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The three smallest coins are known by the traditional names "nickel" (5¢), "dime" (10¢), and "quarter" (25¢), and the one-dollar and two-dollar coins are called the "loonie" (for the loon depiction on the reverse) and the "toonie" (a portmanteau of "two" and "loonie") respectively.
Feb 2, 2024 · When it comes to focusing on world coins, quite a few collectors have heard that the tiny 2 1/2 centesimos coin from Panama, affectionately known as the Panama pill, is the smallest ever made.
- Mark Benvenuto
Apr 22, 2024 · What was the smallest denomination of U.S. gold coins ever made? The smallest denomination of U.S. gold coins was the $1 gold coin, introduced in 1849 and minted until 1889. Why were $3 gold coins issued and when were they discontinued?
- 1/10 oz American Gold Eagle. The top choice for investors and collectors alike, the American Gold Eagle was first produced by the US Mint in 1986. Fun fact
- 1/20 oz Gold Canadian Maple Leaf. When first minted in 1979 by the Royal Canadian Mint, this one contained .999 pure gold. However, the purity was increased to 99.99% in 1982, making it one of the purest gold coins available today.
- 1/10 oz South African Krugerrand. The first Krugerrand was minted on July 3, 1967, to help market gold produced by the Rand Refinery and the South African Mint.
- 1/20 oz Gold Chinese Panda. First struck in 1982, the Chinese Panda was the third gold bullion coin available to investors after the Krugerrand and Canadian Maple Leaf.
- “Parva Ne Pereant”
- Adventures in Greek Metrology
- Electrum Fractions
- The Littlest Romans
- The Widow’s Mite
- Collecting The Tiniest Ancient Coins
- Notes
- References
IN 2014, THE British Royal Mint issued a gold proof 50p coin only eight mm in diameter*, weighing in at 1/40 Troy ounce (0.8 grams.) This is the smallest coin the UK has ever struck and surely one of the smallest modern coins. For comparison, the smallest coin the United States Mint has ever produced–the U.S. gold dollar, struck in several designs ...
Metrology is the study of weights and measures. With relentlessly logical minds, but lacking the advantage of decimal notation, ancient Greeks created systems of weights based on simple fractions. These became the basis of their coinage denominations. Let’s start with the silver drachma of the Athenian or “Attic” standard, weighing 4.3 grams. For c...
To find the tiniest ancients we have to go even further back in time, to the electrum coinage of Lydia and the Greek cities of Asia Minor. Like most questions in classical numismatics, the dating of these coins is controversial, but circa 650 BCE is the earliest guess for unmarked types and ca. 630-620 for types stamped with designs. The weight sta...
The practical Romans had little use for impractically tiny coins. The smallest regular imperial denomination until the mid-second century CE was the copper quadrans, worth 1/16 of a silver denarius. At 15 mm diameter and about two grams, it is roughly comparable to the modern euro cent (16.25 mm, 2.27 g). In the King James Bible (1611), the English...
Any discussion of tiny ancient coins would be woefully incomplete without mentioning the Biblical “Widow’s Mite.” As told in the Gospel of Luke: And He looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury. And He saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites. And He said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow...
In 1964 the British numismatist Colin Kraay(1918-1982) wrote: “Unless there was a supply of low value coins sufficient for the needs of daily retail trade, coinage cannot have been used in anything like the way with which we are familiar today. …the great majority of ancient coins reach us through hoards, which represent deliberate accumulations of...
In The Wasps (lines 790-1), Philocleon puts fish scales into his mouth, thinking they are coins. When he goes home with his jury pay under his tongue, his daughter (lines 608-9) manages to get it away from him with a welcoming kiss! Uelpides (The Birds, 503) swallows an obol when he is startled.
Gardner, Percy. “Coinage of the Athenian Empire”, Journal of Hellenic Studies33. (1913) Hendin, David. Guide to Biblical Coins, 5th edition. New York, (2010) Kraay. Colin M. “Hoards, Small Change and the Origin of Coinage”, Journal of Hellenic Studies84. (1964) Linzalone, Joseph. Electrum and the Invention of Coinage. Dennis McMillan (2011) Weather...
- Mike Markowitz
Denominations: There are six denominations of Canadian circulation coinage in production: 5¢, 10¢, 25¢, 50¢, $1, and $2. Officially they are each named according to their value (e.g. "ten cent piece"), but in practice the three smallest denominations are never called by those names.
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Apr 20, 2021 · The Federal Mint Swissmint has been awarded two numismatic world records. Guinness World Records™ has recognized the 1/4-franc gold coin issued in 2020 as the world's smallest commemorative coin, and the 10-centime coin as the oldest unaltered coin still in circulation.
