Norwegian Viking Coins

by Robert Wood – Sociologist -
The first coin ever minted in Norway was a silver penning by the viking king Olav Tryggvason.

The one gram piece of silver was stamped with his royal sign. ONLAF REX NOR, which roughly translates Olav the king of the Norsemen. He is depicted as a king sitting with a scepter in his hand. The reverse side of the coin depicts a cross with the letters CRVX, which is Latin for… cross. The reverse side also shows the letters GODWINE MO NOR, which translate Godwine, master of mints in Norway. The coin is a near copy of the penning minted by the Anglo Saxon king Æthelred II.

The Slaughter of The Royal Mint
Money is still minted in Norway. However, since the Central Bank of Norway, Norges Bank, is involved in the crusade against Norwegian traditions and work places, the board decided to copy the attack on Lindisfarne. Kill and burn work places and traditions, here represented by The Royal Mint of Norway. Established in 1686, more than 300 years of proud traditions were discarded on the trash heaps of history in 2003. No other country in the world has sold its venerable Royal Mint to a foreign country. Norway did! And, the price? Less than 6 million dollars.
   Many people have asked the question; Why sell The Royal Mint? The Central Bank gave the most stupid reasons ever in the history of money: It was not economical… It was too costly. The Royal Mint did not make enough money. Imagine… (if possible) the bank making the money is loosing money on making the money. The Sale of The Royal Mint (eng.) Salget av Den Kongelige Mynt

Making Money is No Fun
The official reasons given for the elimination of The Royal Mint and several other Norwegian traditions and work places are given in staff memo No 31 – 2012 in an article by Herald Bøhn. There he quotes Central Bank’s boss Svein Gjedrem: ”Flere trengs ikke. Vi produserer ikke lenger statistikk, og vi er ikke lenger en industribedrift. Vi utsteder penger, men vi trykker ikke sedler eller preger mynt. Næringslivet har overtatt distribusjonen av penger.” or “We don’t need more (people). We no longer produce statistics and we are no longer an industrial company. We issue money, but we do not print banknotes or mint coins. Business has taken over the distribution of money.” Staff Memo

Nevermore, Quoth the Vulture
Anyhow, Norwegian bills are not made in Norway anymore, and we no longer inhabit the technical skills and knowledge of the process. Coins are still minted in Norway, but my guess is that it is just a matter of time before the production is outsourced to Eastern Europe. The old Viking Spirit drowned in Oil and The Bank of Norway believes it can conquer Europa by investing in American junk bonds, European stocks and a few buildings on Bond Street.