DANIEL WEBSTER | Coins Sculpture gets honored in gold

A gold 100-euro coin honoring Austria's long history of sculpture has just been issued by that nation's mint. The coin, the third in the "Art Treasures of Austria" series, is the first to carry a euro valuation.
The new coin depicts the Providentia Fountain, which stands in central Vienna and whose allegorical figures represent the major rivers in Austria.
It is the work of Raphael Donner, an 18th-century sculptor whose work is seen in the Belvedere Palace. Donner's portrait is on the reverse, along with a view of the Belvedere.
The final coin in the series will appear in 2003 and will celebrate Austrian painting.
The mint has struck the coin in .986 fine gold, with a special uncirculated finish that heightens details. Each is sold in a wooden case and is numbered.
Cost to U.S. buyers is $325. Queries go to Euro Collections International at (888) 904-5544, or online at www.eurocollections.com.
Auctions
Eastern Shore Auctioneers will sell the remainder of a collection amassed by Frank Zapf today at the Days Hotel in Timonium, Md. The collection includes national bank notes from Maryland and Pennsylvania and $5 notes from the Milford, Del., bank and the Wilmington and Brandywine bank. For more information, call (410) 822-8519.
Stack's will sell a strong collection of ancient and world coins Jan. 14-15, during the 31st annual New York International Numismatic Convention. The site will be announced. For more information, call (212) 582-2580.
XDaniel Webster is a columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer.