Item number: A1801

Year: AD 1946

Material: Silver

Size: 37.0 x 37.0 x 2.5 mm

Weight: 24.9 g

Manufactured by: State Mint of Romania

Provenance: Da Chen Stamps and Coins Collection 2014

This is a 100,000 Lei silver coin issued by the Kingdom of Romania in AD 1946, shortly after the end of World War II, during a period of severe inflation.

The obverse of the coin features a right-facing portrait of Michael I, the last King of the Kingdom of Romania. Below the portrait, near the neck, is the signature of Haralambie Ionescu, a Romanian sculptor active in the 20th century, inscribed as “H. IONESCU.” The lower edge of the obverse bears the coin’s issuance year, “1946,” while the surrounding inscription in Latin reads “MIHAI I REGELE ROMANILOR” (Michael I, King of the Romanians).

The reverse of the coin depicts a young woman wearing a headscarf, resting her left hand on the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Romania. She extends her right hand to receive an olive branch, a symbol of peace, carried by a dove. The denomination, “100000 LEI” (100,000 Leu), is engraved in the lower left portion of the coin, while the upper edge bears the country’s name, “ROMANIA.” Below, a small signature of another Romanian sculptor, A. Romanescu, is inscribed as “A ROMANESCU.”

The edge of the coin is inscribed with the Latin phrase “NIHIL SINE DEO,” the motto of the Kingdom of Romania, which translates to “Nothing without God.”

Michael I reigned twice as King of Romania. His first reign began in AD 1927 at the age of six, following the exile of his father, Carol II. However, in AD 1930, he was forced to abdicate when Carol II returned and reclaimed the throne. In AD 1940, after Carol II was compelled to cede Northern Transylvania to Hungary under Nazi German mediation, he was deposed in a coup led by Prime Minister and military commander Ion Antonescu. As a result, Michael I was reinstated as king.

On August 23, AD 1944, as World War II neared its end and Nazi Germany’s defeat became apparent, conspirators gathered around Michael I and successfully staged a coup, arresting Ion Antonescu and negotiating an armistice with the Soviet Union, thereby withdrawing Romania from the Axis alliance. After the war, the Soviet-backed Romanian Communist Party gradually stripped the king of his powers. In AD 1947, Mihai I was forced to abdicate and go into exile, as Romania transitioned into a socialist republic. It was not until AD 1989, following the overthrow of the communist regime, that Mihai I was able to return to Romania, though he renounced any efforts to restore the monarchy. He passed away in Switzerland in AD 2017 at the age of 97.

物件編號: A1801

年代: 公元 1946 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 37.0 x 37.0 x 2.5 mm

重量: 24.9 g

製造地: 羅馬尼亞國家造幣廠

來源: 大城郵幣社 2014

這是一枚公元1946年，第二次世界大戰甫結束之際，苦於通貨膨脹的羅馬尼亞王國發行之面額驚人的10萬列伊銀幣。

錢幣正面為羅馬尼亞王國的末代國王米哈伊一世的右側肖像，肖像的脖子下方是活躍於公元20世紀的羅馬尼亞雕刻家哈拉蘭比·約內斯庫的簽名「H. IONESCU」。肖像下緣是硬幣的發行年份「1946」，周圍是以拉丁文標示的國王頭銜「MIHAI I REGELE ROMANILOR」(米哈伊一世 羅馬尼亞國王)。

錢幣背面的構圖是一名戴著頭巾，左手依靠在羅馬尼亞王國國徽的少女，少女伸出右手迎接鴿子銜過來象徵和平的橄欖枝。錢幣的左下側鐫刻面額「100000 LEI」(10萬列伊)，上緣則是國名「ROMANIA」(羅馬尼亞)，下方是另一名羅馬尼亞雕刻家A·羅曼內斯庫的迷你簽名「A ROMANESCU」。

錢幣側邊亦有打印銘文「NIHIL SINE DEO」，即羅馬尼亞王國的座右銘「沒有神就沒有一切」。

米哈伊一世在位兩次，第一次是公元1927年，以6歲幼齡代替流亡海外的父親卡羅爾二世接替王位，然而在公元1930年被父親逼迫退位。然而在公元1940年，卡羅爾二世因為在納粹德國協調下被迫向鄰國匈牙利割讓匈牙利裔占大宗的北特蘭西瓦尼亞，被首相兼軍隊指揮官揚·安東尼斯古發動政變罷黜，重新扶植米哈伊一世擔任國王。

公元1944年8月23日，第二次世界大戰末期發現納粹德國敗象已定的密謀者集結在米哈伊一世周遭，成功發動逮捕揚·安東尼斯古的政變和蘇聯展開和談退出軸心國陣營。第二次世界大戰結束後，蘇聯扶植的羅馬尼亞共產黨逐步架空國王的權力。公元1947年，米哈伊一世被迫退位流亡海外，羅馬尼亞改制為社會主義共和國。直到公元1989年，羅馬尼亞推翻共產政權後，米哈伊一世方才能回到羅馬尼亞，並且放棄恢復君主制。公元2017年，米哈伊一世以97歲高齡在瑞士病逝。