On Monday, 16 November, it was announced by the Royal Mint of Spain that King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain are to be featured on a limited edition coin. The profiles of the royal couple are to appear on one side of the coin while Miguel Cervantes’ legendary folklore hero, Don Quixote is to be featured on the alternate side.
King Felipe was crowned in June of 2014 after the abdication of his 77-year-old father and predecessor, King Juan Carlos. The Spanish King was 47-years-old during his accession to the throne and this is the first time that he is appearing with his wife for the first time ever on a coin.
The limited edition coin which is priced at 30 Euros not only is to celebrate the monarchs of Spain but to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the second edition of Don Quixote, which was published in 1615. Since it is a limited edition coin, it is made out of silver which increases its value significantly. Around 1 million coins have been created by the Royal Mint of Spain in celebration of The King and Queen of Spain.
On the side of the coin that features the royal couple, it will have the year as well as their names. On the alternate side, Don Quixote is astride his faithful steed, Rocinante as his crony Sancho Panza kneels at their side. Looming off in the distance is a windmill, something that Don Quixote has set his sights on. Cervantes’s classic takes place in the Castilla-La Mancha region, a place where there are an abundance of windmills.
Since King Felipe’s ascension to the throne, there has been no coin commemorating the couple. With the release of this coin, it is an exciting new landmark for the Spanish monarchy and for the country of Spain itself.
This story is almost a week old. Though to be honest, so little has been published on this site in the past few weeks I’m surprised to see anything written at all. It’s advertised as a news site but major stories are just missed altogether and instead you headline a story from Hello that’s days old. Odd.