Drahomír Zobek

Life and work

He was born on 20 July 1952 in Nová Baňa. From 1967 to 1971 he studied graphic art and flat and relief engraving at the Secondary School of Applied Arts in Kremnica. On 29 July 1971 he joined the studio of the Kremnica Mint, which he headed from 1992 to 1997; since 1997 he has worked independently. From 1994 to 2004 he chaired the Association of Slovak Medallists. He runs the firm Numizmatika Kremnica s. r. o., which produces limited strikings of medals with historical themes and is a contractual partner of the National Bank of Slovakia. He has exhibited at international FIDEM exhibitions.

Coins and medals

Besides the circulation coins of the Slovak koruna and the euro coins he designed commemorative medals for the proclamation of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic (1992), the start of coin minting in the Slovak Republic (1993) and the Gabčíkovo waterworks (1994). He signs his coins with the initials DZ or the letter Z. His firm has produced, among other pieces, a large gold replica of the 1 Kčs coin of 1957. His Pribina medal won the Medal of the Year 2022 poll; the Great Seal of Matthias Corvinus, made with Roman Lugár, took third place in 2024.

From the work in the AUREA range

The AUREA range includes two of his works: the silver medal for the General Czechoslovak Exhibition in Prague 1991 (Ag 925, 30 mm) in its original capsule, and a set of replicas of historical coins of Charles Robert of Anjou (2012) – parvus, obol, denar, groat and florin. The set reflects his Kremnica firm's focus on replicas of historical strikes, the florins of Charles Robert standing at the beginnings of minting at Kremnica.