On October 21, the Central Bank of Armenia (CBA) will put into circulation the “150th birth anniversary of Edgar Chahine” silver collector coin, Armenian has learned from the CBA.
The collector coin dedicated to the 150th birth anniversary of Edgar Chahine.
Edgar Chahine (1874–1947), famous French Armenian painter, engraver, graphic artist, and illustrator.
Chahine was born in Vienna. He studied at the Mkhitaryan School in Constantinople, and thereafter, at the Moorat-Raphael College in Venice. In 1893, Chahine went to Paris, where he attended the Academie Julian school for fine arts.
Beginning in 1896, he participated in exhibitions with his paintings (The Beggar, A Street Corner, Suffocation).
Since 1899 he began to create etchings, which brought him fame. Anatole France, Louise France, The Rag Gathering Woman, Promenade, Petros Chahine, Armenian Evening Program, Ghemma, The Carriage, The Unemployed, The Brunette and the Blonde, and many others of Chahine’s etchings are distinguished by their depiction of the misery and splendor of real life. Abbey of Coulombs, St. Mark’s Square, Beautiful Armenian Nose, The Charming Woman, The Wonderful Child, Francesconi, and Palazzo Clary are among the well-known works of Chahine’s later period.
Chahine employed nearly all printmaking methods in his works, including dry point, etching, soft varnish, and aquatint. He also worked on book illustrations and designed books for well-known authors of the time.
Chahine became a member of the Artists’ Union of Armenia in 1916 and participated in exhibitions in Tbilisi and Yerevan.
He was awarded a gold medal at the Universal Exhibition in Paris (1900), a gold top prize at the Venice Biennale (1903), the Order of the French Legion of Honor (1932).
Chahine’s works are kept in the National Library of France, the gallery of the Mekhitarist Congregation and the Ca’ Pesaro Civic Museum in Venice, the National Gallery of Armenia (more than 300 works), the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow, and in a number of European museums.
In 1991, the Edgar Chahine Museum was opened in the vicinity of the Saint-Michel monastery in France.
Obverse: Edgar Chahine’s etching Ghemma (1910, National Gallery of Armenia).
Reverse: Edgar Chahine’s portrait and etching Brunette and Blonde (1907, National Gallery of Armenia).
Designer: Lusine Lalayan.
The coin is minted at the Mint of Poland.
Technical specification
Face value 100 dram
Metal/fineness silver 9250
Weight 28.28 g
Size 28 x 40 mm
Quality BU
Edge even
Quantity of issue 300
Year of issue 2024