BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

April 3, 2005

Belarus coin wins top honors

By Daniel Webster
Knight Ridder Newspapers

Belarus has captured the Coin of the Year competition, with its 10-ruble silver coin honoring the nation's main ballet troupe taking top honors in an international competition.

The graceful coin, which already had been judged most artistic among the 10 finalists, features a relief effigy of a scene from the national ballet "Passions." The obverse depicts Belarus' National Academic Bolshoi Opera and Ballet Theater.

The international competition, sponsored by World Coin News magazine, is for coins in 10 categories struck in 2003. It runs a year late to accommodate coins struck late in the issuing year, or even after Jan. 1, 2004.

No U.S. coin made the finals.

Belarus had two coins in the running, the other being its 20-ruble silver swan coin, which won the best-crown category.

Australia also had two finalists. Its $10 silver coin celebrating the evolution of the alphabet was named most significant historically, and its 50-cent cupro-nickel coin honoring volunteers was called most inspirational.

Austria's 100-euro coin bearing a detail from Gustav Klimt's "The Kiss" was the best gold coin. Finland's 5-euro hockey championship coin was named the year's best trade coin.

Great Britain's 2-pound coin marking the discovery of DNA swept the contemporary event category.

New Zealand's $1 "Lord of the Rings" coin was named most popular.

The best silver coin was judged to be Spain's 10-euro coin marking the 75th anniversary of its school ship Elcano. (Coins with sailing ships nearly always win.)

Winner of the most-innovative coin concept is the Cook Islands' Zodiac locket.

Source:

http://www.indystar.com/articles/6/233954-1616-047.html


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