Description

The 2024 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad, and commonly known as Paris 2024, is an international multi-sport event that is scheduled to take place from 26 July to 11 August 2024 in Paris, France. Having previously played host in 1900 and 1924, Paris will become the second city to host the Olympics three times, after London (1908, 1948 and 2012). 2024 will mark the centenary of the Paris Games of 1924 and the sixth Olympic Games hosted by France (three in summer and three in winter).

Following the postponement of the Tokyo Olympic Games, the year 2021 officially marks the beginning of the countdown to the Paris Games. It is the handing over of the Olympic flag during the closing ceremony of the previous Games that marks the starting point of a new era of Games in France. 2021 was also the first year of a quadrilogy in which sport and its values will be honored through the Monnaie de Paris' coin and medallions collections. To mark the countdown to the launch of the Games, Monnaie de Paris issued a €2 commemorative coin for four years from 2021. These coins highlighted the Olympic Games through famous French numismatic figures.

Obverse

Depicts the Eiffel Tower in a dynamic stride, flanked by the coloured Tahitian gardenia on the left and the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics logo at the base. Adjacent to the logo are the mint mark and the general engraver privy mark. Positioned above is the monogram "RF" representing the French Republic. The backdrop features the athletics track on the left and the Basilica of Notre-Dame of la Garde on the right. The twelve stars of the European flag are shown on the outer ring of the coin.

The Eiffel Tower, an iron lattice landmark in Paris, France, epitomizes Gustave Eiffel's engineering brilliance. Erected for the 1889 World's Fair, it faced initial criticism but evolved into a global icon. At 324 meters (1,063 ft) tall, with a 125-meter (410 ft) square base, it's Paris's tallest structure and the world's most-visited paid monument, boasting three visitor levels and the EU's highest observation deck at 276 meters (906 ft).

Notre-Dame de la Garde, the 'Good Mother' basilica in Marseille, France, atop a 149-meter (489 ft) natural peak, symbolizes the city. Built over 40 years from 1853, architect Espérandieu oversaw its transformation from chapel to grand basilica, with a lower Romanesque church and upper Neo-Byzantine adorned with mosaics. Its bell tower, housing a monumental Madonna and Child statue, underwent restoration from 2001 to 2008.

Gardenia taitensis, the Tahitian gardenia or tiaré flower, thrives as a tropical shrub reaching 4 meters (10 ft), with glossy leaves and fragrant, pinwheel-shaped blooms. Native to the South Pacific, it's cultivated in French Polynesia and the Cook Islands, despite not being native to Tahiti. Its scientific name, Gardenia taitensis, and English names originate from 19th-century botanical collections, tracing its roots to Melanesia and Western Polynesia.

Mint mark of the Paris Mint (Monnaie de Paris in Pessac): Cornucopia (horn of plenty)

Privy mark of the General Engraver of the Paris Mint: Two nested squares superimposed on a rhinoceros head (Joaquin Jimenez)

RF
2024
PARIS 2024

Reverse

A geographical map of Western Europe spans the outer ring and inner core on the right side of the coin. The inscription 2 EURO is superimposed over the map of Europe, with the numeral “2” located in an open field representing the eastern Atlantic Ocean.

12 stars are located on the right side of the outer ring, with six stars atop the map of Europe and six stars below it; six vertical stripes cut across the inner core of the coin, visually connecting the upper and lower star segments.

Luc Luycx, a designer at the Royal Belgian Mint, designed the Euro’s common reverse; his initials, LL, are seen on the right side of the design, just under the “O” in “EURO.”

2 EURO
LL

Edge

The sequence "2 ★ ★" repeated six times alternately upright and inverted

2 ★ ★ 2 ★ ★ 2 ★ ★ 2 ★ ★ 2 ★ ★ 2 ★ ★

Characteristics
Type Commemorative Issue (Circulating)
Material Bi-Metallic
Ring Cupronickel
Center Nickel Brass
Weight 8.5 g
Diameter 25.75 mm
Thickness 2.2 mm
Shape round
Alignment Medal
Mint
Paris Mint (A)

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