Individual Currency Histories
9 articles
How the 1923 Lincoln Porthole $5 Note Became a Collector Icon
The 1923 Lincoln Porthole $5 Silver Certificate stands out for its bold design, limited release, and unusual history, making it one of the most sought-after large-size U.S. banknotes among collectors and currency historians
Mobutu's Katanga Coins: Currency Manipulation and Hidden Wealth
Mobutu Sese Seko's regime in Zaire left a legacy of currency manipulation, with Katanga's short-lived coins revealing how political power and monetary policy intertwined during the Congo Crisis
Banknote Legacies and Lost Fortunes in West Virginia's Oil Towns
A journey through Littleton and Moundsville, West Virginia, reveals how the rise and fall of local industries shaped the fate of historic banks and rare national banknotes, leaving behind architectural relics and numismatic stories
Eufaula's Obsolete Scrip: Family Ties and Currency History
Obsolete paper money from Eufaula, Indian Territory, reveals a unique blend of local rivalry, family connections, and the evolution of private scrip in the late 19th and early 20th centuries
History of the Mexican Peso: From Pieces of Eight to the Modern MXN
The Mexican peso grew out of the silver pieces of eight minted in New Spain and used across the Americas, Europe and Asia. This detailed history follows the currency from pre-Hispanic exchange and the first mint in the Americas through independence, the 1982 debt crisis, the 1993 nuevo peso redenomination and today’s floating MXN.
History of the Japanese Yen: From Edo Money to the Modern JPY
The Japanese yen emerged from a sweeping nineteenth-century reform that replaced the gold, silver, copper and paper currencies of the Edo period with a unified decimal system. This detailed history follows the yen from the 1871 New Currency Act and the creation of the Bank of Japan through the gold standard, the ¥360 post-war dollar peg, the 1973 float and the modern JPY.
History of the British Pound: From Anglo-Saxon Silver to Modern Sterling
The pound sterling began as a weight-based unit built around the Anglo-Saxon silver penny and developed into the leading currency of nineteenth-century global finance. This detailed history follows sterling through medieval coinage, the Bank of England, the gold standard, wartime devaluations, Decimal Day, Black Wednesday and today’s floating GBP.
History and Present Condition of the Swedish Krona: From the Riksdaler to Modern SEK
The Swedish krona grew out of centuries of copper, silver, paper money and riksdaler reforms before becoming Sweden’s national currency in 1873. This detailed guide follows SEK through the Scandinavian Monetary Union, the 1992 currency crisis, inflation targeting, the 2003 euro referendum and the increasingly digital Swedish payment system of 2026.
History of the Chinese Yuan: From Ancient Coinage to the Modern Renminbi
The Chinese yuan stands at the end of one of the world’s longest monetary histories, stretching from cowrie shells and bronze cash coins to paper money, silver dollars and the modern renminbi. This detailed guide explains the reforms, political crises and monetary institutions that shaped China’s currency, including the creation of the RMB in 1948, the 1955 redenomination and the development of the digital yuan.