Greek Gold Coins 20 Drachmai 1833 Othon King Otto of Greece

Greek Gold Coins 20 Drachmai 1833 Othon King Otto of GreeceGreek Gold Coins 20 Drachmai 1833

Greek Gold Coins 20 Drachmai 1833 Othon King Otto of Greece

Obverse: Head of Othon (Otto of Bavaria) as King of the Hellenes left.
Legend: "ΟΘΩΝ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΟΝ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ" (Otto, King of the Greeks).
Reverse: Crowned shield bearing the arms of Greece (azure; a cross argent), with the arms of Bavaria in the centre of the cross, inclosed between two branches of laurel.
Exergue: "20 ΔΡΑΧΜΑΙ" (20 Drachmas), and the date of the year of issue.

Composition: Gold.
Fineness: 0.900.
Weight: 5.776 g.
AGW: 0.1671 oz.
Mint: Munich mint.

The modern Greek coinage was just emerging in the third decade of the 19th century. Early in the reign of King Otto, the noted Bavarian engraver Conrad Voigt and his pupil Karl Lange were commissioned to submit designs for a coinage in gold and silver as well as copper. These became the coins of the 1830s and '40s.