| Description : The commemorative coin was designed by Vladas
Oržekauskas, the pre‐production plaster model was created by Giedrius Paulaukis. It is dedicated to
Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, as a city of culture and art ‐ since 1994 UNESCO World Heritage Site and 2009
European Capital of Culture. In the foreground on the right is the roof of the Church of St. Francis
(Šv. Pranciškaus Asyžiečio), built in the early 16th century out of brick in the
Gothic style. The central motif of the coin is the town's landmark, the freestanding bell tower of the University Church
of St. John, which was built in the Renaissance period. After the fire of 1737 is was redesigned in the Baroque style
around 1740 by Johann Chrstoph Glaubitz, who was appointed as the master builder, and raised by two floors to 68 metres.
On the right towards the rear is the Church of the Assumption of St. Catherine (Šv. Kotrynos Baznycia),
rebuilt by the same master builder around 1741‐1743 in the late Baroque style. On the left, the onion domes of the
Russian Orthodox Church of St. Michael and St. Konstatin, built in 1913 and called the "Romanov Church". At the
top, in a semicircle, are the words "VILNIUS", "LIETUVA" (Lithuania), "2017" and the circular mint mark "LMK" of the
Lithuanian mint Lietuvos monetų kalykla in Vilnius. |
