On May 20, 2024, Armenia’s Central Bank released a gold collector coin commemorating the 100th anniversary of the birth of Charles Aznavour, the legendary French-Armenian singer, songwriter, film actor, writer, and public figure.
Born in Paris to an Armenian immigrant family that fled the Armenian Genocide, Aznavour developed a passion for the arts from a young age. He launched his professional career in the 1940s and achieved global fame in 1956 after a performance at the Olympia concert hall in Paris.
Over his illustrious musical career, Aznavour wrote and co-wrote over 1,000 songs, including hits like “La mamma,” “La Bohème,” “Yesterday, When I Was Young,” “The Wine of Youth,” “She,” “Two Guitars,” “A Life of Love,” “Ave Maria,” and many more. He recorded nearly 1,400 songs in multiple languages, with some of his most poignant pieces, such as “For You, Armenia,” “They Fell,” and “Tender Armenia,” dedicated to his homeland.
Aznavour’s extensive career also spanned the film industry, where he starred in more than 90 movies, and literature, authoring several books. Following the catastrophic Spitak earthquake in 1988, he founded the Aznavour for Armenia association. In 2016, alongside his son Nicolas, he established the Aznavour Foundation, aiming to support educational, social, and cultural programs.
His contributions earned him numerous accolades, including multiple ranks in the French Legion of Honor and the titles of National Hero of Armenia and the Order of Motherland. From 2009, Aznavour also served as Armenia’s Ambassador to Switzerland and as the Permanent Representative to the UN Office at Geneva.
Aznavour’s legacy intertwines poetry, music, and acting, with around 200 million of his CDs sold worldwide. Yerevan honors him with a dedicated square and a monument erected in Gyumri.
The coin features a depiction of the Gyumri monument to Charles Aznavour (created by sculptor S. Petrosyan and architect A. Tarkhanyan in 2002) on the obverse. The reverse showcases a portrait of Charles Aznavour, with the number 100 artistically integrated using musical notes, piano keys, and a microphone, designed by Vardan Vardanyan and Karen Melikyan respectively.
This collector’s item is minted by the Mint of Poland, adding a tangible element to the enduring legacy of Charles Aznavour’s impact on music and culture.
