Romania is a state in the southeastern part of Europe that arose around the middle of the 19th century. Until 1947, it was known as the Kingdom of Romania, and from 1947 to 1989, the Socialist Republic of Romania. Of interest to collectors are both post-war (socialist) and modern coins of Romania. You will find photos and descriptions of the most interesting specimens in this article.
Romania Currency: General
The currency of the country is the Romanian leu (from the Romanian leu - “lion”). International code: RON (since 2005). The date of birth of the Romanian currency is April 22, 1867. It was then that lei were introduced into circulation by a special law. Until the end of the 19th century, French francs were also used in parallel with them in the country. Since 1890, Romanian leu has become the only currency of the kingdom.
The national currency of Romania went through three monetary reforms (in 1947, 1952 and 2005). In July 2005, a new leu was issued into circulation, which equated to 10 thousand old ones.
A loose coin in Romania has the name baths or baths (from Romanian bani - money). In one leu - 100 baths. Romanian currency is represented by both coins and banknotes. The latter are interesting in that they are made of special plastic, so they do not tear and serve much longer than paper banknotes. But this article is not about banknotes at all, but about Romanian coins.
Coins of the monarchical era
Few people know that this country until the end of World War II was a monarchy. Romania's oldest coin is the 10 baths of 1867 (see photo below). It is not rare due to a rather large circulation. The cost of such a coin today ranges from 500-1000 rubles - depending on the state.
The pre-war coin of 2 lei with the image of the reaper is more valuable. It was minted in silver in 1914. The cost of one such coin can reach 5 thousand rubles.
Romanian coins of 100 lei in the forties depict the profile of King Mihai I. He became a monarch at a very young age (19 years old) and was a puppet of Hitler’s ally, Ion Antonescu. However, in August 1944, Mihai I ordered the arrest of Antonescu and his generals and declared war on Nazi Germany. The cost of these coins is low, since the circulation of their minting exceeded 20 million pieces.
Of particular interest among numismatists is the 1938 coin in denominations of 1 leu. On its reverse, a crown from the royal coat of arms is depicted, and on the obverse is an ear of corn.
Coins of the socialist period
After World War II, Romania found itself in the zone of influence of the USSR and embarked on the path of socialist development. Then the design of her coins changed radically. On many of them, you can see stories depicting the rapid development of industry and industry, which was characteristic of post-war Romania.
So, for example, a coin reverse in 1 leu of 1951 of release is decorated with an oil derrick. A coin in denomination of 3 lei 60 years depicts an oil refinery. The agricultural theme is not deprived of attention either - on coins in denominations of 1 lei in the mid-1960s you can see a tractor driver working in the field.
An incredibly interesting coin of that period is the unofficial name “Blacksmith”. It was minted in the mid 50s of the last century from a copper-nickel alloy. The obverse of the coin depicts a blacksmith working against a steaming industrial plant.
Modern coins of Romania
Now about modern coins. Currently, coins of Romania are represented by the following denominations:
- 1 bath;
- 5 baths;
- 10 baths;
- 50 baths.
The design of all these coins is the same. The obverse is as concise as possible - only the face value here. On the reverse of the coins is the national emblem of Romania, the inscription Romania and the year of issue. Images on the obverse and reverse are not inverted relative to each other (as was the case on previous Romanian coins).
In recent years, there has been a tendency in the country's retail trade to round off all prices to ten bathhouses. Therefore, coins in denominations of 1 ban are incredibly difficult to meet today in circulation.