2 euro Italy 2006, XX Winter Olympic Games of Turin 2006






Italian commemorative 2 euro coins - XX Olympic Winter Games in Turin 2006


Commemorative 2 euro coins from Italy

Description: The coin depicts a racing skier and the visitor attraction of Turin and an image of Turin's landmark Mole Antonelliana building (which incidentally is also depicted on the Italian 2 cent coin), together with a large number of inscriptions: above the skier's head, GIOCHI INVERNALI ("Winter Games"); below the tower, the name of the host city TORINO; beside the skier's right thigh, the engraver's initials (MCC); also to the right of the skier, the year mark (written vertically); and finally, to the right of the tower, the monogram of the Italian Republic (RI) and the mint mark (R). The twelve stars of the European Union surround the design on the outer ring of the coin.



Reverse: left from the coin centre face value: 2, on the right inscription: EURO; in the background of the inscription a map of Europe; in the background of the map vertically six parallel lines ending on both sides with five-pointed stars (the reverse is common for all euro coins)

Issuing volume: 40 million coins
First Date of Issue: 10 January 2006
First Date of Circulation: 10 February 2006
Face value:       2 euro
Diameter:         25.75 mm
Thickness:        2.2 mm
Weight:            8.5 gr
Composition: BiAlloy (Nk/Ng), ring Cupronickel (75% copper - 25% nickel clad on nickel core), center Nickel brass (75% copper - 20% zinc - 5% nickel)
Design: Maria Carmela Colaneri is credited as the engraver for the Italian 2006 €2 Euro Commemorative coin.
Designer / Engraver Inscriptions: 'M.C.C.' Initials of the engraver:
€2 Edge Inscription: The Italian €2 coin edge inscription is '2', followed by one star, repeated six times alternately upright and inverted:
Mint Location: Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato (IPZS) (State Printing Office and Mint), in Rome, Italy.
Mint Marks: Mintmark of the Rome mint: the letter 'R'.
Located below the monogram of the Italian Republic ‘RI’, inner circle.
National Identification: Symbol: Stylized 'RI'; Repubblica Italiana (Republic of Italy).
Notes: This is the second time that the Olympics have been the object of commemoration on a €2 commemorative. The first was the 2004 Greek €2 commemorative issue.

XX Olympic Winter Games - Torino 2006
The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games (French: Les XXes Jeux olympiques d'hiver), was a winter multi-sport event which was held in Turin, Italy from February 10 to 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter Games in Cortina d'Ampezzo in 1956. Italy also hosted the Games of the XVII Olympiad in Rome in 1960. Turin was selected as the host city for the 2006 games in 1999.

The official logo displayed the name "Torino", the Italian name of the city; the city is known as "Turin" in both English and the local traditional language, Piedmontese. The Olympic mascots of Torino 2006 were Neve ("snow" in Italian), a female snowball, and Gliz, a male ice cube. The official motto of the XX Olympic Winter Games was "Passion lives here".