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Armenia

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The Armenian dram (sign: ֏, ISO: AMD) was introduced on 22 November 1993 when Armenia left the Soviet rouble zone. The Central Bank of Armenia issued circulating coins in two series: the aluminium first series of 1994 (10 luma to 10 dram), and the plated-steel and bimetal second series of 2003–2004 (10 to 500 dram). All coins of both series were struck at the Mint of Poland (Mennica Polska) in Warsaw. Both series remain legal tender.

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Coins by year

Year 10 լ 20 լ 50 լ 1 դ 3 դ 5 դ 10 դ 20 դ 50 դ 100 դ 200 դ 500 դ
1994 KM 51 KM 52 KM 53 KM 54 KM 55 KM 56 KM 58 — — — — —
2003 — — — — — — — KM 93 KM 94 KM 95 KM 96 KM 97
2004 — — — — — — KM 112 — — — — —

լ = luma, դ = dram. Empty cells = denomination not issued that year.

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Specifications

KM# Year Denomination Metal Ø Weight Edge Released
51 1994 10 luma aluminium alloy 16.0 mm 0.59 g plain 21 Feb 1994
52 1994 20 luma aluminium alloy 18.0 mm 0.75 g plain 21 Feb 1994
53 1994 50 luma aluminium alloy 20.0 mm 0.93 g plain 21 Feb 1994
54 1994 1 dram aluminium alloy 22.0 mm 1.39 g reeded 21 Feb 1994
55 1994 3 dram aluminium alloy 24.0 mm 1.63 g reeded 21 Feb 1994
56 1994 5 dram aluminium alloy 26.0 mm 1.98 g plain 21 Feb 1994
58 1994 10 dram aluminium alloy 28.0 mm 2.30 g plain 21 Feb 1994
93 2003 20 dram copper-plated steel 20.5 mm 2.75 g plain 1 Jan 2003
94 2003 50 dram brass-plated steel 21.5 mm 3.50 g reeded 31 Mar 2003
95 2003 100 dram nickel-plated steel 22.5 mm 4.00 g reeded 31 Mar 2003
96 2003 200 dram aluminium bronze (Cu-Al-Ni) 24.0 mm 4.50 g reeded 31 Mar 2003
97 2003 500 dram bimetal: Cu-Ni centre, Cu-Al-Ni ring 22.0 mm 5.00 g segmented reeded 31 Mar 2003
112 2004 10 dram aluminium alloy 20.0 mm 1.30 g reeded 1 Dec 2004

Specifications from the Central Bank of Armenia.

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Notes

  • The Central Bank of Armenia has never published mintage figures for either series. Krause, Numista and NGC catalogues all leave the field blank. By collector availability, every coin in both series is common.
  • No die varieties are recognised by the major catalogues for any regular issue. A single set of dies covers each denomination's run.
  • In the first series the edge pattern alternates non-obviously: 10/20/50 luma plain, 1 and 3 dram reeded, 5 and 10 dram plain again. This was a tactile distinguisher.
  • The 200 dram is often described in third-party catalogues as "brass" or "brass-plated steel"; CBA specifies a copper-aluminium-nickel alloy (aluminium bronze), consistent with its golden colour and weight.
  • The 500 dram is the only bimetal coin Armenia has issued for circulation. The segmented reeded edge (alternating reeded and plain sections) is unique to this denomination in the series.
  • KM# 57 is skipped in the first-series sequence because it was assigned to a 1994 commemorative silver issue, not the circulation series.
  • All twelve coins were struck at the Mint of Poland (Mennica Polska) in Warsaw under contract with the Central Bank of Armenia.