Semmelweis University Commemorative Coins

This Friday, the National Bank of Hungary issues a silver collector coin with a face value of HUF 10,000 and a non-ferrous metal coin with a face value of HUF 2,000 in order to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the start of organized medical training in Hungary.

This Friday, the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) issues a silver collector coin with a face value of HUF 10,000 and a non-ferrous metal coin with a face value of HUF 2,000 in order to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the start of organized medical training in Hungary.

A statement by MNB says that it was under the order of Queen Maria Theresa, issued on November 7, 1769, the University of Nagyszombat was expanded with a medical faculty, marking the start of organized, permanent medical training in Hungary. In a couple of years, the University was resettled first to Buda and then to Pest. In 1951, the medical faculty was transformed into an independent medical university and in 1969 it adopted the name of Ignác Semmelweis, one of the world’s most famous physicians. Now, Semmelweis University, country’s single specialized university, is the leading higher education institution for medical sciences in Hungary and the Central European region. The University is also Hungary’s largest health institution and the home of outstanding scientific results and innovative development projects.

The Semmelweis University collector coins are national legal tender, but they do not serve circulation purposes; their main aim is to direct attention to an important anniversary in the history of science in Hungary and to recognize the high level educational, research and curative activities carried out at the University. The silver and non-ferrous metal coins have the same design, the only difference being their denominations.

The obverse of the collector coins features the finial of the university scepter included in the symbols of Semmelweis University’s dignity, which is surrounded on the edge of the coin by the original chain of office of the dean. Today, the faculty scepter has become the symbol of the University as a whole, which, together with the chains of office, takes on an important role at the University’s major ceremonies, MNB highlights.