Rare 1966 Republic of Cyprus, Archbishop Makarios, Full 22ct Gold Sovereign (8.01g) With Mint Mark Below Portrait.

Lovely coin in excellent condition. There’s absolutely no wear on this coin and the only marks are a couple of scratches on the top face. please browse all 12 sets of photographs for size, weight and condition as they are self explanatory.

Makarios III (1913-1977) was a Greek Cypriot clergyman and politician, who served as the Archbishop and Primate of the Church of Cyprus and as the first President of Cyprus. In his three terms as president he survived four assassination attempts and a coup d'état. He is widely regarded by Greek Cypriots as the Father of the Nation.

On 18 September 1950, Makarios, only 37 years old, was elected Archbishop of Cyprus. In this role he was not only the official head of the Orthodox Church in Cyprus, but became the Ethnarch, de facto national leader of the Greek Cypriot community. This highly influential position put Makarios at the centre of Cypriot politics.

Cyprus, officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the Eastern Mediterranean and the third largest and third most populous island in the Mediterranean, located south of Turkey, west of Syria and Lebanon, northwest of Israel, north of Egypt, and southeast of Greece. Former British colony, Cyprus became independent in 1960 following years of resistance to British rule.

Cyprus issued its first modern coins in its own name in 1879 under the British. These were minor coins only, piastres and half piastres, there being 9 piastres to the shilling, and twenty shillings to the pound. This system continued until 1955 when Cyprus decimalised its currency, the main change being to introduce the mil, with 50 mils equal to one shilling, and therefore 1,000 mils per pound.

After Cyprus gained its independence as The Republic of Cyprus in 1960, it issued its own coins with new designs, and eliminating the shilling denominations.

The first gold coins of Cyprus were issued in 1966. These are denominated as sovereigns, halves and five pounds.

Please note: Although the designs of full sovereign and half sovereign at first sight appear identical, the full sovereign has its mintmark below the portrait on the obverse, while the half sovereign has its mintmark on the reverse, below the eagle, in place of a second pair of tail feathers.

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