Monnaie /moneda / coin / Müenze 20 euro € Finland / finlande /finnland /suomi

2018

Argent/ silver /silber / plata 925 25.5 gr 38.6 mm 4 000 ex Mint : Mint of finlande Issue date : 12.1.2018

zacharias topelius 1818 1898

collector coins to mark the bi-centenary on 14 January 2018 of the birth Zacharias Topelius, a Finnish novelist and influential figure in society.

Zacharias Topelius (14 January 1818-12 March 1898) is still remembered today as a master storyteller and as a lyricist of best-loved Christmas carols. Topelius was not only a distinguished novelist and poet, but also a journalist, historian and rector of the University of Helsinki.

Topelius wrote insightful interpretations of social phenomena and structures, as seen for example in Välskärin kertomuksia (Tales of a Barber-Surgeon), one of his best-known novels. The reverse of the collector coin features an image of Topelius and the sparrows in his tales. The obverse of the coin is a reference to Topelius’s Koivu ja tähti (The Birch and the Star) fairytale.