2,000 forint – 150 years of organised fire departments in Hungary

n consideration of the significance of this anniversary, simultaneously with the issuance of the new commemorative circulation coin, the MNB will also release a silver commemorative coin with a face value of HUF 10,000 and a non-ferrous metal coin of HUF 2,000 also entitled ‘150 Years of Organised Fire Departments in Hungary’. These commemorative coins are legal tender in Hungary, but do not serve circulation purposes. Their primary role is to raise awareness and to recognise the selfless work of firefighters. The collector coin ‘150 Years of Organised Fire Departments in Hungary’ was designed by the artist István Holló. The coins have an identical graphic design, with the denomination as the only difference. The central motif the front of the collector coins is a composition of a decorated helmet above two crossed fire axes, with an arch-shaped inscription of the fire department motto ‘DICSŐ MÚLTBÓL A MÉLTÓ JÖVŐBE!’ (From a glorious past to a worthy future!) above and MAGYARORSZÁG (Hungary) below. The top and bottom legends are separated by the mint mark BP. on the left and the designer mark of István Holló on the right. The compulsory design elements of collector coins are found on the obverse: the denominations 10,000 or 2,000, the legend FORINT and the mint year 2020 below the central motif, aligned centre in three lines. On the reverse, positioned in the centre is a representation of Saint Florian, the patron saint of firefighters, under an arch-shaped legend ‘150 ÉVES A SZERVEZETT MAGYAR TŰZOLTÓSÁG’ (150 Years of Organised Fire Departments in Hungary), with the horizontal legend SZENT FLÓRIÁN (Saint Florian) in the foreground below. Saint Florian was a Christian martyr and is the patron saint of firefighters. The cult of Saint Florian became popular in Central Europe in the late Middle Ages. According to the legend, he is believed to have saved a house from complete destruction by a dreadful fire when he was a child. The collector coin features a typical representation of Saint Florian standing in the uniform of a Roman officer, holding a flag in one hand and a bucket of water in the other, extinguishing a small house on fire.