1 EURO Greece, Goddess with young bull coin Cuivre Aluminium Zinc Etain.

acadien

First of all, I am very happy that my son 21 years old, is finally getting involved in coins collection hobby. Here what he found lately,. Can you please aknolege if this coin is real or fake. We haven found any data so far and it seem that this coin has no info.

P.S. There is a 60 degrees die rotation

Any feed back would greatly be appreciated.
Thank you all

Sapyx

Well, it's not a genuine 1 euro coin - 1 euro coins are bimetallic, and the denomination is spelled "euro", not "uro". The design on the back is loosely based on the Greek 2 euro coin, not the 1 euro coin. So it isn't really trying to fool anyone into thinking it's a real euro coin.

The Greek expression at the top is "Kale chronia", or "happy new year" - which indicates the most probable origin for this "coin". The word at the bottom is "Europa", or Europe.

It is a Greek tradition, on New Years Day, to get together with family and eat a basilopita, or "new years day cake". Inside the cake, traditionally, was placed a gold coin - and the person who received the coin in their piece of cake got to keep it (not entirely unlike the old English tradition of baking silver threepences into a Christmas pudding). Obviously, few people can afford to give away actual gold coins these days, so substitute brass tokens are used in the recipe instead; the finder of the token is then given a gift of money.

This, therefore, is one of those basilopita tokens - designed to look like a modern euro coin, rather than an old gold coin.

acadien

Wow this is a amazing story to tell. I will do more rechearch on those basilopita tokens.

Thanks you so much for sharing your great knoledge.

SYRACUSIAN

Sapyx, a walking and typing encyclopeadia, Sapyx GPT.

Exactly as he described it. I suggest to your son to keep it as an innovative memento for celebrating the first day of the year. It’s a shame that it is too generic and I cannot see a year inscription, which means that it is used on various different years on the annual event. An unusual item to locate in the US , probably made in quantity for the many Greek expats.

In our numismatic club, we cut the vasilopita in mid late January, Public and private institutions do that, the cake is eaten on the first day of the year at home only and at hotels, restaurants and clubs. In places of work or leisure it is scheduled on a Sunday in January, sort of welcoming another year. So the Numismatic club takes €5 from each participant and the winner member of the fake coin gets a gold sovereign, worth half or less the proceeds of the club that day from selling the pieces of the lottery cake.

If a family is affluent and there are kids involved, which there always are, the fake replica can also be promised to be traded by a true gold sovereign by the master of the house.The pieces of Christ, the House and the Business that are cut First, are not eaten. If the coin falls on them, especially the business it’s a good sign for the coming year but the giver gets to keep it. If they have nothing, kids consume it.

Sapyx

I only became aware of this particular tradition, and the making of tokens to substitute for gold coins, due to acquiring a brass "rogue sovereign", given to me by a coin club member 20 years ago:

This item is dated 1958 and is styled on a gold sovereign (which was the common "gold coin" used in Greece in the early 20th century). Like the OP's "coin", mine is not really trying to fool anyone into thinking it's an actual gold sovereign. The portrait is styled after that of George V of Britain, but the inscription says in Greek, "memento from the Basilopita in 1958".

SYRACUSIAN

Very nice. And rather old. There are replicas with Victoria’s veiled portrait as well, but they are much less well made. As for the gold sovereigns they are still the obsession of ordinary (non collectors) citizens, especially after the financial crisis of the 2008-2019 period, during which a substantial total amount of privately owned gold changed hands to save houses, businesses etc.