Editing Obverse and reverse (section)

==Specific currencies==

===Coins of the Eurozone===
[[Image:N22978 2 eur aversas.jpg|thumb|upright|left|National side (obverse) of a Lithuanian €2 coin]]
Regarding the [[euro]], some confusion regarding the obverse and reverse of the [[euro coins]] exists. Officially, as agreed by the informal Economic and Finance Ministers Council of Verona in April 1996, and despite the fact that a number of countries have a different design for each coin, the distinctive national side for the circulation coins is the ''obverse'' and the common European side (which includes the coin value) is the ''reverse''.<ref>[http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2003:264:0038:0039:EN:PDF Commission Recommendation of 29 September 2003 on a common practice for changes to the design of national obverse sides of euro circulation coins] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181119152003/https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2003:264:0038:0039:EN:PDF |date=19 November 2018 }} (PDF), [[Official Journal of the European Union|OJ]] L&nbsp;264, 2003-10-15, pp. 38–39; EU doc. nr. C(2003) 3388.</ref> This rule does not apply to the collector coins as they do not have a common side.

A number of the designs used for obverse national sides of [[euro coins]] were taken from the reverse of the nations' former pre-euro coins. Several countries (such as [[Spain]] and [[Belgium]]) continue to use portraits of the reigning monarch, while the [[Coins of the Republic of Ireland|Republic of Ireland]] continues to use the State Arms, as on its earlier issues.

===Coins of Japan===
[[Image:500JPY.JPG|thumb|¥500 coin, the obverse showing a [[Paulownia]] plant, the reverse showing the value "500", and the year 2006 (平成十八年, ''[[heisei]] juu-hachi nen'')]]
In Japan, from 1897 to the end of [[World War II]], the following informal conventions existed:
*the [[Chrysanthemum Throne]] (or Chrysanthemum Crest), representing the imperial family, appeared on all coins, and this side was regarded as the obverse;
*the other side, on which the date appeared, was regarded as the reverse.

The Chrysanthemum Crest was no longer used after the war, and so (equally informally):
*the side on which the date appears continues to be regarded as the reverse;
*the side without the date is regarded as the obverse.

===Coins of the United Kingdom===
[[Image:EdwardVIIIcoin.jpg|thumb|upright|left|A left-facing portrait of [[Edward VIII]] on the obverse of UK and Empire coins would have broken tradition.]]
Following ancient tradition, the obverse of coins of the United Kingdom (and predecessor kingdoms going back to the [[Middle Ages]]) almost always feature the head of the monarch.

By tradition, each British monarch faces in the opposite direction of his or her predecessor; this is said to date from 1661, with [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] turning his back on [[Oliver Cromwell]]. Hence, [[George VI]] faced left and [[Elizabeth II]] faced right. The only break in this tradition almost occurred in 1936 when [[Edward VIII]], believing his left side to be superior to his right (to show the parting in his hair), insisted on his image facing left, as his father's image had. No official legislation prevented his wishes being granted, so left-facing obverses were prepared for minting. Very few examples were struck before he [[Edward VIII abdication crisis|abdicated]] later that year, and none bearing this portrait were ever issued officially. When George VI acceded to the throne, his image was placed to face left, implying that, had any coins been minted with Edward's portrait the obverses would have depicted Edward facing right and maintained the tradition.

Current UK coinage features the following abbreviated Latin inscription: {{lang|la|D[EI] G[RATIA] REX F[IDEI] D[EFENSOR]}} ('[[By the Grace of God]] King, [[Fidei defensor|Defender of the Faith]]'). Earlier issues, before 1954, included {{lang|la|BRIT[ANNIARUM] OMN[IUM]}} ('of all the Britains'{{snd}}that is, Britain and its dominions) and, before 1949, {{lang|la|IND[IAE] IMP[ERATOR]}} ('[[Emperor of India]]').

===Coins of the United States===
The United States specifies what appears on the obverse and reverse of its currency. The specifications mentioned here imply the use of all upper-case letters, although they appear here in upper and lower case letters for the [[Typography|legibility]] of the article.

[[Image:1 us dollar 1979.jpg|thumb|[[Susan B. Anthony dollar|US dollar coin]], with the obverse side showing [[Susan B. Anthony]], the words "Liberty" and "[[In God We Trust]]", and the year 1979; the reverse side shows the words "one dollar", "United States of America", and "[[E Pluribus Unum]]", and retains the imagery of the [[Apollo 11#Insignia|Apollo 11]] mission insignia, previously used on the [[Eisenhower dollar]].]]
The [[United States government]] long adhered to including all of the following:
*Obverse:
**"[[Liberty (goddess)|Liberty]]"
**"In God We Trust"
** The four digits of a year, that of minting or issue
*Reverse:
**"United States of America"
**"''E Pluribus Unum''"
**Words (not digits) expressing the name or assigned value of the item, e.g., "quarter dollar", "one dime", "five cents"

The ten-year series of [[State Quarters|Statehood quarters]], whose issue began in 1999, was seen as calling for more space and more flexibility in the design of the reverse. A law specific to this series and the corresponding time period permits the following:
*Obverse:
**as before:
***"Liberty"
***"In God We Trust"
**instead of on the reverse:
***"United States of America"
***The words expressing the assigned value of the coin, "quarter dollar"
*Reverse:
**as before:
***"''E Pluribus Unum''"
**instead of on the obverse:
***The four digits of the year of issue