Henry Verneuil - 100th anniversary of the birth - 2020

Modern Silver Commemorative - 239

Henri Verneuil (born Ashot Malakian, 1920-2002), a French filmmaker of Armenian origin, a writer, a member of French Academy of Fine Arts. He studied at the Applied Art School in Marseilles, and then entered the École Nationale d'Arts et Metiers in Aix-en-Provence in 1942. After graduation, he worked as a journalist, then became editor of “Horizon”, an Armenian magazine. In 1945, appearing as Henri Verneuil he published a series of articles on the Armenian Question in “La Marseillese”. Starting from 1948, Verneuil worked in cinema. He produced more than 40 films (“The Forbidden Fruit” (1952), “Maxim” (1958), “The President” (1961), among others, with the participation of world-class actors.
One of the best examples of contemporary cinematic art is Henri Verneuil’s “Mayrig”, a biographical film shot in 1991. It features the history of the Armenian family who survived the Armenian Genocide and migrated to France. In 1996, the film was awarded a César, and the script was translated and published into dozens of languages, becoming a credential for the adamant-like spirit and revival of Armenians.

Obverse: images of Order of the French Legion of Honor, Parajanov’s Thaler and Cesar prizes awarded to Henri Verneuil.
Reverse: a portrait of Henri Verneuil, a videotape and the fragments of the posters of the “Forbidden Fruit” (1952) and “It Happened All Night” (1960) films.

Designed by Eduard Kurghinyan.
Minted in the Lithuanian Mint.

Denomination: 100 dram
Metal: Silver 925
Weight: 28.28g
Diameter: 28x40mm
Mintage: 500 pcs.
Edge: Plain
Strike quality: Proof