View source for Phoenix (currency)

{{Short description|First currency of the modern Greek state after independence}}
{{Infobox currency
| obsolete = yes
| name = Phoenix
| local_name = φοίνιξ
| local_name_lang=el
| image_1 = Phoenix coin.jpg
| image_title_1 = Silver one-phoenix coin, minted in [[Aegina#Coinage and sea power (7th–5th centuries BC)|Aegina]] by Count [[Ioannis Kapodistrias]]. Dated 1828. Obverse: phoenix rising from the ashes below a cross, symbol of the newly reborn Orthodox Christian Greek state, inscription 'ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΠΟΛΙΤΕΙΑ' ('Hellenic State'). The letters αωκα represent 1821, the date of the Greek Declaration of Independence, in the [[Greek numerals|Ancient Greek numeral system]]. The small anchor was the Aegina mint mark. Reverse: denomination '1 ΦΟΙΝΙΞ' ( '1 phoenix') inscription: 'ΚΥΒΕΡΝΗΤΗΣ Ι.Α. ΚΑΠΟΔΙΣΤΡΙΑΣ' ('Governor I.A. Kapodistrias')
| image_alt_1 = 
| iso_code = 
| issuing_authority = Greece
| issuing_authority_website = 
| date_of_introduction = 1828
| date_of_introduction_source = 
| using_countries = Greece
| inflation_rate = 
| inflation_source_date = ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20070613003823/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2092.html The World Factbook]'', 2010 est.
| replaced_by_currency = [[Modern drachma|Drachma]]
| subunit_ratio_1 = {{frac|1|100}}
| subunit_name_1 = [[Greek lepton|Lepton]] (Λεπτόν)
| symbol = 
| symbol_subunit_1 = 
| nickname = 
| nickname_subunit_1 = 
| plural = 
| plural_subunit_1 = Lepta (Λεπτά)
| frequently_used_coins = 
| rarely_used_coins = 
| frequently_used_banknotes = 
| rarely_used_banknotes = 
}}

[[File:Lepta 20.jpg|thumb|200px|Twenty-''lepta'' coin]]

[[File:Phoenix_paper_moeney.jpg|thumb|200px|State note for fifty phoenixes]]

The '''''phoenix''''' ({{langx|el|φοίνιξ}}, ''foinix'') was the first [[currency]] of the modern [[Greece|Greek]] state. It was introduced in 1828 by Governor Count [[Ioannis Kapodistrias]] and was subdivided into 100 ''[[Greek lepton|lepta]]''. The name was that of the [[mythical]] [[Phoenix (mythology)|phoenix]] bird and was meant to symbolize the rebirth of [[Greece]] during the still ongoing [[Greek War of Independence]]. The ''phoenix'' replaced the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] ''[[kuruş]]'' (called ''grosi'' γρόσι, plural γρόσια ''grosia'' by the Greeks) at a rate of 6 phoenixes = 1 ''kuruş''.

==Introduction==

The creation of a national currency was one of the most pressing issues for the newborn Greek state, so that the monetary chaos reigning in the country could subside. Prior to the Phoenix's introduction, transactions were settled with a wide variety of coins, including the ''[[kuruş]]''; coins from major European states, such as France, Britain, Russia and Austria, were also popular. Therefore, minting the ''phoenix'' was one of Governor Kapodistrias' greatest priorities, and he signed a decree authorising it on 12 April 1828. The Russian Imperial government lent Kapodistrias' administration 1.5 million roubles to start the project.

==Minting the Phoenix==

Kapodistrias made [[Alexandros Kontostavlos]] responsible for minting the ''Phoenix''. Kontostavlos travelled to Malta, where he negotiated the purchase of several coin presses, originally owned by the [[Knights Hospitaller]]. The machines were brought to [[Aegina]].

The dies for the ''Phoenix'' were carved by [[Chatzigrigoris Pyrobolistis]], an Armenian jeweller, and the first sample coins were produced on 27 June 1829, in the agreed denominations of 1 ''phoenix'', 20 ''lepta'', 10 ''lepta'', 5 ''lepta'' and 1 ''lepton''. The use of the phoenix as a symbol of rebirth is also found on the flag of [[Alexander Ypsilanti]]'s [[Sacred Band (1821)|Sacred Band]]. On 30 June 1829 the National Mint was founded, and production of coins continued. 1 October 1829 was set as the official launch date for the new currency. All phoenixes were minted at the National Mint of Aegina, which continued to operate until 1833. Coincidentally, Aegina is where the first ancient and modern Greek coins were minted &ndash; the [[stater]]s of Aegina were minted in around 700 BC and were the first to circulate in the Ancient Greek world.<ref>{{cite book|last=Stratoudakē|first=Geōrgiou|title=Ta Hellēnika nomismata : [1828-2002]|year=2002|publisher=G. Stratoudakēs|location=Athēna|isbn=960-91397-3-6|pages=5–6}}</ref>

==Demise==

Only a small number of coins were minted, estimated to just under twelve thousand<ref>L. Krause, A. Karamitsos.</ref> and most transactions in Greece continued to be carried out in foreign currency at a rate fixed by the newly established Committee of Economy. Lacking precious metals to mint more coins, the government in 1831 issued an additional 300,000 phoenixes as [[paper currency]] with no underlying assets to back them. As a result, the paper notes were universally rejected by the public. In 1832, with the arrival of [[Otto of Greece|King Otto]] as [[King of Greece]], the currency system was reformed and the ''[[Modern drachma|Drachma]]'' was introduced to replace the ''Phoenix'' at par - 1 Drachma = 1 Phoenix.

==References==

{{reflist}}
{{refbegin}}
*{{numis cite SCWC|date=1991}}
*{{numis cite SCWPM|date=1994}}
{{refend}}

==External links==

{{Portal|Greece|Money|Numismatics}}
{{commons category|Phoenix (Greek currency)}}
*[http://argolikivivliothiki.gr/2011/01/25/%CE%B5%CE%B8%CE%BD%CE%B9%CE%BA%CF%8C-%CE%BD%CE%BF%CE%BC%CE%B9%CF%83%CE%BC%CE%B1%CF%84%CE%BF%CE%BA%CE%BF%CF%80%CE%B5%CE%AF%CE%BF-%CE%B1%CE%B9%CE%B3%CE%AF%CE%BD%CE%B7%CF%82/ National Mint of Aegina (in Greek)]

{{Ioannis Kapodistrias}}

[[Category:Currencies of Greece|Phoenix]]
[[Category:Modern obsolete currencies]]
[[Category:Economic history of Greece]]
[[Category:1828 establishments in Greece]]
[[Category:1832 disestablishments in Greece]]
[[Category:Ioannis Kapodistrias]]
[[Category:Phoenixes in popular culture]]