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CC 313 2018
2 euro coin
BU Main coin Bank issue
2 Euro BU
Portugal · 250 years of Imprensa Nacional
Mintage430,500
Issue date22 May 2018
Edge lettering5 Wappenschilde + 7 castles, evenly distributed
Market price€3.90
Issue occasion
The coin commemorates the 250th anniversary of the National Printing Office “Imprensa Nacional”, which publishes the Portuguese official gazette as well as culturally significant books and other works. The design features the inscription “1768-2018 IMPRENSA NACIONAL DUZENTOS E CINQUENTA 250 ANOS PORTUGAL MMXVIII”, whose letters and numbers are arranged like books displayed in a library. The artist’s name “Eudardo Aires” and the mintmark “INCM” appear along the lower edge.
The design
The coin’s design features the inscription “1768-2018 IMPRENSA NACIONAL DUZENTOS E CINQUENTA 250 ANOS PORTUGAL MMXVIII”, depicted as though the letters and numbers were books displayed in a library. At the bottom of the inner part of the coin, the artist’s name “Eudardo Aires” appears on the left and the mint mark “INCM” on the right. The National Printing Office publishes the Portuguese official gazette containing all legislative measures of the country, as well as books of the highest cultural value and other cultural works.
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
The roots of the Imprensa Nacional lie in the reign of King José I and in the reforms of his minister Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, the later Marquês de Pombal. Following the Lisbon earthquake of 1755, the Portuguese administration was comprehensively reorganized and more strongly centralized. In this context, a royal printing house was established, initially referred to as Impressão Régia or Régia Oficina Tipográfica.
The institution was intended to provide the state with its own technical and human resources for printing official texts. At the same time, typesetting, type casting, printing and graphic design were among its fields of work. The printing house was therefore not merely an administrative operation, but also part of the state-supported culture of books and writing. Its history reflects Portugal’s political changes: after several changes of name and organization, an institution of the monarchy became an enterprise of the modern Portuguese state.
A central function of state printing houses is the authoritative publication of legal provisions. Laws and regulations must be publicly accessible so that their wording can be definitively established. Official printing provides an authorized version for this purpose. In addition, the Imprensa Nacional published literary, scientific and historical texts for a long period, thereby contributing to the preservation and dissemination of Portuguese-language works.
The current abbreviation INCM refers to the connection with the Casa da Moeda, the Portuguese mint. In 1972, the two institutions were merged to form the Imprensa Nacional-Casa da Moeda. As a result, the company combines tasks in official publishing with the production of coins and other state security products.
The anniversary lent itself to being commemorated on a coin because the institution is connected both with the public announcement of state decisions and directly with Portuguese coin minting. The typographic design of the motif refers to its work with type, printing and book production.
The institution was intended to provide the state with its own technical and human resources for printing official texts. At the same time, typesetting, type casting, printing and graphic design were among its fields of work. The printing house was therefore not merely an administrative operation, but also part of the state-supported culture of books and writing. Its history reflects Portugal’s political changes: after several changes of name and organization, an institution of the monarchy became an enterprise of the modern Portuguese state.
A central function of state printing houses is the authoritative publication of legal provisions. Laws and regulations must be publicly accessible so that their wording can be definitively established. Official printing provides an authorized version for this purpose. In addition, the Imprensa Nacional published literary, scientific and historical texts for a long period, thereby contributing to the preservation and dissemination of Portuguese-language works.
The current abbreviation INCM refers to the connection with the Casa da Moeda, the Portuguese mint. In 1972, the two institutions were merged to form the Imprensa Nacional-Casa da Moeda. As a result, the company combines tasks in official publishing with the production of coins and other state security products.
The anniversary lent itself to being commemorated on a coin because the institution is connected both with the public announcement of state decisions and directly with Portuguese coin minting. The typographic design of the motif refers to its work with type, printing and book production.
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