Estonia 1 Sent 1939

History

Obverse. Photo © Coins.ee

Description

The 1 sent coin was first issued by the Republic of Estonia in 1929. It is the lowest-denominated coin of the kroon ever issued, holding a value of one hundredth of a kroon before being demonetized in 1940.

The kroon became the currency of Estonia on 1 January 1928 after having been a unit of account since 1924. It replaced the mark at a rate of 100 mark = 1 kroon. The kroon was subdivided into 100 senti. In 1924, the kroon was pegged to the Swedish krona at par, with a gold standard of 2480 kroon = 1 kilogram of pure gold. The standard received real coverage with the reserves backing the kroon.

Obverse	Animal (fish, bird, mammal etc.) Lion Coat of arms Estonia Three passant gardant lions similar to those displayed on the Estonian coat of arms are featured on the coin's obverse, accompanied by an inscription representing the date of issue. After the proclamation of independence on the 24th of February 1918, the three lions of the coat of arms of the Government of Estonia were placed on the newly minted coins of the Republic. The lions are passant guardant again like in the coat of arms of Duke Otto (the second son of Christoffer II, Prince of Denmark, Duke of Estonia and Laaland), but not crowned. In fact it is this coat of arms that came to be the coat of arms of Estonia because it appears on the seal of the city of Reval (Tallinn) used from 1340 until 1390. On this seal the coat of arms is supported by duke Otto himself. One of the lions symbolizes the courage of the fight for freedom in ancient times. The second stands for the courage in the uprisings in Harjumaa in 1343. The third represents the courage of the Estonian fight for freedom between 1918-1920. Design by Günther Reindorff. 1939
Reverse	Encircling the numeral is the full title of the Republic of Estonia (EESTI VABARIIK) and the coin's value in Estonian (ÜKS SENT). Design by Georg Vestenberg. EESTI VABARIIK 1 ·ÜKS SENT·
Edge	Plain