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The Latvian Mint won the Most Artistic Coin category at the Coin of the Year (COTY) awards for 2023-dated coins. The mint’s Riga Fashion silver 5 Euro features stunning colors and recognizes the era when the Riga Fashion House and the Rīgas Modes magazine were at the height of their popularity. 

In Riga, the capital of Latvia, fashion was a way to stand out and distance oneself from Soviet culture. As the Latvian Mint explains:

An emancipated, confident woman with her own style and attitude has always been and still is the principal character of Riga fashion. The story of Riga fashion involves more than clothes, footwear and accessories. In the context of the 1960s–1980s, fashion is a complex concept covering the textile industry from sewing at home to mass production of clothes and fabrics in the territory of Latvia. It also includes graphic design for printing on fabrics, the creation of texts, typefaces and other means of communication, including fashion shows, their scenography and music.

The stunning coin was designed by Alīna Grīnpauka, a well-known fashion designer and illustrator whose impressive resume includes collaborations with iconic fashion brands, such as Valentino, Alberta Ferretti, and Tiffany & Co.

The obverse features a seated woman with bright red lips, wearing a dress with bright floral patterns. On the reverse, the upper part of the coin features a fabric sample and a stylized blue pattern for making clothes, while the lower part depicts a cut-to-size piece of fabric with a bright floral print. The central part bears the inscription “Rīgas Modes” to the left against a perfectly smooth background, and the inscriptions “5 EURO,” “LATVIJA,” and “2023” are semi-circled along the right side against a matt background.

Mintage is limited to 3,000 pieces. The silver coin measures 35 mm in diameter and weighs 22 grams.