A Northern European Mint known for its niche subject matter and bold, stylish, often minimalistic design, the Mint of Finland is again launching a new coin that meets these criteria perfectly. Recent designs have demonstrated an ability to depict a theme or message in a stylistic manner rather than as an intricate piece of artwork like the Sisu coin, the Literacy coin, and one celebrating the composer, Jean Sibelius. This new design carries on in the same vein and features celebrated Finnish poet and writer, Eino Leino.

Born in 1878, Leino is considered one of founders of Finnish poetry, combining modern and Finnish folk elements in his work. Widely read today in Finland, themes in Leino’s work often revolve around nature, love, and despair. Leino published over 70 books of poems and stories. The most famous of these are the two poem collections Helkavirsiä (1903 and 1916), in which he extensively uses Finnish mythology and folklore. He was the first to translate Dante’s Divine Comedy into Finnish, and wrote in newspapers about theatre and culture in general. He died in 1926 at the age of 47.

The coin is struck in 0.917 gold and weighs an affordable 5.65g, just under a sixth of an ounce. The reverse side design is clever and attractive, the caped individual walking away being perfectly depicted with just a few lines. The obverse is designed to depict aspects of the poets character. Inscriptions on both sides are so integrated they look part of the design itself, so rare to say these days. The coin is packaged in a traditional wooden box with 5,000 to be minted, 100 of which will be individually numbered. Due to ship on 09 May, the coin will be available to pre-order from Monday 25th April when the price will be revealed. Previous coins have sold for around €440, so we’d expect it to be thereabouts.

MINTS DESCRIPTION

The beautiful golden Eino Leino collector coin is packaged in a protective clear plastic casing set in a wooden box. Each coin includes a certificate of authenticity that tells the coin’s story.

The obverse of the coin depicts the fire and passion that lit all aspects of Eino Leino’s life, also resulting in his enormous and varied literary oeuvre. On the reverse, Eino Leino is walking in his typical attire towards the rising morning star, perhaps in the early hours of the morning. The collector coin is designed by Pertti Mäkinen.

The maximum mintage of the collector coin is 5,000, out of which 100 coins will be numbered. The numbered gold coins will be sold separately.

Eino Leino

Eino Leino (Armas Einar Leopold Lönnbohm 1878–1926) is known for his extensive and diverse literary oeuvre, including poetry, novels, plays and newspaper columns. Leino’s early work was inspired by folk tradition and the Kalevala epic, but his later writing also began to exhibit more European influences.

The exceptional talent underlying Leino’s writing, combined with his multifaceted and personal style, still speak out to readers today. In 2016, 100 years will have passed from the publication of the two-part poetry anthology Helkavirsiä (1903 and 1916), ranked amongst Leino’s most influential work. Eino Leino and the Day of Poetry and Summer are celebrated with a national flag day on 6 July.

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SPECIFICATION

DENOMINATION COMPOSITION WEIGHT DIAMETER FINISH MINTAGE BOX / COA
€100 EURO 0.917 GOLD 5.65 g 22.0 mm PROOF 5,000 YES / YES