200 euro – The Cardinal Virtues - Temperance

In its four-year commemorative series on the cardinal virtues, the Philatelic and Numismatic Office dedicates the 200 euro gold coin for 2018 to temperance with the design entrusted to artist Antonella Napolione. Temperance is the moral virtue that moderates the attraction of pleasures and provides balance in the use of created goods. It ensures the will’s mastery over instincts and keeps desires within the limits of what is honorable. The temperate person directs the sensitive appetites toward what is good and maintains a healthy discretion, avoiding the inclination and appeal to pursue the desires of the heart. Temperance is often represented as a woman mixing water into wine, diluting it to lessen its inebriating effect. The sword resting on a column is partially wrapped up as a way to symbolize the ability to fight while maintaining control, not resorting to force alone but dominating the instinct with the spirit.