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100th anniversary of the birth of Ján Cikker

€10 silver collector coin

Banknotes and coins, 100th anniversary of the birth of Ján Cikker
Banknotes and coins, 100th anniversary of the birth of Ján Cikker

Ján Cikker (29 July 1911 – 21 December 1989) is one of the most distinguished Slovak composers and a leading representative of Slovak classical music. His talent and creativity resulted in work of great artistic value that has proved an inspiration to subsequent generations of composers. He is among the best of what Slovakia can offer the world in the field of culture and arts.

While his work ran a gamut of genres, it was in opera where he had the greatest impact, achieving success at the world’s major playhouses with the operas Juro Jánošík, Beg Bajazid, Mister Scrooge, Resurrection, Play about Love and Death, Coriolanus, The Siege of Bystrica, Judgment, and From the Life of Insects.

In recognition of his work, he was awarded Vienna University’s Gottfried von Herder Prize for humanism and ethical principles (1966) and the UNESCO prize for music (1979), as well as being granted the title of National Artist in Slovakia. In 2011, he was posthumously awarded the Order of Ľudovít Štúr – First Class.

  • Coin description

    Obverse:
    The obverse of the coin depicts the stylized outline of a violin with a harp to the right-hand side. Below it are depicted three opera houses: the Slovak National Theatre I n Bratislava, the Vienna State Opera and the State Opera in Prague. The upper part of the design shows the Slovak national emblem. Towards the left edge there is the name of the country SLOVENSKO with the year 2011 underneath. In the lower part of the field there is the mark of the Kremnica Mint and the initials of the coin’s designer Kliment Mitura.

    Reverse:
    The reverse design features a portrait of Ján Cikker together with part of a piano keyboard in the upper right part. Below it there is the denomination 10 EURO. The name JÁN CIKKER and the years of his birth and death 1911 – 1989 appear on the left side of the coin.

  • Coin details
    Designer:Kliment Mitura
    Composition:.900 gold, .100 copper
    Weight:18 g
    Diameter:34 mm
    Edge:HUDBA – UNIVERZÁLNA REČ ĽUDSTVA
    (Music – the universal language of mankind)
    Producer:Kremnica Mint
    Engraver:Dalibor Schmidt
    Issuing volume:7,900 coins in brilliant uncirculated
    8,900 coins in proof quality
    Issuing date:20 July 2011

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