4331) " Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince)", République Française (or The French Republic), France: Monnaie de Paris (The Paris Mint) has issued €2 (BU) and Reverse Proof Coins which celebrate the 80th Anniversary (1846 - 2026) of The Little Prince Literary Character: Date/Year of Coin issue: 29.01.2026:
Links to posts on this Blog on The Little Prince:
The Monnaie de Paris has released a €2 (Two Euro) Commemorative Coin on the 80th Anniversary of the popular publication.
The stories of the Little Prince were created in 1942 by the French poet and aviator who made his first flight in 1912 and which began his passion for aviation.
He studied architecture until he joined the French Air Force service in 1921 while living in Strasbourg.
A 1923 plane accident in Le Bourget demobilised him, and it was at this time that his writing career began.
In 1931, he published his second book, "Vol de nuit" and from 1932 on, he focussed on writing and journalism, occasionally reporting on major events, while also remaining a test and air-raid pilot.
After the invasion of the Third Reich in 1940, an armistice was signed on the 22nd June 1940 and during this time, he left France bound for New York with the aim of enlisting or convincing the Americans to enter the fighting.
It was at this time that de Saint Exupéry wrote Le Petit Prince while living in New York City.
The Story Line of the Little Prince:
The simple tale tells the story of a child, the little prince, a youngster from another galaxy who travels the universe gaining wisdom.
The Little Prince draws sometimes unflattering portraits of grown-ups as being hopelessly narrow-minded. In contrast, children come to wisdom through open-mindedness and a willingness to explore the world around them and within themselves.
The story is written in the style of a narrator who introduces himself as a man who learned when he was a child that adults lack imagination and understanding.
Now a pilot, he has crash-landed in a desert and there he encounters a small boy who he refers to as the little prince.
The author learns that the boy comes from a very small planet, which the narrator believes to be asteroid B-612. Over the course of the next few days, the little prince tells the narrator about his life.
On his asteroid-planet, which is no bigger than a house and, after several adventures and dilemmas, the story resumes six years later.
The narrator surmises that the Little Prince returned to his planet and ends his story by imploring the reader to contact him if they ever spot the little prince.
In April 1943, Saint Exupéry returned to duty in aviation and was stationed in Tunisia.
In the spring of 1944, he joined a unit in charge of photographic reconnaissance in preparation for the Allied landings in the south of France.
Sadly, Saint Exupéry did not see the liberation of his country, having died after crashing his plane at sea on the July 31st 1944, but his plane was not found until 2000.
His story was first published in English and French in the US by Reynal & Hitchcock in April 1943, and posthumously in France following the country’s liberation as Saint-Exupéry's works had been banned by the Vichy Regime.
Published in 1945 and released the following year, the works have since been translated into more than 300 languages and dialects, selling an estimated 140 million copies worldwide, which has made this story one of the best-selling and most translated books ever published.
All of the novella's simple but elegant watercolour illustrations, which were integral to the story, were also painted by Saint-Exupéry.
In tribute to the works of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, the Little Prince and its author were highlighted on France’s last legacy franc-denominated bank note series. The 50-franc note issued in 1997 featured a portrait of Saint-Exupéry on the Reverse, along with a rendition of the Little Prince.
The story has been made into a feature length anime-film that was released in 2015 and has served as the inspiration for a “Petit Prince” theme park of 23 hectares located in Alsace.
The Reverse or the national side of the 2 Euro Commemorative Coin includes a depiction of the official logo of the 80th Anniversary of the release of The Little Prince in France.
- The design includes an image of the Little Prince deep in thought. Behind him is the large numeral 80 referring to the anniversary.
- Above him is the inscription Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince) shown in the stylised form familiar in the artwork of the publication.
- The initials "RF" representing "République Française" ("French Republic") and two hallmarks are seen above the commemorative text.
- Below the Little Prince is the year "2026" indicating the year of release.
The Obverse of the 2 Euro Commemorative Coin is that of the standard Euro-zone design for all circulating 2 Euro coins created by artist Luc Luycx. The numeral ‘2’ is superimposed over a map depicting Europe.
Denomination Metal Weight Diameter Quality Mintage Limit
2 Euro X 4 Bi-metallic
8.5 g. 25.7 mm. BU 75,000 each
2 Euro Bi-metallic 8.5 g. 25.7 mm. Proof 15,000 pieces
2 Euro Bi-metallic 8.5 g. 25.7 mm. Reverse Proof 5000 pieces
- - Available from the 29th January, the BU €2
coins are presented in a sealed coin-card format in four varieties of design.
- - The Proof coins are encapsulated and
presented in a custom Mint-branded case accompanied with a Certificate of Authenticity
(COA).
Links to posts on this Blog on The Little Prince:
Links to Posts on Concorde Supersonic Airliner:
Links:
1) For more on the Olympics and Paralympics held in the past, including the origins and history of the Olympics and Commemorative coins issued both on London Olympics and Paralympics please read my post on the London Olympics 2012 link as follows: History of the ancient & modern Olympics and Paralympics & commemorative coins issued during the London Olympics and Paralympics
4) For Rio 2016, please click on the following link to get interesting insights into the mascots of the Rio Olympics Vinicius and Tom, the Games and the Commemorative Coins and stamps issue programme: 1)The 31st Summer Olympics "Rio 2016"2) Commemorative Stamps and booklets issued by the Department of Posts, India on 05.08.2016
5) For Ancient Olympic Games on Greek Coins of Antiquity, please click on the following link: Ancient Olympic Games on Greek Coins of Antiquity
6) For a set of Post cards titled "Olympic Events" : please click on the following link: "Olympic Events": A set of 12 Post Cards issued by the Karnataka Postal Circle, India Post on 11.07.2016
7) For a presentation set of two stamps titled "Spirit of Olympics, Athens, Atlanta" please visit the following link: Spirit of the Olympic Games, Athens-Atlanta: Celebrating the Centenary of the Modern Olympic Games
8) For a presentation set of four stamps titled "XXVIII Olympic Games" (2004 Summer Olympics Athens, Greece, please visit the following link: XVIII Summer Olympic Games, Athens Greece (2004)
9) For a presentation set of two stamps titled "XXIX Olympic Games" (2008 Summer Olympics, Beijing, China, please visit the following link: XXIX Olympic Games Beijing, China: 08.08.08- 24.08.08: A Presentation set of four stamps issued by India Post on 08.08.08
Links to the Mutiny on the Bounty Coins/Stamps:
Links to other posts in Metropolis Tiffany Art Coin Series:
Rajan Trikha has commented:
ReplyDelete"Very Nice ".
Thank you so much, Trikha sahab.
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