SWEDISH ARTIST MADE OWN COINS INSULTING THE KING

An artist has come clean and admitted to being behind the fake one krona coins which defame Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf, claiming that it was all part of an art project.

"Yes, it is me behind the coins. I have done it myself and have sought expert help when I have needed it," the artist told the Svenska Dagbladet (SvD) daily.

The mystery of the unorthodox coins began to gather pace after they began to surface in the money system during the summer.

Instead of the usual “Carl XVI Gustaf Sveriges Konung” ('Carl XVI Gustaf Sweden’s King'), the text written around the image of the King's head on each coin read “Vår horkarl till Kung”, which translates roughly into English as “Our whorer of a King”.

The artist told the newspaper that it had always been the intention to come forward but was awaiting the correct preparation.

The reactions to the coins were the crucial part of the art work, the artist explained. Interest and debate has been substantial, both in Sweden and abroad.

The flip side of the coins is indistinguishable from the real coins and experts recently concluded that the forgery seemed professionally done.

Specialist equipment has been used to hollow out one whole side of the coin all the way out to the edges, removing the image of the king’s face, SvD reported.

In the hollowed out space remaining, the forgers have inserted their own pre-cut image of the king together with the new defamatory text, soldered into place, and sharpened the grooves.

The coin's royal insult is an apparent reference to the King's rumoured infidelities detailed in a tell-all biography of the king published in late 2010.

The book, entitled “Carl XVI Gustaf - Den motvillige monarken” (‘Carl XVI Gustaf - The reluctant monarch’), included a rare and detailed look into the King’s private life, including details of love affairs, wild parties with Swedish models, and connections to the underworld.

A couple of samples of the coins are currently on display at the National Museum of Economy in Stockholm.

To read the complete article, see: Artist owns up to 'whorer' king coin mystery (www.thelocal.se/42948/20120901/)

To read the earlier article, see: Fake krona coin mocks 'whorer' Swedish king (www.thelocal.se/41438/20120614/)

Wayne Homren, Editor

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web