San Marino’s Columbus €2 returns each 12 October

Diario de Navarra (opens in a new tab) (Ana Mª Esparza Aós, updated 12 October 2026) returns to San Marino’s 2006 €2 each 12 October. It does not mark 1492: it marks the 500th anniversary of Columbus’s death in Valladolid on 20 May 1506. The paper says it was the first €2 commemorative on a theme in which the issuing country had no direct role. The coin is not in Notofilia’s virtual collection.

National side and mint

The national side shows Columbus and the three caravels, the legend SAN MARINO, a wind rose, the R mark of the Rome Mint — San Marino has no mint of its own — the dates 1506-2006 on a scroll, and the initials LDS of Luciana De Simoni. The ring carries the twelve EU stars. Diario de Navarra gives the usual €2 module: 8.5 g, 25.75 mm, thickness 2.2 mm, nickel core clad in nickel-brass and a cupronickel ring. The edge has six repeats of “2 *,” alternating orientation.

The ECB’s 2006 page (opens in a new tab) confirms the theme, the 120,000 mintage, and the October 2006 issue. Diario de Navarra adds that they went on sale on 17 October 2006 at €10 each.

Asking prices

Today, the paper says, the coin may be asked for about €100 in specialist shops, and selling platforms show listings between €50 and €180. Those are asking prices. They are not closed hammers and not the value of a specific uncirculated specimen.