- Obverse: The crowned coat of arms of the Republic of San Marino is centered within a wreath composed of an oak branch and an olive branch. The arms show a blue (azure) shield bearing three green mountains—representing the three peaks of Monte Titano—each surmounted by a silver tower. The three towers are the historic citadels of San Marino: Guaita (the oldest), Cesta, and Montale. Each tower is topped with a silver ostrich plume (feather). A closed crown surmounts the shield, symbolizing the republic’s sovereignty.
- Reverse: Within an olive wreath appears the denomination “1 LIRA” above the date “1898,” with the Rome mintmark “R” in the exergue (below). The design is clean and uncluttered, emphasizing the value and date while the olive wreath reinforces themes of peace and republican virtue. The edge inscription “LIBERTAS” is a direct reference to San Marino’s long-standing motto and self-identity as a land of liberty—a place that historically offered refuge to political exiles (including figures associated with the Italian Risorgimento, most famously Giuseppe Garibaldi at one point).
Historical Context of this 1898 Issue:
San Marino is one of the world’s oldest continuous republics, traditionally founded in 301 AD by the Christian stonecutter Marinus (Saint Marinus) on Monte Titano. It preserved its independence through the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Napoleonic era, and the unification of Italy in the 19th century.
In 1862 San Marino signed a treaty of friendship and good-neighborly relations with the newly formed Kingdom of Italy. This agreement recognized San Marino’s sovereignty and established a framework for monetary cooperation. Under the monetary convention, San Marino could issue its own coins provided they matched Italian standards of weight, fineness, and the decimal system; the Sammarinese Lira was pegged 1:1 to the Italian Lira and circulated freely in Italy as well.
The first Sammarinese coins were copper pieces beginning in 1864. Silver coinage came much later. In the mid-1890s the Grand and General Council authorized the minting of silver (and theoretically gold) coins. A revised understanding with Italy around 1897 limited large-scale production—especially of gold—so the 1898 issue remained modest in total face value (on the order of 150,000 Lire across the silver denominations). The coins were struck at the Rome Mint because San Marino had no mint of its own; operating one would have been uneconomical for such a small state.
The 1898 silver series (50 Centesimi, 1 Lira, 2 Lire, and 5 Lire) thus represents the first time the modern republic issued silver circulation coinage. It was both a practical currency issue and a symbolic assertion of monetary sovereignty within the protective orbit of Italy. Subsequent silver issues were limited; the 1 Lira type was repeated only in 1906 before later 20th-century changes in design and, eventually, the adoption of the euro.
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