After the restoration of independence of the Republic of Latvia, a monetary reform was implemented to re-establish the national currency. As of 5 March 1993, the temporary currency – the Latvian ruble – was gradually withdrawn from circulation and replaced by the lats, which was the national currency of the Republic of Latvija until 2014 when Latvia adopted the single currency of the European Union – the euro. Lats can be exchanged to euro at the exchange rate of 0.702804 lats per 1 euro (set by the Council of the European Union) at the Cashier’s Office of Latvijas Banka.
This lavishly illustrated publication contains the description, in rich detail, of all lats notes and coins, including banknotes, circulation coins, among them 1-lats coins of special design and limited issue, and collector coins, making available, in two languages, Latvian and English, the information about their features and parameters, historical and cultural dimensions and messages that made them especially worth including in the Latvian Cultural Canon. The volume also presents information about assessments and awards the lats collector's items have enjoyed far and wide, domestically and internationally.