Cyprus 20 cents 1983 - Cyprus Wheatear

The coin's story

In 1983, Cyprus abandoned the mils: the Cyprus pound was now divided into 100 cents, and a new series of coins was put into circulation. The 20 cents coin bears on the reverse a Cyprus wheatear perched on an olive branch, engraved by Clara Georgiou. This bird (Oenanthe cypriaca) breeds only in Cyprus and spends the winter in north-eastern Africa and the Middle East. The obverse shows the arms of the Republic, a dove holding an olive branch with the year of independence 1960, and the name of the country in English, Greek and Turkish. This first type, struck only in 1983, can be recognised by its solid numeral 20: from 1985 onwards, the numeral is outlined with a fillet. The Royal Mint struck 10,000,000 pieces, plus 6,250 proofs. The 20 cents coin remained in use until Cyprus changed over to the euro in 2008.