Greece

Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula. The drachma was the official currency of modern Greece from 1832 until the launch of the euro in 2001.

The Minister for the National Economy and the Governor of the Bank of Greece chose the designs for their euro coins from a set of proposals presented by a national technical and artistic committee. The designer of the winning motifs was sculptor Georges Stamatopoulos, sponsored by the Bank of Greece. There is a separate design for each denomination. The 2€ coin depicts a scene from a mosaic in Sparta (third century AD), showing Europa being abducted by Zeus, who has taken the form of a bull. Europa is a figure from Greek mythology after whom Europe was named.