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CC 278 2017
2 euro coin
BU Main coin Bank issue
2 Euro BU
Greece · 60 years of remembrance of Nikos Kazantzakis
Mintage744,000
Issue date10 Jul 2017
Edge letteringΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΔΗΜΟΚΡΑΤΙΑ + ★
Market price€6.56
Issue occasion
The coin commemorates the 60th death anniversary of Nikos Kazantzakis, one of the most important Greek writers of the 20th century. The design shows his profile portrait, surrounded by the Greek inscriptions “HELLENIC REPUBLIC” and “NIKOS KAZANTZAKIS”, as well as a palmette as the symbol of the Greek mint and the monogram of the coin designer George Stamatopoulos.
The design
The inner part of the coin features the profile portrait of Nikos Kazantzakis, one of Greece’s most important writers of the 20th century. Along the inner circle, on the left, the inscriptions “HELLENIC REPUBLIC” and “NIKOS KAZANTZAKIS” (in Greek) can be read. The year of issue “2017” is engraved at the top, and a palmette, the mint mark of the Greek mint, is engraved in the middle on the left. The monogram of the coin designer (George Stamatopoulos) is also located at the bottom right.
The twelve stars of the European flag are depicted on the outer ring of the coin.
The twelve stars of the European flag are depicted on the outer ring of the coin.
Background on the topic
Nikos Kazantzakis was born in 1883 in Iraklio on Crete, which at the time still belonged to the Ottoman Empire. The uprisings against Ottoman rule and the subsequent union of Crete with Greece shaped his historical context. After studying law in Athens, he studied philosophy in Paris. Extensive travels through Europe, Asia and the Middle East broadened his perspective on religions, political ideas and different ways of life.
Kazantzakis wrote novels, dramas, travelogues, essays and poems and also worked as a translator. In his texts, he combined subjects from ancient Greece and the Orthodox tradition with contemporary philosophical and political questions. Recurring themes include freedom, faith, doubt, physical experience and the conflict between spiritual aspirations and human needs. His epic poem “The Odyssey” (Odyssee) continues the story of the Homeric hero after his return to Ithaca.
Kazantzakis became internationally known above all through his novels. “Zorba the Greek” (Alexis Sorbas) depicts the encounter between a reserved intellectual and the earthy, contradictory Sorbas. The 1964 film adaptation contributed significantly to the worldwide dissemination of the story. “Captain Michalis” (Kapitän Michalis) deals with the Cretan resistance against Ottoman rule. “The Last Temptation of Christ” (Die letzte Versuchung Christi) portrays Jesus in an inner struggle between human desires and his religious mission. This depiction provoked fierce ecclesiastical and public controversies.
Kazantzakis died in 1957 in Freiburg im Breisgau and was buried on a bastion of the Venetian fortifications of Iraklio. His grave bears the words: “I hope for nothing. I fear nothing. I am free.”
The choice of the commemorative occasion relates to Kazantzakis’ place in Greece’s cultural memory and to his international reception. The round anniversary of his death provided a specific occasion to honour an author whose work connects Greek history and tradition with broader questions concerning freedom, religion and human existence.
Kazantzakis wrote novels, dramas, travelogues, essays and poems and also worked as a translator. In his texts, he combined subjects from ancient Greece and the Orthodox tradition with contemporary philosophical and political questions. Recurring themes include freedom, faith, doubt, physical experience and the conflict between spiritual aspirations and human needs. His epic poem “The Odyssey” (Odyssee) continues the story of the Homeric hero after his return to Ithaca.
Kazantzakis became internationally known above all through his novels. “Zorba the Greek” (Alexis Sorbas) depicts the encounter between a reserved intellectual and the earthy, contradictory Sorbas. The 1964 film adaptation contributed significantly to the worldwide dissemination of the story. “Captain Michalis” (Kapitän Michalis) deals with the Cretan resistance against Ottoman rule. “The Last Temptation of Christ” (Die letzte Versuchung Christi) portrays Jesus in an inner struggle between human desires and his religious mission. This depiction provoked fierce ecclesiastical and public controversies.
Kazantzakis died in 1957 in Freiburg im Breisgau and was buried on a bastion of the Venetian fortifications of Iraklio. His grave bears the words: “I hope for nothing. I fear nothing. I am free.”
The choice of the commemorative occasion relates to Kazantzakis’ place in Greece’s cultural memory and to his international reception. The round anniversary of his death provided a specific occasion to honour an author whose work connects Greek history and tradition with broader questions concerning freedom, religion and human existence.
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