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The 'krone' is the currency of Denmark, including the autonomous provinces of Greenland and the Faroe Islands. The plural form is "kroner" and one krone is divided into 100 ''øre'', the singular form being the same as the plural. The ISO 4217 code is DKK; the domestic abbreviation is "kr.". Occasionally, the variants DKR or Dkr are seen, but these are not official.

Contents

History

Faroe Islands and Greenland

Relationship to the euro

Coins

Banknotes

See also

References

External links

History

Until the late 18th century, the krone was a denomination equal to 8 mark.[1] A new krone was introduced as the currency of Denmark in 1873. It replaced the rigsdaler at a rate of 2 kroner = 1 rigsdaler. The krone was introduced as a result of the Scandinavian Monetary Union, which lasted until World War I. The initial parties to the monetary union were the Scandinavian countries of Sweden and Denmark, with Norway joining two years later. This placed the krone on the gold standard at a rate of 2480 kroner = 1 kilogram fine gold.
The name of the common currency was "krone" in Denmark and Norway (see Norwegian krone), and "krona" in Sweden (both names mean "crown" in English). After the dissolution of the monetary union, Denmark, Norway and Sweden all decided not to change the names of the now separate currencies.
The Scandinavian Monetary Union came to end in 1914 when the gold standard was abandoned. Denmark returned to the gold standard in 1924 but left it permanently in 1931. Between 1940 and 1945, the krone was tied to the German Reichsmark. Following the end of the German occupation, a rate of 24 krone to the British pound was introduced, reduced to 19.34 (4.8 krone = 1 US dollar) in August the same year. Within the Bretton Woods System, Denmark devalued its currency with the pound in 1949 to a rate of 6.91 to the dollar. A further devaluation in 1967 resulted in rates of 7.5 krone = 1 dollar and 18 krone = 1 pound.

Faroe Islands and Greenland

In the Faroe Islands, Danish coins are used but the islands use distinct banknotes and, during World War II, had coins struck especially for use there (see Faroese króna). Although a common misconception, the Faroese króna is not an independent currency, only a separate set of banknotes with a different design.
In Greenland, distinct banknotes were issued between 1803 and 1968, together with coins between 1926 and 1964 (see Greenland rigsdaler and Greenland krone). In 2006, the governments of Denmark and Greenland announced that by 2008, distinct banknotes would be introduced once more for use in Greenland. Ordinary Danish banknotes will remain legal tender in Greenland.

Relationship to the euro

Denmark negotiated special "opt-outs" of the Maastricht Treaty that allowed the country to preserve the krone while most other members of the European Union adopted the euro in 1999. A referendum on the currency issue held in 2000 rejected the proposed adoption of the euro. The Liberal-Conservative government of Anders Fogh Rasmussen planned another referendum on the issue in 2004, but these plans were dropped when polls showed decreasing support for the euro. The government is still committed to converting Denmark's currency to the euro eventually.
The krone is pegged to the euro via the ERM II, the European Union's exchange rate mechanism. Before the introduction of the euro, the krone was linked to the German mark, the intention being to keep the krone stable.

Coins

The coins of the krone currency are issued by the Danish National Bank. When the currency was introduced in the 1870s, coins were minted in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10 and 25 øre and 1, 2, 10 and 20 kroner. The 1, 2 and 5 øre were minted in bronze, the 10 and 25 øre and 1 and 2 kroner in silver and the 10 and 20 kroner in gold. Production of gold coins ceased in 1917, followed by silver coins in 1919. Iron substituted bronze in 1918 and 1919. In 1920, cupro-nickel 10 and 25 øre were introduced, followed, in 1924, by aluminium-bronze ½, 1 and 2 krone coins.
In 1941, zinc 1, 10 and 25 øre and aluminium 2 and 5 øre coins were introduced, with zinc 2 and 5 øre following the next year. The ½ and 2 kroner denominations were withdrawn. Cupro-nickel 10 and 25 øre coins were reintroduced in 1946, followed by aluminium-bronze 2 kroner coins the next year. In 1960, the 5 kroner coin was introduced and the production of 2 kroner coins ceased. 1 and 2 øre coins were withdrawn in 1973, 10 kroner coins were introduced in 1979. 5 and 10 øre coins were withdrawn in 1989 and are no longer legal tender. Between 1989 and 1992, 50 øre, 2 and 20 kroner coins were introduced, thus the following coins are currently in circulation:

Currently Circulated Coins
Value	Technical parameters				Description
	Diameter	Thickness	Mass	Composition	Edge	Obverse	Reverse
25 øre	17.5 mm	1.55 mm	2.8 g	Tin-bronze	Smooth	Crown of King Christian V	Heart (symbol of the Royal Mint)
50 øre	21.5 mm	1.55 mm	4.3 g
1 krone	20.25 mm	1.6 mm	3.6 g	Cupronickel	Milled	Monogram of Queen Margrethe II	Traditional design (holed)
2 kroner	24.5 mm	1.8 mm	5.9 g		Interrupted milling
5 kroner	28.5 mm	2 mm	9.2 g		Milled
10 kroner	23.35 mm	2.3 mm	7 g	Aluminium bronze	Smooth	Queen Margrethe II	Coat of arms
20 kroner	27 mm	2.35 mm	9.3 g		Interrupted milling

Banknotes

Early krone banknotes were issued in denominations of 5, 10, 50, 100 and 500 kroner. 1 krone notes were added during the First World War. 5 kroner notes were replaced by coins in 1960. The next new denomination was not introduced until 1972, when production of 1000 kroner notes began. In 1979, the 10 kroner note was replaced by a coin and 20 kroner notes were introduced, although these have since also been replaced by coins (both are, however, still legal tender). The presently circulating banknotes are:

Value	Obverse	Reverse
50 kroner	Karen Blixen	Centaur from Landet Church
100 kroner	Carl Nielsen	Basilisk from Tømmerby Church
200 kroner	Johanne Luise Heiberg	Lion from Viborg Cathedral
500 kroner	Niels Bohr	Knight fighting a dragon from Lihme Church
1000 kroner	Anna and Michael Ancher	Tournament from Bislev Church

The current designs of the Danish banknotes are going to be replaced between 2009 and 2012 ^[1]. The new theme for the banknotes is Danish bridges. The process of designing the new banknotes was initiated in 2006 by the Danish National Bank.

See also

★ Banknotes of Denmark, 1972 series

★ Banknotes of Denmark, 1997 series

★ Scandinavian Monetary Union

★ Swedish krona

★ Norwegian krone

★ Economy of Denmark

★ Economy of Greenland

★ Economy of the Faroe Islands

References

1. New Danish banknote series Nationalbanken


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External links

★ Royal Mint of Denmark see 'Denmark's coin series'.