¡Viva la Revolución!

One of my three coins from Cuba. Two are common, base metal coins and this one is 90% silver. It was made back when America and Cuba were allies after America "freed" them from Spain and the Cuban Peso and USD were made at par with each other. Does the "VEINTE" on the reverse ring a bell? It's close to the Starbucks size "VENTI" and both mean twenty. So this is a twenty centavo, or cent, coin. 1/5 dollars are more prevalent in Europe which, combined with tradition, is the reason for the denomination. This is still very evident in Europe with the Euro using 20 Cent coins and the Pound having 20 Pence coins rather than quarters. Tradition carries on in Cuba, despite the Communist takeover, and 20 Cent coins are still used. They are still made at par with the USD for accounting reasons, but in reality are worth less. This coin is worth about $9.00.

(3) 2013 U.S. Cent(s)!

That's right, three. And they all came in early April which means I got them a month earlier than the 2012 one I got last year, which was my first 2012 coin. They came right on time, too, as I just filled up my 50 coin roll of 2012 cents, all of which are UNC, one of which has a D mint mark. So now I can end my hoarding of 2012 cents and begin my hoarding of 2013 cents. I just hope I get a 2013-D earlier than the 2012-D. The above coins are worth just $0.01.

Zombie Penny Back from the Dead!

If memory serves this is my first foreign coin find from change this year. A lot later than last year, I know, but I did get three shiny 2013 Cents (to be posted Friday) earlier this month which shaves a month off of last year's time. Plus, it's a Canadian Cent, the coin that is officially supposed to be in recall mode! It's also one of the newer ones with the newest portrait of QEII, which I did not have before. It's non-magnetic meaning it's made of the same metals as current U.S. Cents are, copper-plated zinc. In this shape, even with it not being struck anymore, it is worth just $0.01. Or if you want to get really precise, $0.0097.

1962 Soviet 15 Kopecks!

 

Ah, Soviet Russia. The place where everything was opposite. I mean just look at the denomination on the coin! Now it's just Russia and everything is back to normal. This coin is from that backwards, up-side-down, crazy place and it seems to have picked up some dirt along the way. Other than that, though, it is in at least AU. It features a hammer and sickle over the world  and inside a wreath on the reverse and a space-age but plain design on the obverse. It's worth about $0.30.

1936 (1944) Ethiopia 1 Santeem!

My one and only Ethiopian coin. It was "Struck at Philadelphia, Birmingham and the Royal Mint, London between 1944 and 1975 with the date EE1936 frozen" according to NGC. With my luck, it's probably one years, but there's no way to tell so it doesn't really matter. It has a mintage of 20,000,000 making it somewhat common and as such it is worth relatively little at $0.20.

1942-A German Pfennig!

 

It's been a while since I posted a Nazi coin. This is another of the "ugly" zinc ones and surprisingly, it has very little corrosion. This was issued a few years into the war when Germany stopped making bronze, aluminum-bronze, copper-nickel, and silver coins in favor of the more cheap and readily available zinc and aluminum. It features the infamous swastika which was a symbol of peace and good luck before the Third Reich. Now it's a fierce fashion statement that says "I hate Jews!" and is commonly worn by hate groups around the world. It also features a fancy font which I can't remember the name of on the obverse and one of the 30 million German eagle designs on the reverse. It's worth about $0.20 in this condition.

1948 Netherlands 1 Cent!

A coin on a Monday! This one features the severed head of Queen Wilhelmina, or at least that's my interpretation of it. This coin was one of the last produced before Queen Juliana took the throne and if you ask me, it was a good move! I like the way the N and 1 look on the reverse. They're not something you see everyday, even back in those days. This coin, possibly because it looks creepy, is worth just $0.05. Well, it's either that or the fact that hundreds of millions were made.

1971-BP Hungary 20 Fillér!

Simple yet cool. Modern yet old school. Those are a few phrases I can think of to describe this coin. A simple design yet one that I find pleasing. Modern (on the obverse) yet old school (with the wheat, a symbol of farming, on the reverse). I also like how the color of the coin matches the color of the paper when it's dark enough out. It'd pretty much worthless in exchange value it was still spendable. Looks like it's just a filler in my collection. It's worth about $0.05.

British Caribbean Territories Eastern Group 1964 Cent!

Here's a nice coin. Too bad it features one of my least favorite portraits of the Queen. It was equal to a British Half Penny at the time it was made which explains why five of them makes a nickel-brass coin, like the British 3 Pence. It's a bit tarnished which is to be expected of these coins from more tropical areas of the world, but is otherwise in great condition. Too bad it's not the 1963 in this condition. It would be worth a whole dollar more than this coin, which is worth only $0.20.

Trivia Answers!

The answer was 18, people. Two people answered, both said 19. So I think I'll hold off on trivia for a while. Maybe two weeks, possibly more. In the mean time you can expect more coin posts!

1914-A German Mark!

Look at those biceps! Who couldn't love Germany with an eagle like that? Well, apparently lots of people. This coin was minted the same year The Great War, or WWI, started. It was also the year Germany suspended the Gold Standard to finance the war. This suspension caused the hyperinflation Germany was notorious for in the early 1920's. Then Germany stabilized, Hitler came into power, Germany became poor again, Germany re-stabilized, and now they use the Euro, though some want the Mark back. Back to the coin. It was minted in Berlin as can be seen from the A mint mark, or should I say mint marks. The eagle has a smaller eagle on it and on the more worn coins it can leave the unfamiliar mind wondering how many eagles are on other eagles. In Mint State like this coin, we can see that there are just two eagles. And now that I've use the word eagle way too many times, I'll finish by saying that this coin is worth about $18.00.

Also, sorry for the late post. I've been sick as of late and have mostly been on my phone which is almost impossible to post from.

1956-Mo Cincuenta Cenatvos!

Here's awesome half dollar. It's big and heavy like a coin should be and made of the beautifully inexpensive metal: bronze. Two of these coins put together made the also inexpensive Peso, which was only 10% silver and a tad bigger than this coin. I still wonder why they didn't reduce the size of the Peso or make it Copper-Nickel as both would have saved money, but the past is the past and they eventually did make it copper nickel. Just not before they made it the lowest purity of silver ever recorded in history. Anyway this coin is relatively cheap at $0.75 and has been demonetized so it's no longer legal tender.

MCB Trivia Answers!

Only two answers this past week and on an easy question. The answer was 1942, both got it right. I'll make this new question super easy and see what reactions it gets. Now, I command thee to vote!