Italian 20 Lira Gold Coins are treasured among collectors for their exquisite design, historical significance and cultural legacy. These coins mark the founding of modern Italy with its unifying Kingdom and monarchy, ushering in an exciting era of European nation building.
Although these coins do not meet the IRS requirement of having a fineness standard of 99.5 for inclusion in an IRA, they make great additions to retirement, investment and world coin collections.
History
The gold lira is an artifact from the Ottoman Empire, which once covered much of Arabia before disintegrating following World War I. These coins remain legal tender in Turkey today despite having significantly less value than their gold content.
These gold coins feature an eye-catching obverse design featuring Tugra, an Islamic calligraphic monogram of Ottoman Turkish Sultan. It’s surrounded by torches and laurel twigs as a sign of power and victory.
Collectors find these gold coins captivating due to their historical appeal as symbols of Italy’s young kingdom and monarchy in the late 1800s. Just as modern Germany uses one currency called the German Mark today, understanding their features, history, and significance can help investors and collectors make informed purchases when purchasing timeless symbols of wealth and power.
Design
The 20-lira gold coin is an intriguing part of Italian numismatic history. With its exquisite design and links to the Italian monarchy, it has long been prized among collectors of numismatic items.
These historical coins date back to the birth of modern Italy as both a kingdom and nation. The obverse featured a mustache-wearing portrait of King Umberto I with its denomination “REGNO D’ITALIA” and minting date inscribed. Later-minted designs featured more well-known images depicting Italian liberties; each coin clearly specified both denomination and year of minting on its reverse face.
Turkish traders referred to gold kurus coins as piastre or qrwsh (- prh). These historic coins feature stunning calligraphy on both their reverse and obverse surfaces; on one side is written “Tugra,” the monogram for Ottoman Sultan and surrounded by laurel leaves on the other.
Purity
Purity refers to the quality of being free from anything that contaminates, or “untainted.” A glass of pure water is pure because it hasn’t been polluted with other substances; similarly, gold refined to remove its impurities is pure as well. Purity also has great significance within Scripture because it speaks of holiness.
Many people conflate purity with sexual abstinence and moral behavior; wearing purity rings as a show of their commitment to saving sex for marriage may even symbolize this principle of godliness; however, true purity encompasses more than this! Rather, it should guide every aspect of our lives: thoughts, words and deeds alike.
Italian 20 Lira Gold Coins make for an intriguing historical piece to add to any bullion collection, representing modern Italy as an independent kingdom and nation. While they don’t meet the IRS standard of 99.5 gold purity for retirement or investment accounts, collectors still love these collectible coins which make excellent additions to any bullion portfolio.
Value
Italian 20 Lira Gold Coins are highly sought-after collectible pieces, both due to their intricate designs and historical associations with the unified kingdom’s monetary history. However, their true market value fluctuates daily depending on global gold prices.
On the obverse side of these coins is a portrait of their current monarch or queen; early designs featured King Umberto I of Italy while later issues featured more recognizable faces such as that of Vittorio Emanuele II.
On the reverse of each coin is displayed the national coat of arms with wreath or name of country designs enclosing emblem. Either way, its denomination and year of minting can be found prominently displayed within its center.