Bank of Canada - Currency Museum

The New Euro
Come to the Currency Museum's Collector’s Corner to see The New Euro, a display on the bank notes and coins, that came into circulation in the Euro Zone on 1 January 2002. While the seven euro bank notes are identical for the twelve participating countries, the coins have one common side that is the same for all countries in the euro zone and one national side that features specific designs for each country.

Locate (mouse over) the countries featured on the map of the euro zone to see the designs for euro coins of each of the twelve nations. The country-specific coins can be spent anywhere in the euro zone. Find out also how the value of one euro was pegged against each country’s former currency.

Euro bank notes and coins, in
circulation since 1 January 2002, are now the sole currency for the twelve countries that have joined the euro zone. While the seven euro bank notes are identical, the coins have one common side that is the same for all the nations in the euro zone and one national side that features specific designs for each country. One can, however, spend any euro coin anywhere in the euro zone.

A portrait of the Monarch, King Albert II

1 euro = 40.34 Belgian francs

The Federal Eagle, a national emblem.

1 euro = 1.96 German marks

A portrait of King Carlos I de Borbon y Borbon

1 euro = 166.39 Spanish pesetas

The Athenian Owl from a fifth-century BC Greek coin

1 euro = 341 drachma

A tree symbolizing life, continuity and growth, surrounded by the motto of the Republic "Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité.;"

1 euro = 6.56 French francs

The celtic harp, a national symbol of Ireland

1 euro = 0.79 Irish pound

A Leonardo da Vinci drawing illustrating the ideal proportions of the human body

1 euro = 1936 lira

The profile of His Royal Highness, the Grand Duke Henri.

1 euro = 40.34 Luxembourg francs

A profile of Queen Beatrix

1 euro = 2.20 Dutch guilder

A portrait of the famous Austrian composer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

1 euro = 13.76 Austrian schilling

The country's castles and coats of arms - The centrepiece is the royal seal of 1144

1 euro = 200 Portuguese escudos

A motif depicting two flying swans, designed to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the independence of Finland

1 euro = 5.95 Finnish markka