Patrons

Another gold mini coin of the Czech Mint from the Patrons series is dedicated to Saint Martin.

Martin was born in the 4th century AD in Pannonia, a Roman province located in what is now Hungary. His father, who was an officer in the Roman army, wanted to make a soldier out of him, so he named him after the god of war, Martos. Martin had no desire to fight - most of all he wanted to be a Christian monk - but he eventually submitted to his parents. Although he was reluctant to put on the uniform, he performed his military service faithfully and conscientiously. He was quickly promoted to officer and became an Imperial Guardsman - an elite cavalryman on a white horse. While his fellow soldiers were aggressive and proud, Martin was modest, humble and full of compassion for the weak. While serving in France, he met a beggar who begged for alms. He had no money or food for him, so he cut his cloak with his sword and gave him half of it. Then, in the night, Jesus Christ appeared to Martin wearing half a cloak. The soldier was so affected by the vivid dream that he left the army and was baptized. He lived in the wine country as a hermit, became a priest, founded a monastery, converted pagans to the faith, and performed miracles. The Christians wanted him to be their superior, but he was reluctant. He hid in a barn among the geese, but they betrayed him by their cackling, so he finally accepted the title of bishop. The rich Church did not like the fact that he still lived modestly as a hermit, but the common people loved him... St Martin is still remembered as a protector against poverty. In addition to the poor, he is also the patron saint of soldiers, horsemen, wine-growers, teetotalers and domestic animals.

The medal maker David Kružliak dedicated the reverse side of the coin to Saint Martin in the form of a Roman soldier spreading his cloak with his sword. The bilingual inscription on the reverse side states SV. MARTIN - ST. MARTIN. As the licence to issue commemorative coins of the Czech Mint is granted by the Pacific island of Niue, the obverse side bears its necessary attributes - the national emblem, the nominal value of 2 DOLLARS (NZD) and the year of issue 2023.

The gold coin weighing one half gram is set in a special Slovak-English packaging. It will serve as an affordable gift as well as an original addition to your collection and will become a good luck charm.