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Business & Money

Fake krona coin mocks 'whorer' Swedish king

Published: 14 Jun 12 11:03 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/41438/20120614/

Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf and his rumoured womanizing are the subject of an apparent prank played out on the face of at least one forged one-krona coin that has left Swedes baffled and coin experts impressed.

On Tuesday, 72-year-old Karin Mattsson from Piteå in northern Sweden discovered a small change in her small change.

“At first I thought my eyes were deceiving me,” Mattsson said to the local Piteå Tidningen after the discovery.

Instead of the usual “Carl XVI Gustaf Sveriges Konung” ('Carl XVI Gustaf Sweden’s King'), the text written around the image of the King's head on Mattson's coin read “Vår horkarl till Kung”, which translates roughly into English as “Our whorer of a King”.

The coin's royal insult is an apparent reference to the King's rumoured infidelities detailed in a tell-all biography of the king published in late 2010.

The book, entitled “Carl XVI Gustaf - Den motvillige monarken” (‘Carl XVI Gustaf - The reluctant monarch’), included a rare and detailed look into the King’s private life, including details of love affairs, wild parties with Swedish models, and connections to the underworld.

While Mattsson is unsure of who is behind the prank and can’t remember which shop she picked up the change, she has her suspicions.

“Maybe it’s from someone who doesn’t like the King,” said the 72-year-old, adding that she plans to keep the coin as a memento.

“If this is just a prank, then someone has gone really far.”

Meanwhile, Mårten Gomer, technical expert of notes and coins at the Riksbanken, is also surprised at the news.

“We’ve never come across this before. It’s really rare that you find counterfeit coins in Sweden,” he told the paper.

“My immediate impression is that it’s from a normal one-krona coin. Someone has put a lot of time into it, and it was done incredibly well.”

The find has also left local police scratching their heads.

“I’ve never heard of something like this happening,” said Lars-Göran Johanssonof the Piteå police to the paper, adding that it’s become more unusual to see counterfeit money.

The one-krona coin is worth $0.14 and is the smallest denomination in the Swedish currency.

Following reports of the forged krona coin in Piteå, a similar coin was reportedly discovered in the Stockholm area, according to the Expressen newspaper.

"It looks almost exactly like a regular one-krona coin. Maybe it's a hair lighter, but the portrait is almost exactly alike and it says 2012 on it," Stockholm resident Ann-Marie told the newspaper about the coin, which she believes she received as change after purchasing mineral water at Stockholm's Kungsträdgården on June 6th.

Oliver Gee
Follow Oliver on Twitter here

What do you think? Leave your comment below.

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12:22 June 14, 2012 by Melaleak
More accurately, it translates to "Our manwhore of a king".

It's also a wordplay on the word "karl" (slightly old-fashioned world for "man") being similar to "Carl", as in Carl XVI Gustaf.
13:12 June 14, 2012 by Svensksmith
Someone has too much time on their hands.
13:55 June 14, 2012 by rohermoker
Time and talent.
14:12 June 14, 2012 by Silberfüchschen
It is probably some art project.
14:39 June 14, 2012 by libertarianism
Ahh, the little things in life...
16:07 June 14, 2012 by usajon
Not "probably some art project".

Obviously it is art. Forging currency has almost become cliche in the last 20 years. That said I breaking open my piggy bank in hopes of finding one.

What is on the flip side?
17:02 June 14, 2012 by Lawrence Chard -Chard Coins
We sometimes come across altered coins.

Here is an example which amuses us:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lawrence_chard/6390568191/
22:52 June 14, 2012 by Smokebox
I am sure Sweden in some way funded the artist who made it.....
23:44 June 14, 2012 by libertarianism
Re 7, interesting. Thanks for posting.
11:20 June 15, 2012 by nolikegohome
Shame on the person who made the Coin. I really Love the King and i think he is a nice guy. He has done a lot for the country and deserves to be respected.
11:33 June 15, 2012 by rise
Leave the man alone. Which man, king or not, isn't completely in love with a woman's bosom and her boobs. :) He's the KING, if he want to go to a stripper club looking at boobs, he has the god damn right to do precisely that!
18:33 June 15, 2012 by Tarc the Mexan
#11: it's Swedish taxpayer money that pays for his strip club visits. Being "in love" with boobs is a pitiful excuse.
20:09 June 16, 2012 by rise
#12

Yes the king is financed by tax money. Milk is white and there are millions of other things obvious as well.

But I won't discuss obvious things with you; you have shown before in a more than satisfying way that you're are a true feminist. Which I am not, so I don't see we're having much in common to speak of.
20:21 June 16, 2012 by Tarc the Mexan
#13: so according to you, criticising the king for wasting taxpayer money at strip clubs counts is 'feminism' ?

You need to get your head checked, I suspect a brain tumour is interfering with your ability to use logical reasoning and common sense.

Or maybe you're just stupid.
17:39 June 18, 2012 by CJ from Sunshine Desserts
Och its just a wee harmless joke...
13:21 October 16, 2012 by Helge Krupski
Open Information for prosecutors and police in Sweden about King of Sweden (read in "My Notes") - http://www.facebook.com/Helge.Kroupski

Open letter to The Royal Court of Sweden about King of Sweden (read in "My Notes") - http://www.facebook.com/Helge.Kroupski
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