Check these out! I bought this set of used coins on the Minsk aircraft carrier museum (see my post of Sunday July 1) for ¥120 (about US$20). The collection contains the smallest coins from some 50 countries. Notably absent, though : the venerable one penny from the United States, and the one cent from South Africa! Hmm. The set DOES contain coins from some very unusual countries : North Korea and Myanmar, for example.
The collection of ‘World Coins’ contains the smallest coins from 50 countries, but NO penny from the United States in the collection, and NO one cent from South Africa! Hmm. And that 1 Yuan coin from China actually comes in 1/10 Yuan coins as well.Here is a 1 won coin from North Korea. Its diameter is larger than a US quarter (24.26 mm) at 27 mm, but it is made of aluminum, so much much lighter than a quarter (2.32 g compared to 5.670 g). Enlarge the picture to see the tiny characters on the banner at the bottom of the coat-of-arms.This is the back of the 1 won North Korean coin, depicting the Grand People’s Study House is the central library located in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang. (I am sure that the contents of the library content is strictly controlled !).This hexagonal coin is from Myanmar and worth 25 pya (hard to say how many US pennies’ worth. I couldn’t find Myanmar currency on any of the online converters!). The coin is made of copper-plated steel and weighs 5g, so slightly less than a quarter.And – know what this is on the back of the Myanmar coin? Why, it’s easy : it’s a rice plant! (Ok, I will ‘fess up – I didn’t know that, I had to look it up).
