Indeed, it's hard to think of another currency so loaded with ambition and political ideals, and with the ongoing Brexit drama and internal tensions within the European Union, the euro is getting stronger and stronger.
As one of the new currencies in the world, its long and protracted birth process has been carefully documented.
It is a story of meetings, negotiations, agreements, and encounters again; almost the entire cast consists of politicians and civil servants. A story that, in other words, might make a historian's heart flutter.
But even more mysterious – and much debated – is how the euro got its worldwide known symbol.
The name of the new currency was chosen in Madrid in 1995. Presumably on the advice of a Belgian teacher and Esperanto fanatic, the "euro" triumphed over a string of other contenders, including the "ducat" mentioned in Shakespeare's work.
An important consideration was that the name of this new currency had to be the same in all official European languages, and uniformity was also considered vital for the symbols that would represent it.
Unlike the old currency symbols which have evolved organically over the centuries, the euro symbol was designed by a committee.
The symbol must be composed of three key elements: it must be a well-known European symbol, it must resemble a well-known currency symbol, and it must be beautiful and easy to write by hand.
The European Commission staff was responsible for compiling a list of more than 30 possible designs. This list was later whittled down to 10 and made public.
Read Also : Arti Lambang Kabupaten Kuningan
Two designs received the most votes, and then European Commission President Jacques Santer and Yves-Thibault de Silguy, the commissioner in charge of economic and financial affairs, were asked to choose between the two.
When the chosen symbol was unveiled in December 1996, it was greeted by the now-closed newspaper, The European, who called it "precise and confident, like a post-modern pretzel".
Elsewhere, the symbol causes confusion. The letter 'C' is bisected by two horizontal lines? Well, no, the symbol was actually inspired by the Greek letter epsilon.
As a reference to the cradle of European civilization, he emphasizes historical continuity. The symbol is also similar to the letter 'E', for Europe. The classic link became ironic when, in 2010, the Greek debt crisis threatened the stability of the entire eurozone. While the two parallel lines that cross in the middle symbolize stability.
Surprisingly, it is now almost impossible to track down the symbol that came second in the popularity contest. It should be in a safe in Brussels, but look it up on the internet and it's as if the only euro symbol is the shape that is known today.
There is also a lack of clarity around public consultations. How many EU citizens were consulted? And from which country?
As for the identities of the designers behind the winning image – an image that became globally known overnight – there are supposedly four people.
What is determined is the geometric construction of the symbol. The proportions must be just right, with the foreground and background color tones also defined. When officials decided to patent it, the euro became the world's first copyrighted currency symbol.
None of the typography experts are happy about this, because suddenly have to insert a new typographic symbol into the list of existing fonts. Computer applications also struggle, often resulting in conversion errors in the form of a question mark appearing instead of the required symbol.
The euro was introduced as a cashless currency at midnight on January 1, 1999. In 2001, with 14.25 billion notes and 50 billion coins poised to flood the 11 member states the following year, two strange challenges arose to the official EU narrative.
The symbol has been criticized for being similar to the old logo of US electronics company Commodore, but British foreign exchange specialist Travelex goes a step further.
Read Also : Arti Lambang Listrik PLN
Claiming that they have used very similar correspondence marks between the subsidiary and its business partners since 1989, they are suing the European Commission for trademark infringement. (The court ultimately won the European Commission, leaving Travelex with a hefty euro bill.)
Then, just months later, a man named Arthur Eisenmenger who lives in a nursing home in southern Germany, claimed that he had created the euro symbol more than 25 years earlier, while working as chief graphic designer for the organization that was then the European Economic Community. .
Eisenmenger's role is recognized as overseeing the creation of the European Union flag and the "CE" quality control mark for European consumer goods. He created the euro sign, he said, as a symbol for Europe in general.
I wasn't thinking about the euro at the time, but just something that symbolized Europe, he told The Guardian newspaper.
Regardless of who actually designed it, the euro symbol, like the Union flag and the song "Ode to Joy", has transcended its practical purpose and emerged as an icon of the European project.
Perhaps the greatest testament to its truly timeless versatility is that this symbol can now be seen on pro-Brexit placards.
Cek Profile : Zonahobisaya
Labels:
LOGO
Thanks for reading The Meaning Behind The Euro Symbol And Its Complicated Origin Story. Please share...!
0 Komentar untuk "The Meaning Behind The Euro Symbol And Its Complicated Origin Story"