Silver Coin Frater Cyprian of the Red Monastery - 300th Anniversary of his Birth 2024 Proof

Frater Cyprian of the Red Monastery - 300th anniversary of his birth

This exclusive silver coin, issued in Slovakia and minted by the Kremnica Mint in 2024 in Proof quality, weighing 18 g, is dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the birth of Frater Cyprian of the Red Monastery.

The reverse side of the coin depicts a medicinal plant from Cyprian's herbarium in a composition, with a part of the Red Monastery grounds and the Three Crowns Hill in the Pieniny Mountains in the background. Above the composition are the birth and death dates of Frater Cyprián, '1724' and '1775'. The left part of the coin then shows the inscriptions "RED CLASTER", "FRÁTER CYPRIÁN", initials of the author of the coin Mg. Roman Lugar's initials "LR" and the Kremnica Mint mark.

The obverse side of the coin is dominated by a fictitious portrait of Cyprian holding a straw bag with herbs. The motif in the upper part is complemented by the construction of a flying machine and a flying eagle. On the left is the national emblem of the Slovak Republic. The name of the state 'SLOVAKIA' and the year of issue '2024' are placed at the bottom of the coin. The denomination '10 EURO' is placed in the foreground of the flying machine.

Fráter Cyprián, by his own name Franz Ignác Jäschke, was born on 28 June 1724 in the village of Polkowice. He took his religious vows in the Camaldolese monastery in Zobor near Nitra around 1753. From there he went to the Red Monastery in 1756, where he remained until his death in 1775. It is assumed that before joining the Order he lived in Italian monasteries, where he acquired botanical, floristic and herbal knowledge, which he subsequently expanded in Wrocław. In Červený Klášter he worked as a healer and manager of the monastery pharmacy. He treated not only his confreres, but also people from the surrounding area. He founded a monastery garden in which he grew medicinal and ornamental plants and fruit trees. He prepared medicines, ointments and medicinal tinctures according to contemporary healing books and his own experience. Frátr Cyprián compiled a herbarium between 1766 and 1771, which is the oldest preserved herbarium from the territory of Slovakia. It is particularly remarkable in terms of the history of botany, pharmacognosy, pharmaceutics and medicine. It contains important botanical documents, interesting facts about the healing and pharmacy of the time, but also about the life of the Camaldolese monks in Červený Klášter.