The equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius, resettled by Michelangelo on the Piazza del Campidoglio, which has a rosaceous paving, surrounded by the 12 stars of the European Union; on the upper right the overlapping letters 'R' and 'I'; on the upper left the letter 'R'; on the bottom centre date, on the bottom right the author's initial 'm'.

The existing design of the Piazza del Campidoglio and the surrounding palazzi was created by Renaissance artist and architect Michelangelo Buonarroti in 1536–1546. At the height of his fame, he was commissioned by the Farnese Pope Paul III.

The equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius is an ancient Roman statue in the Campidoglio, Rome, Italy. It is made of bronze and stands 4.24 m tall. The original is on display in the Capitoline Museums, with the one now standing in the open air of the Piazza del Campidoglio being a replica made in 1981 when the original was taken down for restoration.

Marcus Aurelius (121–180 AD) was Emperor of Rome from 161 to 180. He ruled with Lucius Verus as co-emperor from 161 until Verus' death in 169. Marcus Aurelius was the last of the so-called Five Good Emperors. He was a practitioner of Stoicism, and his untitled writing, commonly known as Meditations, is a significant source of the modern understanding of ancient Stoic philosophy, and is considered by many commentators to be one of the greatest works of philosophy.

Engraver: Roberto Mauri

A geographical map of Western Europe spans the outer ring and inner core on the left side of the coin.

12 stars are located on the left 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 “0” in “50.”