New national side of euro circulation coins

(2006/C 248/02)

Euro circulation coins have legal tender status throughout the euro area. The Commission publishes all new euro coin designs (1) with a view to informing anyone required to handle coins in the course of their work and the public at large. In accordance with the Council conclusions of 8 December 2003 (2), Member States and countries that have concluded a Monetary Agreement with the Community providing for the issuance of euro circulation coins are allowed to issue certain quantities of commemorative euro circulation coins on condition that not more than one new coin design is issued per country per year and that only the 2 euro denomination is used. These coins have the technical features of normal euro circulation coins, but bear a commemorative design on the obverse national side.

Issuing State: Finland

Subject of commemoration: 100th anniversary of the universal and equal suffrage

Factual description of the design: the inner part of the coin shows male and female faces separated by a line. On the left side of the coin, is the date 1 October 1906 and on the right side, is the year with the imbedded country abbreviation 20 FI 06. The mint mark ‘M’ appears at the left of each face. The twelve stars of the European flag are depicted on the outer ring.

Issuing volume: max 2,5 million coins

Approximate issuing date: October 2006

Edge lettering: ‘SUOMI FINLAND * * *’ where the * stands for a lion's head.

(1)  See OJ C 373 of 28.12.2001, p. 1 for a reference to all national sides that were issued in 2002.

(2)  See conclusions of the General Affairs Council of 8 December 2003 on changes in the design of national sides of euro coins. See also Commission Recommendation of 29 September 2003 on a common practice for changes to the design of national obverse sides of euro circulation coins (OJ L 264 of 15.10.2003, p. 38).