TWO SILVER COINS AND THREE MINTS

Prvi srebrni novčići Kraljevine SHS i Kraljevine Jugoslavije su 10 i 20 dinara na kojima se nalazi 1931. kao godina kovanja. Ovaj novac iskovan je u 32,5 miliona komada u ukupnoj nominalnoj vrednosti od 450 miliona dinara. U 20 miliona komada iskovan je novac od 10 dinara, a 20 dinara u 12,5 miliona komada. U Kraljevskoj kovnici u Londonu iskovano je 16 miliona komada srebrnjaka od 10 dinara, a u Pariskoj kovnici 4 miliona komada. U Kovnici AD u Beogradu iskovano je 12,5 miliona kovanica od 20 dinara. U opticaj su puštene 18. jula 1932. godine. Kovanice od 20 dinara povlačene su iz opticaja od 16. avgusta 1939. do 16. avgusta 1940. godine, a kovanice od 10 dinara od 31. maja do 31. avgusta 1940. godine. Na licu novčića prikazan je profil kralja Aleksandra Karađorđevića, a na naličju grb Kraljevine Jugoslavije. Kovanica od 10 dinara teška je 7g i ima prečnik od 25mm, dok je kovanica od 20 dinara teška 14g i ima prečnik od 31mm.


Pariska kovnica
Pariska kovnica je jedna od najstarijih ustanova u Francuskoj. Osnovana je 864. godine po nalogu francuskog kralja Karla II Ćelavog (823-877) i od tada je, kao i danas, kovnica državne valute, Pantelić S. Two Silver Coins and Three Mints A lthough there are no original documents confirming where the 10and 20-dinar silver coins were minted, the consolidated opinions from various money catalogues can still justifiably confirm that they were produced in three mints: the Royal Mint in London, the Paris Mint and Kovnica a.d. Belgrade. These coins, bearing the year 1931 as the year of minting, were the first silver coins of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes and the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
The Law on Minting 10-and 20-Dinar Silver Coins was adopted on 28 November 1931. In accordance with this Law, the Minister of Finance was authorised to conclude a contract with one or more mints with the best offer. This state issued money was planned to be minted in 32.5 pieces (20 million 10-dinar coins and 12.5 million 20-dinar coins) in the total nominal value of 450 million dinars. The Law also stipulated: the mass, silver content in the alloy, tolerance in the silver's mass, size and description of the silver coins.
The Minister of Finance was required by the Law to determine the remaining content of the alloy, aside from the silver, and to procure the silver from the National Bank, by buying out old silver from the citizens at the market price, or, if necessary, by purchasing it from abroad.
The planned amount of coins was minted: 16 million 10-dinar coins in the Royal Mint in London, and a total of 4 million coins in the Paris Mint. The Kovnica a.d. Belgrade mint produced 12.5 million 20-dinar silver coins.

Kovnica a.d. Belgrade
Unlike the mints in London and Paris, not much is known about this mint. We know that it minted golden coins for the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and some other coins in circulation. It was the family mint of the Bošković brothers. There is no reliable information on how this Belgrade mint ceased to exist. Unconfirmed sources state that it was shut down due to financial difficulties, or that it was demolished during the bombing of Belgrade on 6 April 1941.

The Royal Mint in London
In 1986, the Royal Mint celebrated 11 centuries since its establishment. The first written evidence of the Royal Mint was found in documents dated 1279-1281, which mention the construction of the mint's building in London. Its most famous warden was the famous physicist Isaac Newton (1642-1712). He spent 28 years at that position, until he passed away. Newton came to the mint at a highly inopportune time, while England was facing an economic collapse, among other things, due to illegal proceeding with coins. Namely, over 20% of all coins were forgeries, and only a half of all coins had the correct mass. Newton directed all his capabilities and authority into punishing those who clipped golden and silver coins, thus leading to their loss in value, as well as those who forged coins. He changed the pound sterling from the gold to the silver standard, creating a link between the golden and silver penny, based on the law of Queen Anne. These were the significant reform that brought stability to the English economy. Due to these results, Newton was knighted in 1705.

Withdrawn from Circulation in 1940
As is stated in its annual report, the National Bank had received silver coins in the nominal value of 419,200,000 dinars, by the end of 1932, and by 5 August 1933 it had received 30,800,000 dinars worth of silver coins. They were released into circulation via the National Bank by the Minister of Finance on 18 July 1932. The 20-dinar coins were withdrawn from circulation in period from 16 August 1939 until 16 August 1940, while the 10-dinar coins we withdrawn between 31 May and 31 August 1940.

The Golden Coins from 1931
I n 1931, as well as in the following years, commemorative golden coins were minted: single and quadruple ducats. However, these coins were not considered as national currency, since the monetary unit of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia was the dinar. In the Rulebook on the minting of ducats with the images of King Aleksandar and Queen Marija Karađorđević and their release in circulation, it is stipulated in Article 4 Paragraph 2 that "ducats are not money, but goods".
The single ducats feature the portrait of King Aleksandar I Karađorđević on the obverse, and the national coat of arms of the reverse. The main characteristics are: composition 98.61% Au and 1.39% Cu, diameter 39.5mm, mass 13.96g, grooved edge.
Seeing how the ducats were not currency, but goods, they featured state markings -marks guaranteeing the purity of gold: wheat, birds and a sword. The single ducats with the portrait of King Aleksandar from 1931 were emitted in series of 150,000 and 50,000 coins, the ducats from 1932 in 70,000 coins, the ducats from 1933 in 40,000 coins and those from 1934 had 4,000 coins emitted. The authors of all these ducats from different years were: Richard Placht and Josept Prinz.

The Double-Headed Eagle
T he eagle has appeared as a symbol of strength, courage and victory since the 6 th century BC, on the coins from Macedonia, Greece and Rome, in the provinces and the colonies, i.e. throughout the ancient world. On those coins, the eagle is shown as a representation of the supreme god of the Greco-Roman pantheon Zeus or Jupiter. This symbolism persisted throughout the middle ages, until the modern times, in the form of the double-headed eagle. Today, this symbol is present in the heraldry and numismatics of many countries in the world, where it represents sovereignty and statehood.
In the mid-8 th century, a double-headed eagle appeared in our, country under Byzantine influence, on the ceremonial clothing of rulers from the Nemanjić dynasty. In addition to clothing, this symbol is found on other items: seals, rings, silverware, but also on money. According to data from the 10 th and 12 th centuries, double -headed eagles were accepted by Serbian rulers who received high titles from Byzantine emperors. At first, eagles were accepted in Serbia more as a mark of individual court dignity and were not present on anyone's personal coat of arms. During the reign of Emperor Dušan, it often appeared on clothes, jewellery and other objects. Probably in the mid-14 th century, the West considered the double-headed eagle to be the coat of arms of the Nemanjić dynasty. The doubleheaded eagle was used by numerous despots on their coins: Jovan Oliver, Jovan Uglješa, Stefan Lazarević and Đurađ Branković.