from the outset — frankly, a bullion and commemorative operation dressed in the formalities of statehood. The Order's monetary authority derives from its status as a recognized sovereign subject of international law, a classification confirmed by its observer status at the United Nations.
KM# 286 is a late entry in a decade of prolific silver issues from the Order's mint programs, produced through contract arrangements rather than any facility the Order itself operates.