Italy · 250th anniversary of the founding of the Guardia di finanza Corps

Issue date12 Mar 2024

Total mintage3,000,000

EU maximum3,000,000

Editions4

Edge lettering2 ★ × 6, alternately upright/inverted

InscriptionGUARDIA DI FINANZA / RI / 1774 / 2024 / R / AV

DesignerMarta Bonifacio

mintInstituto Poligrafico e Zecca Dello Stato, Roma

Issue occasion

The coin commemorates the 250th anniversary of the founding of the Guardia di Finanza in 1774. At the center is its stylized heraldic emblem featuring mountains, sea and sky as areas of operation, a griffin guarding a treasure chest, and a mural crown. The design is complemented by the inscription “GUARDIA DI FINANZA”, the abbreviation “RI”, and the years “1774” and “2024”.

The design

The motif features the stylised heraldic emblem of the Guardia di Finanza at its centre. It represents the idea of security and outlines a vision of the future role of the Guardia di Finanza, honouring the past while establishing a connection with the years to come and the challenges ahead.

The emblem incorporates various elements: mountains, sea and sky as the environments in which the Guardia di Finanza operates; the griffin as a mythological creature which, according to legend, guards the state treasury, depicted as a treasure chest; and the turreted crown. Above it, the inscription “GUARDIA DI FINANZA” is arranged in a semicircle. Below the motif are the initials “RI” of the Italian Republic and the years “1774” and “2024”, representing the year of foundation of the Guardia di Finanza and the year of issue of the coin, respectively. On the right are the marks “R” for the Rome Mint and “AV”, the initials of the designer Antonio Vecchio.

The outer ring of the coin features the twelve stars of the European flag.

Background on the topic

The Guardia di Finanza traces its origins back to a military unit of the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont. King Viktor Amadeus III had the “Legione Truppe Leggere” established, whose duties included border surveillance, combating smuggling, and military operations. An Italian nation-state did not yet exist at that time. The unit’s origins must therefore be placed within the history of the northern Italian states before the unification of Italy.

Following the establishment of the Kingdom of Italy, the units responsible for customs and border duties were reorganized. In 1862, the “Corpo delle Guardie Doganali” was established. From 1881, it bore the designation “Corpo della Regia Guardia di Finanza”. Alongside its traditional customs duties, the monitoring of state revenues thus became more prominent. After the end of the monarchy, the addition “Regia” was dropped.

Today, the Guardia di Finanza is a militarily organized police force subordinate to the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance. Its areas of activity include tax and customs violations, smuggling, money laundering, counterfeiting offences, organized economic crime, and the unlawful handling of public and European funds. It also conducts operations at sea and participates in monitoring Italy’s coasts and maritime borders. Unlike a purely tax authority, it has police investigative powers; at the same time, its specialization in economic and financial offences distinguishes it from other Italian police forces.

The choice of the anniversary as the occasion for the coin refers to the long institutional continuity from the pre-modern border force to today’s financial police. At the same time, its duties concern key areas of the state: securing revenues, protecting lawful economic activity, and prosecuting financial crime. Italy therefore had an occasion, in the form of a round-number anniversary of its founding, to depict a state institution whose development is closely linked to the establishment and administration of the Italian state.