San Marino honors the late Italian professional motorcycle racer Marco Simoncelli with a ringed-bimetallic €5 coin marking the 30th anniversary of his birth.

Simoncelli was born Jan. 20, 1987, and died Oct. 23, 2011, in Sepang, Malaysia, during the Malaysian Grand Prix.

The September 2017 cover feature explores “one-year wonders,” designs that lasted just a year or less, many of which are now coveted delicacies. Other topics include how to value unique collectibles, and an outline of the history of what "paper money" is printed on, from mulberry bark to plastics.

His memory lives on in the hearts and minds of many fans, and on Aug. 31 he is remembered on a coin from San Marino.

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San Marino is close to his hometown Cattolica, which is why the nation is issuing the coin, according to the San Marino Ufficio Filatelic e Numismatico (Stamp and Coin Office).
Maria Carmela Colaneri, a designer at the Italian State Mint, designed the coin, the reverse of which shows Marco Simoncelli’s portrait.

The ringed-bimetallic coin’s copper-nickel center is surrounded by a bronzital (copper and aluminum) ring.
The 16-sided coin weighs 9.5 grams, measures 27.5 millimeters in diameter and has a mintage of 76,493 piece.

To order the coin, or learn more, contact the Stamp and Coin Office’s website.