The War Room - Final Release in Masterpieces in Stone Series

At the World Money Fair 2019 in Berlin, our team showcased some of the newest projects, among which – The War Room. This is the final issue in Masterpieces in Stone series and one of our favorites, so we’d like to tell you a bit more about this coin.

While creating the concept of the final issue, we’ve spent some time looking for a suitable landmark. Our choice finally stopped on the Palace of Versailles, a former residence of French royalty. Before making a decision over the final reverse design, our artists had been discussing five different variants of interior.

The Palace of Versailles features around 700 salons in total, so there really was a considerable choice for us. Having appeared as a hunting pavilion of Louis XII, the place gradually transformed into a luxurious palace along with immense garden complex – all this thanks to Louis XIV, the Sun King, and his successors.

The War Room, a part of the Grand Gallery, is dedicated to political and military successes of Louis XIV. Military theme defines the total style of this salon and is reflected in the trophy compositions and monumental paintings. The main decoration of the War Room – an enormous relief medallion – shows Louis XIV on horseback.

The composition in this particular coin and in entire series includes two key aspects: reproduction of the interior details and the deep volume effect on the mere 55 millimeters of silver surface. To make it simpler, the high relief does not simply show you the details but literally takes you “inside” the coin. Observing a part of the War Room interior, you will notice some familiar details of the Hall of Mirrors.

Selecting the material for inset, we considered the color range of the actual War Room. Eventually, we chose sodalite. This mineral possesses a beautiful royal blue color with white veins and thus it resonates with some marble decorative elements of the Room.

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