The USD (greenback or buck) is still the reserve currency of the world, a status it achieved following world war 2. It developed out of the Spanish 8 reales coins (the later Mexican Peso) but was named Dollar after the similar silver taler coins from Germany & Austria.
The USD was worth a bit more than 4 shillings. A pound was worth $4.85. After world war 2, the USD was pegged to gold at a rate of 35$ per ounce (now 1200/oz) which lasted until 1971, when the costly Vietnam war forced Nixon to let the dollar float. Because nearly all world currencies were pegged to the dollar, this caused quite some turmoil and subsequently a decade of serious inflation. The value of the USD dropped from 4 SFr to less than 2 in 10 years time.
The 1980's saw a rebound of the USD and its importance as a result of a very aggressive interest rate policy. By 1985 it nearly doubled in value against major currencies, a move which brought many Latin American countries, who borrowed a lot of USD in serious trouble and sent many Latin currencies into hyperinflation.
After that, inflation and the USD rate dropped slowly. Despite being a paper currency it's still part of over 85% of global FX transactions.
I really like pre-1945 US coins. Especially the Standing Liberty quarter is one of my favourites. They are just hugely expensive compared to any similar contemporary silver coins from other countries. I guess US collectors have deep pockets and can spend if they want to.
19th century US coins are even harder to find in VF or better quality. After 1970 US coins got pretty boring but accessible for collectors with small budgets. The state quarters are quite nice and make it easier to memorize all 50 states. But now they went a bit too far with the other series.
Thank you for the discourse. All very interesting things. I generally agree with your assessment . Older US coinage was well thought out. I always extol the virtues of the U.S. Commemorative half dollars. Some can be very pricey but someday I'll get them.
The modern coins are sort of boring. I prefer the ATB quarters to the state quarters purely based on design.
Here's an odd thing iam finding with state quaters. To me it looks like bad clading. It is always on the front. And the copper is not in the middle it off to the front more
Could this be ware?. It looks like the metal is peeling off.
I found 8 of them this weekend.
And the gold dollars iam finding alot of uneven rims. And thick rims and thin rim
Anyone else finding this,or iam i going more nuts
yours daryl
I collect the Lincoln cent, which is probably the most popular American coin to collect. It has been in circulation now for almost 100 years. The longest running coin series in U.S. history. I am partial to the war steel cent. I also collect silver war nickels. Aside from the change during WWII, the U.S. nickel is the only American coin left that has the same metal content as when it started in 1938. It is still 75% copper and 25% nickel.
American silver coins are way too expensive. I would like to get a nice Walking Liberty, which is a nice design, but a good coin costs 2 or 3 times as much as similar silver coins from other countries. Also, the Walking Liberty is hard to find in true mint condition. The head of liberty on the design is prone to wearing away easily. I also believe the design is sort of copy of the French Sower motif, but I haven't researched that yet.
I really like the walking liberty half dollar and peace dollar designs and I would love to have more us coins in my collection but the problem is that american coins are way overpriced and hard to find here in europe.
I have been hunting for 1 dollar gold coins from mid 19th century but I have only seen them in museums and I don't want to buy coins online because it ruins my idea of coin collecting because I want to find them and not just buy what I'm looking for because it's boring and there's nothing better than the feeling of buying a coin for a good bargain price.
I'm not a fan of North American coins generally, but do have a nice Morgan silver dollar, a BU Eisenhower copper-nickel dollar, and two AU/UNC Kennedy silver half dollars (one of each silver purity), etc.
As an aside, that early US coin with the flowing hair lady is truly hideous! Looks like a witch, lol. Whatever possessed them to put that design on their coins?
I also like the story of the initial "exposed breast" design of the Standing Liberty Quarter. Apparently this was an early 20th century numismatic version of "nipplegate".
Coming from the land of sauna, seeing the panic those yanks can have over a bit of nudity can make me smile.
The "exposed breast" seems to be the same motif as in "Liberty leading the people", a painting by a 19th century French artist Eugène Delacroix (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eug%C3%A8ne_Delacroix, scroll down a bit).
My first trip to a Liquor store was in LA. I was 6 and didn't understood English completely and the tender was a Japanese man who knew less English than me. So I asked how much for a bag of chips and he answered in uninteligible an-gi-ri-shu so I presented him with my pocket change and he said "No, more money". I went to my mom and she gave me a bunch more coins; went back and he said "No, %&*/ dolla!". So again went back but this time my mom didn't gave me any more money. So I kept the coin in the pocket.
Later that vacation I got high fever and grew over 5cm in a very short time. So mom got me new pants and placed the old ones in the drawer. Decades later when I was again on vacation took out the old clothes and found the bunch of coins still in the pocket. My "chips money".
Numista referee for the "Viceroyalty of the New Spain" (most of it).
History through coins.
Eli V
I'm not alone saying their plating process is bad, but not the only country to do so...
But do you consider the District of Columbia and United States Territories Quarters as part of the 50 State Quarters program or as a separate one?
Administrateur du catalogue, référent de nombreuses nations antiques et de la Lorraine.
Catalogue administrator, numerous Antique nations and Lorraine referee.
Quote: erdvillaMy first trip to a Liquor store was in LA. I was 6 and didn't understood English completely and the tender was a Japanese man who knew less English than me. So I asked how much for a bag of chips and he answered in uninteligible an-gi-ri-shu so I presented him with my pocket change and he said "No, more money". I went to my mom and she gave me a bunch more coins; went back and he said "No, %&*/ dolla!". So again went back but this time my mom didn't gave me any more money. So I kept the coin in the pocket.
Later that vacation I got high fever and grew over 5cm in a very short time. So mom got me new pants and placed the old ones in the drawer. Decades later when I was again on vacation took out the old clothes and found the bunch of coins still in the pocket. My "chips money".
That's a cool story! Do you still have the coins?
"For by telling them of many things without teaching them you will make them seem to know much, while for the most part they know nothing"
-Plato
Quote: chomp-masterI'm not alone saying their plating process is bad, but not the only country to do so...
But do you consider the District of Columbia and United States Territories Quarters as part of the 50 State Quarters program or as a separate one?
Separate.
I don't understand this point of view as it's a direct continuity between territories with and without the State status, just the following year...
Administrateur du catalogue, référent de nombreuses nations antiques et de la Lorraine.
Catalogue administrator, numerous Antique nations and Lorraine referee.
Quote: Lotus07That's a cool story! Do you still have the coins?
Yup! Many of them are now part of my collection; except for duplicated dates, from which I chose the better one and spent the other(s)
By the way, I think they where 2.21$ in coins; so those must had been some expensive chips. Or maybe the tender didn't want all that change and instead wanted notes, or only quarters.
Numista referee for the "Viceroyalty of the New Spain" (most of it).
History through coins.
Eli V
Quote: Lotus07That's a cool story! Do you still have the coins?
By the way, I think they where 2.21$ in coins; so those must had been some expensive chips
you must have really cheap chips in usa/mexico if a bag costs less than 2 usd
So many years ago? (more than 30)
that would be 5.73 usd now = 5 euros
I forgot that the euro has weakened against the dollar but year ago that would have been the price of a bag of chips
Quote: frncsbrennanAside from the change during WWII, the U.S. nickel is the only American coin left that has the same metal content as when it started in 1938. It is still 75% copper and 25% nickel.
The US nickel has the same size and composition today as it did when first introduced in 1866!
I would love to see a modern restrike of the original union shield design in 2016 for the 150th anniversary of the "five cent nickel".
I'm going to up this chat because there is a cross-chat debate about uses of US coinage in USA and in Ecuador, a dollarized country, mainly about high denomination coinage. It's well known that since some decades, people don't like using higher denominations than quarters. That's why Kennedy half dollars, Eisenhower dollars (now discontinued) and Sacagawea dollars were not so much popular in USA, but in the opposite side Sacagawea dollars are more and more popular in Ecuador, which finally didn't decide to order bond coins, unlike lower denominations.
By the same way there is a $1 series depicting US presidents, but according to what I read, this series had a similar unpopularity, even using such theme, and this fact obliged the US treasury to highly reduce the amount of the last Presidential series coins, maybe no more made for common circulation. If some US residents have rectifications, you'll be welcome.
Administrateur du catalogue, référent de nombreuses nations antiques et de la Lorraine.
Catalogue administrator, numerous Antique nations and Lorraine referee.
That's true, chomp-master. The American public rarely use coins above a quarter. The Kennedy 50 cent piece is used sparely, but one very rarely ever sees a dollar coin. The coin dealer I go to uses current presidential dollar coins as change, but he's the only place I know that does that. A lot of Americans don't even know that these coins are legal tender.
The only way dollar coins will be used here is if the U.S. treasury stops printing dollar bills. Then the public will use them. A lot of other countries that have introduced dollar coins or higher have simply stopped printing bills of the same denomination when the coins were issued. And, voila, the coins got used. Funny how that works.
I also wish America would start using some higher quality base metals to make are higher denominated coins-at least aluminum bronze. Aluminum bronze is time tested, looks nice and is very durable. I dislike clad coins or copper plated zinc coins. The current nickel we use here should be monetized as a quarter because it costs more to make them than they are worth at face value. I believe our coinage would benefit if we got rid of all coins below 25 cents and use a more valuable metal to make our coins.
I don't think the 50¢ piece is even released for circulation anymore, though those already in circulation are still legal tender. I legitimately had someone ask me if it was a new $2 coin when I spent one once. Alas, my better nature took over and I admitted that it wasn't. :)
I quite agree on the need to eliminate the dollar bill in order to encourage use of the dollar coin -- I'd like to see a $2 and $5 coin introduced, at that. Unfortunately, then there would be a huge fight over who should be on them, rather than sensibly returning to classic images of Liberty. I've long been of the opinion that presidents don't belong on coins -- this isn't a monarchy. I can see grandfathering in Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln, of course. Beyond those, I'd much rather see Liberty, the bald eagle, and other national symbols on the rest.
And I think fmcsbrennan is probably right that a revaluation is overdue, though I disagree with just eliminating small change. Curiously, if you divide our current denominations by five, you get 1, 2, 5, 10 and 20 cent pieces, which is in line with Euro denominations. From there, it's a natural extension to add 50¢, $1, $2 and $5 coins.
"Well, believe me, I calculated the odds of success versus the odds I was doing something incredibly stupid -- and I went ahead anyway."
--Crow T. Robot, Mystery Science Theater: The Movie
Also, governments don't like high face value coins, because they are easier to counterfeit than notes that can have several cheap and easy to identify security measures. Whereas coins tend to be overlooked when people receive them, and some criminal rings could profit a lot with fake 2 and 5 dollar coins.
But if they were to be released I think it would be time to stop putting Presidents in them, or people at all. Might be time to put some other theme in your money. Putting faces in coins is more the matter of Kings and Queens rather than Democratically elected figures.
Numista referee for the "Viceroyalty of the New Spain" (most of it).
History through coins.
Eli V
Quote: "Gwyde"Sweden is the first European country having withdrawn all fractionals. The 50 Öre (worth well over a US nickel) was demonetized late 2010.
Preceeded by the Czech Republic The 50 haléřů was demonetized in September 2008.
Now: Kč 1, worth €0.037
Administrateur du catalogue, référent de nombreuses nations antiques et de la Lorraine.
Catalogue administrator, numerous Antique nations and Lorraine referee.
Quote: "Gwyde"Sweden is the first European country having withdrawn all fractionals. The 50 Öre (worth well over a US nickel) was demonetized late 2010.
Preceeded by the Czech Republic The 50 haléřů was demonetized in September 2008.
Now: Kč 1, worth €0.037
True, I should have been more specific: currencies worth about €0.10 or more having withdrawn their fractionals. For example: the Hungarian 50 Filler was demonetized after the turn of the century and it was not minted for circulation any longer after the early 1990's. I still have a few of those aluminum coins figuring the Budapest chain bridge.
Jokinen- Because the govt. has been printing so much currency with nothing to back it, the dollar has less value year after year. There is some talk that it will be replaced as that "worlds" currency in the next five years. It has been suggested that since we have so much debt to other countries-particularly China and that they have bought so much gold-that they will replace the US as the world money standard and perhaps go back on the gold standard.
If you don't stand for something you'll fall for anything
Quote: "jokinen"I really like pre-1945 US coins. Especially the Standing Liberty quarter is one of my favourites. They are just hugely expensive compared to any similar contemporary silver coins from other countries. I guess US collectors have deep pockets and can spend if they want to.
The Standing Liberty Quarter series is one of my favorites as well. I have collected them for years, and I have all of them but the 1916 and the overdate. The reason that they are so expensive is that for 1916-1924, the date was on a pedestal, making it one of the highest points of the coin, and the date wore off quickly. The "dateless" coins would then go into the scrap silver pile, and did not survive the large silver melts of the 1960s and 1970s. The issues of 1925-1930 have the date recessed in the pedestal, so fewer were melted, and they can be readily found up to Fine condition, for $10 or less (except for 1926D, 1927D and 1927S).
By now I actually own a 1917 S in VF condition. I did not know about the dateless pieces. In Fine or worse conditions these coins are indeed not that expensive but in better qualities their value increases a lot. Paid €50 for my piece.
Quote: "jokinen"By now I actually own a 1917 S in VF condition. I did not know about the dateless pieces. In Fine or worse conditions these coins are indeed not that expensive but in better qualities their value increases a lot. Paid €50 for my piece.
Is your 1917 Type I (bare breast, no stars below eagle) or Type II (chain mail shirt, 3 stars below eagle)?
I believe that it was Walter Breen that wrote that, when MacNeil made the modifications to the dies for Type II, it had the effect of making the design off-balanced, and that is why the Type II has so many fewer Full Head strikes. (In the strictest terms, the head/face, the shield, and the toes must be fully struck to be a Full Head strike. Many coins priced as FH have weak strikes of the shield or toes.)
In addition, for the date 1920 specifically, one obverse die has a die bulge between the 9 and 2 of the date, so that even Uncirculated (Mint State) coins may not have four full numbers of the date. For later, more worn coins of this die, the only number visible is the 0. Here are photos of a 1920 from this obverse die:
I love the symbolism of this design. First issued in 1916, while America had not officially entered World War I, Liberty stands at the bulwark of a ship. She is holding an olive branch in her right hand ("I prefer peace..."), but is drawing the cover off her shield ("but I will defend myself.")
Quote: "Miss Moneypenny"As an aside, that early US coin with the flowing hair lady is truly hideous! Looks like a witch, lol. Whatever possessed them to put that design on their coins?
George Washington (the commanding general in the revolution, and the first President) did not want his likeness put on the national coinage, and he did not want a portrait that could be interpreted to be any member of European royalty.
The designer presented an interpretation of the goddess Liberty, and put her name over it, so there would be no confusion as to what "beauty" she was!
I would be happy to relieve you of the burden of having those hideous coins in your coin cabinet.
I would like to know a little more about Innovation Dollars.
I'm from Brazil and I really like the subject... I started thinking about doing this collection...
But it seems that stores do not ship to Brazil (and sometimes to other countries, sending from US).
So I would like to know if Innovation Dollars are common circulation, or hard to find collectors editions?
I've never seen these dollars in Brazil, so...
May be the best way is after the pandemic, wait until someone go to USA, and then buy and bring sets/coins.
Quote: "lhlimaverde"I would like to know a little more about Innovation Dollars.
I'm from Brazil and I really like the subject... I started thinking about doing this collection...
But it seems that stores do not ship to Brazil (and sometimes to other countries, sending from US).
So I would like to know if Innovation Dollars are common circulation, or hard to find collectors editions?
I've never seen these dollars in Brazil, so...
May be the best way is after the pandemic, wait until someone go to USA, and then buy and bring sets/coins.
they can be bought directly in rolls/BU sets/proof sets from the US mints and its stores. Not sure whether they can be requested at bank branches though. Usually if you want to buy them loose, most dealers will sell it roughly $2-3 per piece. if I’m not mistaken, the typical roll from the mint costs $32 (ie $1.28 per coin). You’ll likely find the Sacajawea and presidential dollars at toll booths or when you pay at parking or subway station machines and get the change back. Not sure if that will be the case for these innovation coins, but good probability imo
My 2 cents on the years-ago discussion on dollar coins not circulating the US. It won't happen until the powers that be remove the dollar bill from circulation. Many countries have succeeded in getting larger denomination coins circulating, but only after removing the same denomination notes from use.
Unfortunately, just like with the 1 cent coin, the dollar bill won't be removed from use any time soon. Too many political constituents would lose their jobs and the politicians know they would follow.
