35 Years of the Erasmus Programme

A blend of two central elements of the Erasmus programme: its original intellectual inspiration — Erasmus himself — and an allegory of his influence across Europe. The former is represented by one of the most recognised portraits of Erasmus; the latter by a web of connections passing from beacon to beacon across the coin, evoking the countless intellectual and personal exchanges between European students. Some of these connections form additional stars, born from the synergies between participating countries.

Fifth joint issue of the European Union. All 19 eurozone states are issuing a coin with the same design on varying dates. The coins differ only in their inscriptions, which appear in the respective national language.

The Erasmus programme traces back to an initiative of the European Community launched in 1987 — initially as an exchange programme for university students. Its name pays homage to Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam, the Dutch humanist and theologian of the 16th century, who himself studied and taught at several European universities, embodying early on what the programme would later institutionalise: academic mobility across borders. Erasmus of Rotterdam is regarded as one of the most influential intellectuals of his time; his works, including "In Praise of Folly", emerged from close exchange with scholars across Europe and made him a leading figure of northern European humanism.

Since its introduction, the Erasmus programme has given millions of students, trainees and teachers the opportunity to spend part of their education abroad in Europe. Cyprus has actively participated in the programme since joining the EU in 2004; it now operates under the name Erasmus+ and also covers vocational training, youth work and sport. The 2022 Cypriot issue of the shared European coin marks the programme's 35th anniversary, in which all eurozone states take part with a common coin design. The design combines the historical portrait of Erasmus of Rotterdam with a network of connecting lines illustrating the Europe-wide networking of programme participants.