Another day, another coin.
Trinidad & Tobago, 1 cent, 1983 (KM #29)
This coin is just like the one from January 24th, except that it is one year older. it is the first coin to be featured from ’83, my wife’s birth year. It is worth 0.16 cents USD, and its mintage quantity is unreported.
Metal Bronze
Weight 1.95 g
Diameter 17.8 mm
Thickness 1.12 mm
Shape Round
Orientation Medal alignment
And a coin for today:
France, 2 eurocents, 1999 (KM #1283)
When it comes to placing dates on coins, there are two traditions. Some nations, like the USA and Germany, date their coins for when they are put into circulation. Other nations, like France, date their coins for when they are made, regardless of how long it takes them to enter circulation. That is why this eurocoin is dated three years earlier than the introduction of Euro coins and banknotes for usage. France, as did Belgium, Finland, Spain, and the Netherlands, spent three years striking eurocoins in advance, preparing to meet the high demands when the coins became legal tender on EuroDay in 2002. The French dating tradition makes more sense to me, especially when I receive a shiny new 2010 coin well into 2011, fresh from the Mint wrapper. With a mintage of 702,104,013, this is the most common date for all French 2-cents. Like all 2 eurocent coins, it is worth 2.8 cents USD.
Metal Copper plated Steel
Weight 3.06 g
Diameter 18.75 mm
Thickness 1.67 mm
Engravers F. Courtiade (obverse)
L. Luycx (reverse)
Shape Round
Orientation Medal alignment
I pulled two coins on accident, and blindly picked the larger one.
Italy, 100 lire, 1975 (KM #96.1)
While the mintage of 106,650,000 is far from the top level of this coin type, it is still common. I have seen many of these large Italian coins pass through my hands over the years, and many of them are still shiny and crisp, betraying their age. It’s hard to tell that these handsome stainless steel coins circulated in Italian commerce for thirty years. I’ve long thought that stainless steel would make a great alternative metal for our 5-cent coin.
Metal Stainless Steel
Weight 8 g
Diameter 27.8 mm
Thickness 1.7 mm
Shape Round
Orientation Coin alignment ↑↓
Demonetized 02-28-2002
Here’s a souvenir from World War II.
Netherlands, 10 cents, 1942 (KM #173)
This coin was made during the German occupation of the Netherlands, the time when Anne Frank and her family were hiding from their Nazi oppressors. This zinc coin was much larger than the tiny silver 10-cent coins used by the Dutch before the war broke out. 1942 was the peak of mintage of this coin, with 95.6 million made. It is a common coin with little value either for its metal or for collecter value. But it is a neat little history reminder of life during World War II, when foreign troops ruled another’s homeland.
Metal Zinc
Weight 3.3 g
Diameter 22 mm
Thickness 1.5 mm
Engraver N. de Haas (reverse)
Shape Round
Orientation Coin alignment
Demonetized yes
Whoa! What the heck is this thing?
Yemen, 10 rials, 1995 (KM #27)
This is the first coin I’ve ever found from Yemen! It features the Shaharah Bridge. Did you know that Yemen is the only republic on the Arabian peninsula?
The coin is dated AH 1416 on the Islamic calendar, and also bears the Gregorian date of 1995. In case you were wondering, 10 Yemeni rials is worth 4.7 cents USD, despite this coin being larger than our quarter. It has negligible value in its stainless steel composition.
Metal Stainless Steel
Weight 6.05 g
Diameter 26 mm
Shape Round
Orientation Medal alignment
Here’s today’s coin…
United Kingdom, 1/2 penny, 1971 (KM #914)
Ah, the half penny, the lowest valued coin of the decimal pound sterling. Had it not been discontinued and demonetized in 1984, it would only have a value of USD $0.008. I don’t think I would have even bothered with introducing a coin worth so little. With 1,394,188,250 minted, it is a common coin with negligible collector value, but it contains a few cents worth of copper.
Metal Bronze
Weight 1.78 g
Diameter 17.14 mm
Thickness 1.07 mm
Engraver Arnold Machin (obverse)
Shape Round
Orientation Medal alignment ↑↑
Demonetized 12-01-1984
Sorry for the month-long update outage. Life gets in the way. I was feeling overwhelmed by my daily upkeep, and my Coin of the Day feature was an easy thing to trim. But here’s at least one update for now.
France, 10 francs, 1948 (KM #909.1)
Unlike the ten franc coin featured in the last update in April, this one is from the old franc era before 1960, the same as the 20 franc coin from March 19th. Twice demonetized, it has no legal tender value left, and with a mintage of 155,945,000 is not a valuable numismatic item either.
Metal Copper-nickel
Weight 7 g
Diameter 26 mm
Thickness 1.74 mm
Engraver Pierre Turin
Shape Round
Orientation Coin alignment
Demonetized yes
The Ryanarium 
