Zagreb, (IKA) – The Croatian Mint has issued a series of gold and silver medals on the occasion of the forthcoming visit by Pope Benedict XVI to Croatia, June 4 and 5, according to papa.hr. The tradition began at the time of the first visit by Pope John Paul II to Croatia in 1994, when medals were presented to the Pope as a gift from the bishops.
The first medals by the Croatian Mint dedicated to Pope Benedict XVI were manufactured in three versions. The author of the medal is Damir Mataušić, an academic sculptor and medal designer. All three medals will be available individually and in a set, packed in a leather etui with a certificate. The gold and silver medals are 37 millimeters in diameter, while the gold one also comes in a smaller size as a ducat, 20 millimeters in diameter.
On one side of the medal is a portrait of Pope Benedict XVI with his coat-of-arms, while on the other is the contour of the cit of Zagreb with the cathedral and Our Lady of the Stone Gates. The medal also features the official logo of the Pope’s visit depicting the family and the motto “Together in Christ.” The medal can be seen and purchased at the sales outlet of the Croatian Mint (Hrvatski novčarski zavod), Ban Jelačić Square 11 in Zagreb.