1898 Sweden 20 Kroner Portrait of Oscar II
King of Sweden & Norway
Diameter: 23 mm
Thickness: 1.7 mm
.2593 oz. of .900 pure gold
Common, scarce and rare Swedish coins at Mintmark.com.
"The krona (plural: kronor; sign: kr; code: SEK) has been the currency of Sweden since 1873. Both the ISO code SEK and currency sign kr are in common use; the former precedes the value, the latter follows it. The currency is sometimes referred to as the Swedish crown in English (since krona literally means crown in Swedish). The Swedish krona also circulates in the Åland Islands alongside the official Finnish currency, the euro. One krona is subdivided into 100 öre (singular and plural; when referring to the currency unit itself, however, the plural is ören). However, all öre coins have been discontinued as of 30 September 2010. Goods can still be priced in öre, but all sums are rounded to the nearest krona when paying with cash. HISTORY—The introduction of the krona, which replaced at par the riksdaler, was a result of the Scandinavian Monetary Union, which came into effect in 1873 and lasted until World War I. The parties to the union were the Scandinavian countries, where the name was krona in Sweden and krone in Denmark and Norway, which in English literally means crown. The three currencies were on the gold standard, with the krona/krone defined as 1⁄2,480th of a kilogram of pure gold. After dissolution of the monetary union, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway all decided to keep the names of their respective and now separate currencies. COINS—Between 1873 and 1876, coins in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, and 50 öre and 1, 2, 10, and 20 kronor were introduced, with the 1, 2 and 5 öre in bronze; the 10, 25, 50 öre and 1 and 2 kronor in silver; and the 10 and 20 kronor in gold. Gold 5 kronor were added in 1881. Production of gold coins ceased in 1902 and was only briefly restarted in 1920 and 1925 before ceasing entirely. Due to metal shortages during World War I, iron replaced bronze between 1917 and 1919. Nickel-bronze replaced silver in the 10, 25 and 50 öre in 1920, with silver returning in 1927. Metal shortages due to World War II again led to changes in the Swedish coinage. The nickel-bronze 10, 25 and 50 öre were again issued between 1940 and 1947. In 1942, iron again replaced bronze (until 1952) and the silver content of the other coins was reduced. In 1962, cupro-nickel replaced silver in the 10 öre, 25 öre and 50 öre coins, with the 2 kronor following suit and the 1 krona switching to cupro-nickel-clad copper in 1968 (and later being replaced entirely by cupro-nickel in 1982). 5 kronor silver coins were produced in 1954, 1955 and 1971, with designs similar to contemporary 1 and 2 kronor coins. In 1972, a new smaller 5 kronor coin was introduced, struck in cupro-nickel-clad nickel. The current design has been produced since 1974. In 1971, the 1 and 2 öre, as well as the 2 kronor coins ceased production. The size of the 5 öre coin was reduced in 1972. In 1984, production of the 5 and 25 öre coins came to an end, followed by that of the 10 öre in 1991. Also in 1991, aluminium-brass (Nordic gold) 10 kronor coins were introduced along with bronze colored 50 öre coins. In March 2009, the government decided to cease production of the 50 öre coins, which, since October 2010, are no longer legal tender. The reason could include low purchasing power, higher production and distribution cost than the value and the fact that the coins cannot be used in most parking machines and vending machines. Coins currently in circulation are:
Nordic gold:
89% copper
5% aluminum
5% zinc
1% tin
Of the other denominations issued in the past, all 2 kronor minted from 1876 onwards remain legal tender, although these are extremely rarely seen in circulation. In addition, all jubilee and commemorative coins minted in 1897 or later are also legal tender. The 2 kr coins contained 40% silver until 1966, which meant that they already several years ago were worth much more than 2 kr, so most have been bought and melted down by arbitrageurs, and the rest are kept by collectors. In Sweden it is unlawful to melt down coins that are legal tender, which is why they still are legal. The royal motto of the monarch is also inscribed on many of the coins. The 5 kronor coin was designed in 1974, at a time when there were political efforts to abandon the monarchy, when there was a new, young, inexperienced king. The monarchy remained, but the 5 kronor was not given a portrait. Coins minted before 1974 have the same size but contain the portrait of King Gustav VI Adolf and his royal motto. Recent changes—On December 18, 2008, the Swedish Riksbank announced a proposal to phase out the 50 öre, the final öre coin, by 2010; note, however, that the öre would remain as a subdivision unit for electronic payments. On March 25, 2009, the Riksdag formally decided to enact the law that repeals 50 öre coins from circulation. Under that law the final date that payments could be made with 50 öre coins was September 30, 2010. Future—On 17 February 2010 The Riksbank decided to recommend the parliament to allow it to issue a 2-krona coin and a 200-krona note, the latter a new denomination for the country. However, it did not recommend replacing the 20-krona note with a coin. The Riksbank decided, in March 2010, to decrease the sizes and weights and change the styles of the 1 krona and 5 kronor coins, but to keep the 10 kronor format. The 1 krona will be 19.5 mm, 3.6 grams, copper-plated steel. The new 2 kronor will be 22.5 mm, 4.8 grams, copper-plated steel. The 5 kronor will be 23.75 mm, 6.1 grams, Nordic Gold. BANKNOTES—. . . The 5 kronor note was discontinued in 1981, although a coin had been issued since 1972. In 1985, the 500 kronor note was introduced. With the introduction of a 10 kronor coin in 1991, production of 10 kronor notes ceased and a 20 kronor note was introduced. Production of 50 kronor notes was suspended that year but resumed in 1996 . . . Future—The Riksbank decided on 17 February 2010, to recommend the parliament to allow it to issue a 2-krona coin and a 200-krona note, the latter a new denomination for the country. However, it did not recommend replacing the 20-krona note with a coin. The proposal accompanies the modernization and re-designing of bank notes in Sweden. The Riksdag decision is to reintroduce the 2 kronor coin and 200 kronor bank note. The Riksdag also decided not to replace the 20 kronor bank note with a coin . . . EXCHANGE RATE—The exchange rate of the Swedish krona against other currencies has historically been dependent on the monetary policy pursued by Sweden at the time. Since November 1992 a managed float regime has been upheld. The exchange rate has been relatively stable against the euro since its introduction 2002 (about 9-9.5 SEK per EUR), but from the second half 2008 the value of the krona has declined by around 20%, and had been oscillating between 10.4-11 SEK per EUR into the first half of 2009. The primary reason for its declining value lies with the Riksbank, which has significantly lowered the interest rate, and has not acted to defend the exchange rate as of yet. In the second half of 2009 and the start of 2010, the krona started to appreciate; during late 2010 and early 2011 it continued to appreciate at a quicker rate. The exchange rate is currently between 8.5-9 SEK per EUR. The euro—According to the 1995 accession treaty, Sweden is required to join the eurozone and therefore must convert to the euro at some point. Notwithstanding this, on 14 September 2003, a consultative Swedish referendum was held on the euro, in which 56% of voters were opposed to the adoption of the currency, out of an overall turnout of 82.6%. The Swedish government has argued that such a course of action is possible since one of the requirements for eurozone membership is a prior two-year membership of the ERM II. By simply choosing to stay outside the exchange rate mechanism, the Swedish government is provided a formal loophole avoiding the theoretical requirement of adopting the euro. Some of Sweden's major parties continue to believe that it would be in the national interest to join, but they have all pledged to abide by the results of the referendum for the time being, and have shown no interest in raising the issue again. There was an agreement among the parties not to discuss the issue before the 2010 general election. After it a debate could start leading towards a new referendum in 2012 or later, though it is likely that one would be held considerably later than that. Polls in 2005 and 2006 generally showed about 55 percent of respondents being opposed and 45 percent in favor, not counting those who are unsure (about 15%). In a poll from May 2007, 33.3% were in favor, while 53.8% were against, and 13.0% were uncertain. In Dagens Nyheter, Fredrik Reinfeldt, the Prime Minister of Sweden stated that a new referendum on the euro issue will not be held until support is gained from the people and all the major parties, and as such that the time is at the discretion of the Social Democrats. He added that Mona Sahlin, former leader of the Social Democratic Party, request for deferral of a new referendum until after the 2010 mandate period is to be respected . . ." — Swedish krona at Wikipedia. This version was edited and (or) revised by Mintmark.com
[New coins scheduled for release] ". . . All of the coins apart from the 10-krona coin will have a new size and material. The 10-krona will remain unchanged. The theme of the coins will be Sweden’s head of state. In addition to the denomination of the coins, they will also contain the text Sverige (Sweden) and the year of issue, the initials of the designer and the Governor of Sveriges Riksbank, and the first letter of the name of the place they are issued. Moreover, the lesser coat of arms may be used on the coins. The 1-krona and 2-krona coins are made of copper-plated steel, that is, they consist of a core of steel and a thin outer layer of copper. The 5-krona and 10-krona coins are made of Nordic gold, which is made of almost 90 per cent copper. During 2011 we will produce a schedule for introducing the banknotes and coins. The earliest possible time for replacing the notes and coins is 2014-2015 . . ." — Sveriges Riksbank/Riksbanken
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