2636) "The Year of the Rabbit", (Chinese Zodiac), France: A 1/4€ (Euro) Nordic Gold Coin issued by the Monnaie de Paris (The Paris Mint) featuring a Rabbit in a cutural mix of French and Chinese anthropomorphism: Date/Year of Coin issue: 17.01.2023:
The Chinese Calendar series presents a new animal every year. The year 2023 is dedicated to the rabbit.
2023 is the Year of the Rabbit in the Chinese Lunar Calendar/Zodiac Cycle.
How does the Lunar Calendar or Chinese Zodiac Cycle work?
I consulted some of the books which have been kept in my personal library and got acquainted with some interesting facts about the Chinese Zodiac/Lunar Calendar:
The exact origins of the 12 animal signs is rather lost in the obscurity of time, but there is no doubt that they originated in China. In terms of the Chinese astrological "history", the 12 animals are of a rather recent introduction - for it seems that in the 2nd Century BC, Ssu Ma Chi'en (163-85 BC), who was the grand astrologer to Emperor Wu Ti, wrote the Shi Chi or "historical record" up to that time. In this book, there is no "Zodiac" or mention of the 12 animals.
Originally, the 12-year cycle that it takes the planet Jupiter to complete one orbit of the Sun was believed to have defined the earlier calendars. The Chinese still call this cycle "The Great Year" and each month corresponds to one of our own years.
By the 10th Century AD, however, after Buddhism had been established in China, Calendar Almanacs, such as those written by Tibetan monks in exile in the "Caves of the Thousand Buddhas" monastery in the remote reaches of North-western China, depicting the 12 animals, came into existence.
The legend of the Conference of animals called by the Buddha and naming of the 12-year cycle after 12 animals for the Chinese Lunar Calendar:
According to a legend, it was the Buddha (583-463 BC), who created the 12-animal cycle.
He is believed to have invited all the animals in the land to hold a conference together. The Buddha was not surprised, as in his wisdom, he knew that some of the animals were friendly towards others, while others were inimical/enemies.
To encourage attendance, he decided to name the years after the first twelve animals, in order of their arrival.
An invitation from the Buddha was hard to resist, and when they heard the news, all the animals set off at once, each determined to be the first to arrive.
Tiger, because of his energy and speed, at first took the lead. Soon, though, he began to tire and the early lead that he had achieved over his next rival Ox, who may have been slow, but had great stamina, soon dissipated. Ox reached the Buddha ahead of Tiger and prepared to bow down low to receive his honour.
But, what the sturdy Ox did not know was that clever Rat had sneaked a ride on his tail!!
Just before Ox's nose touched the floor at the Buddha's feet, nimble and swift Rat ran up the Ox's tail, along his back and jumped off his nose, thus winning the race to be the first to bow before the Buddha.
So Rat (or "Tze" or "Xi" is its Chinese name"), became the first animal in the Chinese Lunar Calendar/Zodiac, followed by a rather resentful Ox ("Chou").
Tiger ("Yin"), Rabbit ("Mao"), Dragon ("Chen"), Snake ("Si"), Horse ("Wu"), Goat ("Wei"), Monkey ("Shen"), Rooster ("You"), Dog ("Xu") and Pig ("Hu"), all followed, and in that order, paid homage to the Buddha and were each honoured with a year.
Interestingly, Dragon is the only mythical beast in the Chinese Circle of Zodiacal animals.
According to the Lunar or Chinese Zodiac, each year is assigned to the above-referred animals, in accordance to a 12-year cycle:
The lunar calendar is 12 months long, with each month corresponding roughly to one cycle of the Moon's movement - from a new moon, through to a full Moon and back to a new Moon.
The lunar calendar is also known as the agricultural calendar as it divides the year into seasons. Agriculture was the principal economy of ancient China.
Even today, the lunar calendar still has great significance for the Chinese people, who use it to set the luckiest dates for traditional events and activities, such as weddings, funerals, launching new ventures and moving to a new house.
The next year is the "Year of the Rabbit" (2023):
According to Chinese astrology, Rabbits are predicted to be gentle, quiet, elegant, and alert as well as quick, skillful, kind, patient, and very responsible, sometimes reluctant to reveal their minds to others and having a tendency to escape reality, but always faithful to those around them.
Male Rabbits are characterised by always treating people politely, with a gentle smile that makes people feel that they are credible and sincere. When encountering tough difficulties, they are never discouraged but instead remain persistent in their endeavors to find solutions. This means they eventually achieve enviable success.
Female Rabbits are personified as follows - apart from having a pretty and demure appearance, they have a pure heart.
The Coin:
The Collection:
One of the oldest in the world, the Chinese calendar is a sun-and-moon calendar.
Months are set according to the moon, i.e., the first day of each month, is the new moon and the 15th day is the full moon. Because the solar year counts 12 lunar months plus a dozen of days, seven intercalary months are added over each 19 years, in order for the calendar year to stay within a solar year.
Creating the Chinese calendar collection is always an exercise in mysticism. Monnaie de Paris (The Paris Mint) has brought a French touch to it, creating this mixture of cultures.
Added to this are the character traits linked to the signs, which the Mint has tried to translate into a kind of anthropomorphism represented by the attitude expressed through each animal.
On the Reverse the 1/4€ (Euro) Coin is surrounded by plum blossom, a popular symbol in Chinese history, art, and lanterns, the rabbit’s depiction appeals to children.
The inscription "Year of the Rabbit" and the yeardate - "2023" appear at the center of the coin. The ideogram of the rabbit appears below.
On the Obverse the 1/4€ (Euro) Coin features all the animals of the Chinese Zodiac, drawn in a cartoon-like way around the Ying and Yang symbol.
A complete cycle of the Chinese zodiac will be composed from 2018 to 2029. Each of these twelve years features an animal from this calendar. The face value is visible in the center of the coin as well as the symbol "RF".
The specifications of the €200 Gold Coin are:
Name of the Country: Republic of France ("Republique Francaise"); Date/Year of issue: 17.01.2023; Coin Series Theme: "Chinese Zodiac"; Coin Theme: "Year of the Rabbit"; Coin Denomination: 1/4€ or 0.25€ (One-Fourth Euro); Mint: Monnaie de Paris (The Paris Mint); Metal Composition: Nordic Gold; Weight: 15.80 grams; Diameter/Size: 34.00 mm; Coin Quality: Uncirculated (U); Mintage: 500,000 pieces; Engraver: Année du Lapin; Shipped from: 17.01.2023.
For other interesting posts on honouring the work done for the blind/visually impaired persons please visit the following links:
1) A tour of Pune's Blind School and interaction with the students - a short story
2) A two-Rupee coin issued by the Indian Mints honouring Louis Braille on the occasion of his 200th Birth Anniversary in 2009 and a brief report on the Braille system
6) Honouring Louis Braille on the Bicentenary of his birth in 2009
Links to other posts in Metropolis Tiffany Art Coin Series:
Santosh Khanna has commented:
ReplyDelete"Nice informative post. Thanks for sharing."
Thank you so much, Khanna sahab.
DeleteRajan Trikha has commented:
ReplyDelete"Very Good."
Thank you, Trikha Sahab.
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