Romania 1941 500 lei
This coin depicts King Michael I of Romania (Mihai Regele Romanilor) and, on the reverse, Moldavian voivod Saint Stephen III ("the Great") consecrating a church. This image refers to Romania's claim on the Moldova of Stephen III, including Bessarabia and Bucovina. In 1940, these regions were annexed by Stalin to the USSR. The inscription, MOLDOVA·LUI·STEFAN·IN·VECI·A·ROMANIEI means "STEPHEN'S MOLDAVIA FOREVER ROMANIAN". Stalin's land grab strengthened the hand of the right wing Fascist groups in Romania. When Hitler invaded the Soviet Union in autumn 1941, Romania came in on the German side, a rash choice she would later regret. Davenport lists this type for 1941-43 but only the 1941 has been seen.
Recorded Mintage: 775,000.
Specification: 25 g, 0.835 fine silver, 37 mm diameter, edge lettered "PRIN STATORNICIE LA IZBANDA" (THROUGH FAITHFULNESS TO VICTORY), designed by Ioana Bassarab.
Catalog reference: KM 60, Dav-276.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
Links:
- Romania 1940 100 lei gold
- 1941 250 lei
- 1942 200 lei
- Romania 1946 500 lei
- return to coins of Romania
- Coins and currency dated 1941