Italian 50 Lire – Catalog of the Value of Rare 50 Lire

Surely, when talking about 50 lire, the coin that circulated in Italy before the introduction of the Euro in 2002 comes to mind. The 50 lire that are remembered today are those from generous grandmothers who, secretly from their mothers, would give them to their grandchildren to buy candies or ice creams. For this reason, when discussing coins from before the advent of the Euro, our minds immediately return to childhood memories, indelible memories for all of us!

Now, let's start with the first 50 lire, those that you probably have never seen, because the first coin was minted in 1954 and even earlier in 1950 when PROOF coins were produced, which are now highly sought after.

So let's take a look at some of the rare 50 lire coins that spark the curiosity of coin collectors.

Among the 50 Lire coins from the 1950s, the most sought after are the PROOF coins made before the production of the definitive coin, which took place in 1954.

50 Lire Vulcano PROOF 1950/1953

• Year: PROOF 1950
• Material: acmonital
• Weight: 7.3 g
• Diameter: 25 mm
• Rarity: R3
• Year: PROOF 1953
• Material: acmonital
• Weight: 6.18 g
• Diameter: 21.8 mm
• Rarity: R4

On the obverse, facing right, is the profile of a woman adorned with a crown of oak leaves, around the head the inscription REPVBBLICA ITALIANA with a beaded outer circle, at the bottom the signatures of the author and engraver: Giuseppe Romagnoli and Pietro Giampaoli Inc.

On the reverse, surrounded by a beaded edge, is depicted the nude and sculptural body of the God Vulcan, as a symbol of Industry, forging a spade. Hephaestus holds the hammer high in his right hand, ready to strike the anvil, and with his left hand he steadies the spade. To the left is the year of minting and along the edge the inscription PROVA IN ACMONITAL, to the right the face value and below the symbol of the mint of Rome.

An incredibly rare proof coin, made of acmonital (Italian monetary steel), a type of metal composed mainly of steel and nickel.

The peculiarity of acmonital is its ferromagnetic capability, which means that the coins were “attracted,” physically, by magnets. The alloy is composed of iron/nickel/chromium/vanadium, and depending on the greater or lesser percentage of nickel, its “ferromagnetic capability” varies.

This alloy was introduced as early as 1937 for the production of coins of the Empire Series, the coins of the Italian Republic that use acmonital are, in addition to the 50 Lire, the 100 Lire and the 500 Lire Bimetallic.

Value 50 Lire Vulcano PROOF 1950 – 1953

• The 50 Lire Vulcano PROOF 1950 is highly sought after; on April 13, 2013, a specimen of this coin in BU was auctioned for €3,450
• But nothing compared to what people are willing to spend for a specimen of 50 Lire Vulcano PROOF 1953 in BU: indeed, on March 18, 2017, one of these rare coins R4 was sold at auction for a whopping €11,800

50 Lire Vulcano 1954 PROOF

From 1954, there are some specimens with the PROOF inscription and specimens without it. Those without the PROOF inscription are worth more and are of Rarity R5.

• Year: PROOF 1954
• Material: acmonital (81.75 Fe – 18.25 Cr)
• Weight: 6.25 g
• Diameter: 24.8 mm
• Edge: Reeded
• Rarity: R3 With PROOF inscription / R5 Without PROOF inscription

Value 50 Lire Vulcano PROOF 1954

• On November 4, 2017, a specimen of 1954 proof in BU with rarity R3 was auctioned for €6,018

50 Lire Anvil PROJECT 1954

• Year: PROOF 1954 (anvil)
• Material: acmonital
• Weight: 6.25 g
• Diameter: 24.8 mm
• Edge: Reeded
• Rarity: R5

On the obverse, as with the proofs of 1950 and 1953 but larger, the head of a woman with the crown of oak leaves. Around the head the inscription REPVBBLICA ITALIANA, the beaded outer circle is gone, at the bottom the signature Romagnoli.

On the reverse, the beaded edge is no longer there, and instead of Vulcan, there is depicted the anvil and hammer on a stele. To the right is the year of minting, below the symbol of the mint of Rome, and the face value is found to the right and left of the stele.

Value 50 Lire Anvil PROJECT 1954

This coin is of extreme rarity, practically unfindable even for the Mint Museum, which currently does not possess a single specimen! Imagine that on September 27, 2000, one of these coins in BU was purchased for the stunning amount of 48,300,000 Lire (€24,945)

After trials between 1950 and 1954, the 50 Lira Vulcano was minted from 1954 until 1989 in various variants.

The 50 Lira Vulcano coin features on the obverse a head of a woman wearing an oak leaf crown, facing right. Surrounding the head of the woman is the inscription REPVBBLICA ITALIANA. Below the neck, there is a diamond shape and the indication of the authors, namely Romagnoli and Giampaoli Inc.

On the reverse side, there is Hephaestus, the God Vulcano hammering iron on an anvil. To the right is the value of the coin, L.50, below the mint mark (Rome). On the left side, the year of minting is engraved.

• The edge: grooved
• Diameter: 24.8 mm
• Weight: 6.25 g

One of the peculiarities of this coin is the “French” axis.

The coin axes indicate the orientation of the two faces of the coin. If turning the coin on the vertical axis results in the image being offset by 180°, the axis is called “French.” If the image is aligned, the axis is “German.” Based on this principle, the degrees of rotation of the axes and any errors that may make the coin very interesting from a numismatic perspective are also calculated.

The value of a coin depends on the balance of several parameters such as rarity, mintage, year of minting, and especially the state of preservation. To evaluate a coin, it is necessary that these parameters are respected; in this regard, there are specific abbreviations that serve as a reference to indicate the economic estimate.

• FDC (Fior di Conio) This abbreviation indicates that the coins are coins preserved at the time of minting and never circulated, meaning the best state of preservation of the coin.
• qFDC (Quasi Fior di Conio) one step below Fior di Conio, meaning that the coin may show signs of contact with other coins, but is almost perfect.
• SPL (Splendido) indicates that the coin has circulated for a short time and has been kept in excellent condition, maintaining all defined and legible details.
• BB (Bellissimo) indicates that the coin shows only some signs of wear that do not affect its readability.

50 Lire Vulcano 1954

The 50 Lire Vulcano coin in Proof version Acmonital from 1954 has a very high value. It ranges from a minimum of €125 to a maximum of €1,500.00 for those FDC.

For the 50 Lire Vulcano from 1954 with a mintage of 17,600,000 and rarity C, the value can vary from a minimum of €10.00 to a maximum of €330.00.

50 Lire Vulcano 1955

The 50 Lire Vulcano coin from 1955 has a rather high mintage of 70,500,000, with rarity C. Therefore, it is a common coin, and the value can vary from €4 for a coin in BB condition, to €185 if it is in FDC.

50 Lire Vulcano 1958

This represents one of the rarest coins, as only 825,000 were minted, and if it has also been kept in excellent condition, its economic estimate could really be incredible!

So how much can the 50 Lire Vulcano from 1958 R be worth?

• FDC starts from €1,400
• qFDC can reach a maximum of €1,000
• BB is worth €40

50 Lire Vulcano 1959

The 50 Lire Vulcano coins from 1959 have a rather low mintage NC

• BB are worth €15
• FDC can be worth €780

50 Lire Vulcano 1960

The 50 Lire Vulcano coin from 1960 has a low mintage, rarity NC.

• BB the value is around €12
• FDC also €900

50 Lire Vulcano 1961

The 50 Lire Vulcano coins from 1961 have a mintage of 11,100,000, rarity NC.

• BB are worth €4
• FDC can be worth €550

The 50 Lire Vulcano Piccole or “micro” or even “reduced module” or “mini coins”, have more or less the same characteristics as the 50 Lire Vulcano.

They were minted from 1990 to 1995, on the obverse they also feature a woman's head facing right, surrounded by the inscription REPVBBLICA ITALIANA and below the woman's head is a diamond with the indication of the authors ROMAGNOLI and GIAMPAOLI INC.

On the reverse of the coin, the God Vulcan striking iron on the anvil is always depicted. To the right is the value, L.50, with the mint mark (R) below it, and on the left side is the year of minting.

• Year: 1990/1995
• Total mintage: 510,755
• Material: acmonital
• Weight: 2.7 g
• Diameter: 16.55 mm
• Edge: Smooth
• Rarity: C

The real peculiarity of this coin was its MICRO size, as it was minted with a diameter of 16.55 mm, unlike previous versions that approached 25 mm. Thus, it is much smaller than the previous version.

Due to their size, they had little success among the population, which immediately labeled them as too small.

“The 50 Lire Piccole? They practically get lost in pockets!” R. D.

One cannot assign a high economic estimate to this type of coin, although they are highly sought after by collectors. It should be noted, however, that a proof version was produced exclusively for numismatists.

50 Lire Piccole Value

The 50 Lire Piccole minted from 1990 to 1995 have a rather low value, ranging from €1.50 for those from 1990 to €3 for those from 1995. The 50 Lire Piccole minted in 1990, rarity C, have a value of €15 if in FDC.

The highest mintage of these 50 Lire Piccole is from 1991, totaling 60,000,000, which is why the value does not exceed €9, especially for the proof version.

Curiosities

A peculiarity of these coins is that between 1990 and 1991 they exhibited various minting defects.

One refers to the diamond above the engravers' signature, which may or may not be present, another error relates to the ear of the woman's head, which can be round or pointed. Additionally, sometimes the mint mark R disappears or the first digit of the year of minting is missing, or the minting axis is misaligned.

All these peculiarities make the coin interesting and sometimes RARE.

There is fun to be had in finding the various peculiarities from these years, especially those related to the diamond and the ear.

To give just a few examples:

The 50 lire from 1990 NC without diamond and with the ear lobe pointed

• BB €6
• spl €12.50
• fdc €25

The 50 from 1991 NC with diamond and the ear lobe round

• BB €2.50
• spl €5
• fdc €7.50

The 50 lire from 1991 C without diamond and the ear lobe round

• fdc €0.50

The 50 lire from 1991 C without diamond and the ear lobe pointed

• BB €5
• spl €10
• fdc €20

The 50 Lire Italia Turrita was minted from 1996 to 1999 and was the last fifty lire coin minted as it was withdrawn in 2002 with the introduction of the Euro. The coin features the following characteristics:

On the obverse side of the coin, there is a depiction of the Turrita Head. From the veil, strands of braided hair emerge, symbolically representing DNA as a symbol of Italian origin and history. The head is surrounded along the edge by the inscription REPVBBLICA ITALIANA, with a five-pointed star at the bottom and the signature of the author L. CRETARIA.

On the reverse side of the coin, the value of 50 Lire is prominently displayed, with the year of minting at the top. The edge features a series of symbols referring to other coins of the Republic. Intertwined elements that determine its uniqueness.

The Cogwheel of the 200 Lire, the cornucopia of the 1 Lira, the Oak Branch of the 20 Lire, the Laurel of the 100 Lire Minerva, and the Grapes with an obvious reference to the 5 Lire Grape are represented.

• Year: 1996/1999
• Material: Cupronickel
• Weight: 4.5 g
• Diameter: 19.2 mm
• Edge: Smooth
• Rarity: C

A curiosity about this coin relates to its name: Italia Turrita; this refers to the personification of Italy, depicted as a young woman crowned with a tower crown. A symbol of royalty and nobility.

Value of 50 Lire Italia Turrita

The 50 Lire Italia Turrita, minted from 1996 to 1999, was characterized by a large mintage, with rarity C. For the BU quality, the value is estimated at 4.00€.