Date: 2006

Samuel Barclay Beckett (13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish schoolteacher, novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, literary translator and French Resistance fighter. He was a very private man and, despite being awarded the Croix de Guerre, didn’t say much about his adventures in France during World War II.

He was born in Foxrock, Co Dublin and grew up in a house built by his father – William Frank Beckett (1871–1933), a quantity surveyor of Huguenot descent. His mother (Maria Jones Roe was a nurse). His education included:

• Earlsfort House School, Dublin
• Portora Royal School, Enniskillen
• Trinity College Dublin (1923-27)
  • He studied Beckett studied French, Italian, and English
    • He achieved the highest ever mark in French (a record that still stands today)
    • A lecture hall in Trinity’s Arts Block is named after him
  • He was elected a Scholar in Modern Languages in 1926
    • He played cricket for Dublin University
    • He also played two first-class games against Northamptonshire
    • This means he was the only Nobel literature laureate to have played first-class cricket

After graduating from Trinity, Beckett taught (briefly) at Campbell College in Belfast and then took up the post of lecteur d’anglais at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris from November 1928 to 1930. While there, he was introduced to renowned Irish author James Joyce by Thomas MacGreevy, a poet and close confidant of Beckett who also worked there. The rest, as they say, is history.

Samuel Beckett Commemorative €10 Silver Coin

2006 Samuel Beckett €10 silver commemorative coin (boxed)

• Samuel Beckett €10 silver (boxed)
  • Issued by the Central Bank of Ireland / .925 fine silver
    • Proof coin in original case with certificate
  • Diameter: 38.61 mm
  • Weight: 28.28 g
    • Limited edition: 35,000 units issued

Samuel Beckett Commemorative €20 Gold Coin

2006 Sam Beckett Commemorative €20 gold (boxed)

• Samuel Beckett €20 gold (boxed)
  • Issued by the Central Bank of Ireland / .999 gold
    • Proof coin in original case with certificate
  • Diameter: 13.92 mm
  • Weight: 1.24 g
    • Limited edition: 20,000 units issued

Samuel Beckett Commemorative €10 & €20 Gold Coins

2006 Sam Beckett €10 & €20 coins (Set of 2 boxed)

• Samuel Beckett €10 + €20 double set
  • Issued by the Central Bank of Ireland / .999 gold
• Proof €10 and €20 coins in original case with certificate
  • €10 = Silver .925 fine
    • Diameter: 38.61 mm
    • Weight: 28.28 g
  • €20 = Gold .999 fine
    • Diameter: 13.92 mm
    • Weight: 1.24 g
    • Limited edition: 10,000 sets issued

Country:

• Ireland

Category:

• Modern
  • Euro
    • Commemorative Issue