4240) Lilli Suburg (1841–1923), one of the first people in Estonia to publicly speak in favour of equal rights for women, Estonia: "Outstanding Women in Estonia" Coin Series: First Coin in the series minted by the Mint of Lithuania at their facilities in Vilnius and on behalf of the Bank of Estonia (Eesti Pank): Date/Year of Coin issue: 21.11.2025:
The Bank of Estonia has issued a 15 Euro Silver Collector Coin highlighting the contribution of "Outstanding Estonian women".
Suburg was a writer, journalist, schoolteacher and lecturer who is remembered as one of the first campaigners for women’s rights.
Suburg’s ideas and efforts were quite revolutionary for her time and would go on to found Linda, the first journal in Estonia aimed at women also as its first editor-in-chief.
The journal discussed the unequal position of women in society and looked for ways to improve it, encouraging women to seek an education and attempting to broaden their horizons while giving them inspiration and an example to follow.
Suburg also founded the first private school for girls and used innovative teaching methods to awaken the interest and curiosity of her pupils.
Her plan was to teach Estonian pupils in their own language, however there were with stringent regulations in place at that time.
The prohibiting of teaching anything other than religion in Estonian forced Suburg to open the institution as a German-language school.
Despite these impediments to an Estonian curriculum, Suburg took care to include noted Estonian authors such as Karl Robert Jakobson, Lydia Koidula and Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald in the courses to help her students develop a sense of their own cultural identity.
In 1859, Suburg was diagnosed with erysipelas, a common bacterial infection of the superficial layer of the skin.
The illness left scarring on Suburg's face and neck, from that time forward, she never allowed a photograph to be taken without a scarf covering the scars.
Towards the end of her life, Suburg was made an honorary member of the Tartu Women’s Society in 1916, though she was unable to attend the first women's congress held in Tartu in 1917.
On a visit to her sister Laura in Valga, she passed away on the 8 February 1923 and was buried in the Old Cemetery in Vändra, Estonia.
The Vändra Women's Society maintained her grave and in 1926, a monument to her memory was erected by the Union of Estonian Women's Organisations.
In 1982, a memorial plaque was affixed to the site which had housed her school and the editorial office of Linda in the city of Viljandi.
The Silver Proof quality coins have been minted by the Mint of Lithuania at their facilities in Vilnius and on behalf of the Bank of Estonia and designed by Tiiu Pirsko and Mati Veermets.
The Reverse of the 15 Euro Silver Proof Coin shows a stylised portrait of Lilli Suburg, replicated from a photograph taken of her in 1865 with a fitted scarf worn around her lower jaw and neck.
Her name Lilli Suburg is shown in a vertical direction on the left of her portrait along with the denomination 15€. The years of her birth and death, 1841 and 1923 is placed near the lower periphery.
The Obverse of the 15 Euro Silver Proof Coin shows the coat of arms of the Republic of Estonia placed to the left half of the coin. The text Eesti Vabariik is shown to the right of the crest and in a vertical direction with the year of issue, 2025 seen to the right of the text in a horizontal direction.
Denomination Metal Weight Diameter Quality Maximum Mintage
15 Euro .925 Silver 28.2 g. 38.6 mm. Proof 3000 pieces
- Available from the 21st November, each encapsulated coin is presented in a newly designed *custom case accompanied with a certificate of authenticity.
The coins are available from the e-webshop of Omniva and for in-person purchases at the museum gift shop of the Bank of Estonia.
*The coin is packaged in a coin box made of striped plywood that was created in a joint programme called LAETUS organised by the Bank of Estonia and the Estonian Academy of Arts.
The idea for the box came from Erkki Pung, a designer and student at the Academy.
This box is a test project that the central bank is using in order to find a sustainable, contemporary solution for packaging collector coins. The striped plywood made of layers of recycled wood gives each box a unique pattern and combines natural aesthetics with a durable and timeless form.
The coin box is a unique product that had not previously existed in the market and was made especially for the Lilli Suburg collector coin.
- Feedback from collecters about the experimental coin boxes will be taken into account in the packaging for future coins and the information gained will be used for all the coins to be issued in 2026.
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