Written by the Maison Or & Bijoux Cannes team · updated
| Country | Monaco, Vatican City, San Marino |
|---|---|
| Metal | Bimetallic: cupronickel ring, three-layer core (nickel brass, nickel, nickel brass) |
| Weight | 8.50 g |
| Diameter | 25.75 mm |
| Thickness | 2.20 mm |
| Issuers | Principality of Monaco, Vatican City State, Republic of San Marino |
| Mints | Monnaie de Paris for Monaco (cornucopia); Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato, Rome, for the Vatican and San Marino (letter R) |
| Years struck | Since 2001 (Monaco) and 2002 (Vatican, San Marino); commemoratives since 2004 |
| Qualities | Circulation, BU (brilliant uncirculated, in a set or coincard), proof (in a case) |
| Edge | “2 ★★” (Monaco) or “2 ★” (Vatican, San Marino), six times |
| References | Grace Kelly 2007: KM# 186, Gadoury MC198; Sede vacante 2013: KM# 447; San Marino second type: KM# 562 |
These three states are not members of the European Union, yet they strike their own euros. Their 2 euro coin shares the common side used everywhere else; only the national side differs, with MONACO, CITTÀ DEL VATICANO or SAN MARINO spelt out in full. Their output is capped by treaty and a large share goes to collectors in sets, which is why they so rarely turn up in everyday change.
The national side, specific to each state, framed by the twelve European stars. Monaco: the prince's effigy (Rainier III, then Albert II) or a commemorative subject, with the cornucopia of the Monnaie de Paris. Vatican: the pope's portrait or coat of arms, “CITTÀ DEL VATICANO” and the letter R for Rome. San Marino: the Palazzo Pubblico, then the portrait of Saint Marinus, “SAN MARINO” and the letter R.
The side common to the whole euro area: “2 EURO”, the map of Europe over a background of lines joining twelve stars, and the initials LL of its designer, Luc Luycx.
The table gathers landmarks checked against two sources wherever possible: a few low-mintage circulation coins and the commemoratives struck in the smallest numbers. Look at the country first, then the year and the subject. Note the “Distribution” column too: a coin sold in a set or coincard was never meant to end up in a purse.
| Coin | Year | Mintage | Distribution and remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Marino, circulation 2 euro (Palazzo Pubblico) | 2002 | 100,760 | Circulation; from 2003 to 2005, struck for sets only. |
| Vatican, John Paul II series | 2002 | n/a | Full series from 1 cent to 2 euro, sold only as a set; published mintages differ between sources. |
| Monaco, circulation 2 euro, Rainier III | 2003 | 228,000 | Circulation; no circulation 2 euro struck in 2005, 2007 or 2008. |
| San Marino, Bartolomeo Borghesi | 2004 | 110,000 | The country's first commemorative, in a BU coincard. |
| Vatican, World Youth Day Cologne | 2005 | 100,000 | BU: 85,000 in coincards, 15,000 in philatelic covers. |
| Monaco, Grace Kelly | 2007 | 20,001 | BU case; never officially put into circulation. |
| Monaco, princely wedding | 2011 | 147,877 | Two batches: 81,057 and 66,820 in BU sets. |
| Monaco, 500 years of sovereignty (Lucien I) | 2012 | 110,000 | Commemorative. |
| Vatican, Sede vacante (Cardinal Bertone) | 2013 | 125,000 | Coincard; after Benedict XVI's resignation. |
| Monaco, 20 years of UN membership | 2013 | 1,249,131 | The exception: widely put into circulation. |
| Monaco, first fortress on the Rock | 2015 | 10,000 | Proof only, cased. |
| Monaco, founding of Monte-Carlo | 2016 | 15,000 | Proof only, cased. |
| San Marino, circulation 2 euro, Saint Marinus | 2017 | 600,000 | Circulation; plus 36,000 BU and 2,600 proof. |
| Monaco, 10th anniversary of the princely wedding | 2021 | 15,000 | Sold online by the Monaco museum. |
| Vatican, Sede vacante (Cardinal Farrell) | 2025 | about 75,000 | Issued on 27 October 2025; 76,000 according to some catalogues. |
Mintages from Numista and the Wikipedia (EN) list of 2 euro commemorative coins, cross-checked; Wikipedia (EN) mintage tables for the circulation coins of Monaco and San Marino; Monaco Tribune, Wikipedia (EN) and zwei-euro.com for 2021. Not exhaustive: each state issues one or two commemoratives a year, roughly between 50,000 and 130,000 pieces for the Vatican and San Marino depending on the year.
Monaco, the Vatican and San Marino use the euro without belonging to the European Union. Their right to strike their own coins comes from monetary agreements with the Union: the Vatican's current text was signed on 17 December 2009, San Marino's on 27 March 2012, and Monaco's has applied since 1 December 2011.
Each agreement sets an annual ceiling in nominal terms. It combines a fixed part (2.3 million euros for the Vatican in 2010, 2.34 million for Monaco in 2011, 2.6 million for San Marino in the first year) and a variable part based on population. Collector coins count within it: on the scale of the euro area, this is very little.
The agreements require part of the coins intended for circulation to actually enter it at their nominal amount: at least 51% for the Vatican, 80% for Monaco, 70% then 80% for San Marino. The rest is sold to collectors in BU sets (brilliant uncirculated) or as proofs. In some years the circulation 2 euro exists only in sets: in Monaco, this was the case in 2004, 2006, 2010 and 2013.
France places the Monnaie de Paris at the Principality's disposal, as Article 5 of the agreement provides. Monegasque coins therefore carry the Paris mint's cornucopia and, on the edge, the same “2 ★★” as French ones. Three portraits have followed one another on the circulation 2 euro: Rainier III, dated 2001 to 2005; Albert II in profile from 2006; and, in 2025, for his twentieth year on the throne, a new portrait of the prince seen face-on.
Much sought after by collectors, the Grace Kelly 2 euro of 2007 was struck for the 25th anniversary of the princess's death. Her profile faces left, with “MONACO”, the date and the signature R.B.BARON. With 20,001 pieces, it was sold in a BU case and never officially put into circulation: a Grace Kelly found on its own, without its case, deserves close examination.
Monaco's other commemoratives range from 10,000 pieces (fortress on the Rock, 2015, proof) to more than a million (UN membership, 2013). For the Principality's coins before the euro, see the francs of Monaco.
Vatican coins are struck in Rome by the Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato (IPZS), under Article 5 of the 2009 agreement. They carry the letter R and the words “CITTÀ DEL VATICANO”. Their peculiarity: the national side follows the head of state. John Paul II appears from 2002 to 2005, Benedict XVI from April 2006, Francis in portrait from 2014. From 2017, at his own request, his coat of arms replaced his face. Leo XIV brings back the portrait on the series issued on 30 July 2026, designed by Daniela Longo.
Between two popes, power passes temporarily to the Cardinal Camerlengo. The Vatican marks this period, known as Sede vacante (vacant see), with coins bearing his arms beneath the emblem of the Apostolic Chamber. In 2005 it was a whole circulation series, dated MMV. In 2013, after Benedict XVI's resignation, and in 2025, between the death of Francis and the election of Leo XIV, they were 2 euro commemoratives, struck in 125,000 and about 75,000 pieces respectively. Article 3 of the agreement provides for this special issue.
The yearly commemoratives run to roughly 75,000 to 125,000 pieces.
Landlocked within Italy, the Republic of San Marino also has its euros struck in Rome by the IPZS, as Article 5 of its agreement provides. Hence the same letter R and the same “2 ★” edge as the Vatican. The circulation 2 euro has had two designs. The first shows the Palazzo Pubblico, seat of government. Since 2017 the second reproduces the portrait of Saint Marinus, who gave the Republic its name, a detail of a painting by Giovan Battista Urbinelli. It bears the initials AL of Arno Ludwig.
Circulation quantities are modest: 100,760 two-euro coins in 2002, none outside sets from 2003 to 2005, 600,000 for the new type in 2017.
Commemoratives begin in 2004 with Bartolomeo Borghesi, epigraphist and numismatist, engraved by Ettore Lorenzo Frapiccini (signed E.L.F.) and issued in coincards in 110,000 pieces. Italian artists then dominate: Botticelli, Vasari, Pinturicchio, Donatello. Since 2014, San Marino has often issued two a year: around 85,000 to 115,000 pieces up to 2016, then roughly 52,000 to 73,000. Older Italian coinage is covered on our page on the 500 lire silver coins.
Other countries' 2 euro coins. The common side is identical everywhere: the national side tells you where the coin comes from. Andorra, the fourth microstate striking euros, also has its own commemoratives.
Copies of the Grace Kelly. The Bundesbank has recorded imitations of this coin, some marked “Copy”, others not. It classes all of them as counterfeits. In 2024 its analysis centre counted about 141,000 counterfeit euro coins in Germany, 96% of them 2 euro pieces, and recent fakes often leave out the edge lettering.
Fantasy trials. Pieces with John Paul II's portrait, dated 2002 to 2004 and marked “essai”, “probe” or “trial”, imitate a Vatican 2 euro. They are not official issues.
Simple checks. A weight of 8.50 g, a diameter of 25.75 mm, a core sitting tightly in the ring, and clean edge lettering matching the country (two stars for Monaco, one for the Vatican and San Marino). For coins sold in sets, the expected condition is as they left the mint: do not take a proof out of its capsule and do not clean it. If in doubt, ask a numismatist through our coin identification page.
Monaco lies about fifty kilometres from Cannes by road, 49 to 57 km depending on the route. The Principality's Museum of Stamps and Coins sells part of its issues: in October 2021, the 15,000 two-euro coins for the tenth anniversary of the princely wedding, offered online, sold out within the day. They are not struck on the Rock but at the Monnaie de Paris, while those of the Vatican and San Marino come from the state mint in Rome. If you brought back a coincard or a case from Monaco or Italy, show it unopened at the Cannes shop to have it identified.
No. Monaco's circulation 2 euro coins are struck in several hundred thousand pieces, often over a million since 2011. A low-mintage commemorative such as the Grace Kelly was, in principle, never in circulation.
Vacant see: the period between the end of one pontificate and the election of the next pope. The coin then bears the arms of the Cardinal Camerlengo, who acts as interim head. There is a series from 2005 and 2 euro commemoratives from 2013 and 2025.
Both come from the Rome mint and carry the letter R. Read the legend: “CITTÀ DEL VATICANO” or “SAN MARINO”.
No. For collectors, the original packaging is part of the coin. Bring it unopened to a numismatist, with the case and certificate if there is one.