The "So, What's It Worth To You?" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Recently read a story telling of six countries that over the past couple of decades had been nominated, won or received an honorable mention from the International Bank Note Society for their aesthetically pleasing currency.  Some really neat designs of which I have chosen one of my favorites to post here.  A few days later I read a story about countries that have the world's oldest currencies.  Their stories are interesting and tell about humans trading with each other for thousands of years.  First it was the barter system and then slowly the concept of money and the development of coins and paper money came into existence.  

Sample of bank notes from Bermuda

The ancient kingdom of Lydia minted the first coins around 1200 B.C., according to the British Museum.  Since then there have been thousands of different currencies around the world.  They are developed and then discarded as nations rise and fall.  The United Nations currently recognizes 180 world currencies, some being over a thousand years old while others have come into use after the new millennium.  Perhaps you are a coin or paper bill collector.  What type of currency do you collect?  Do you know what the oldest world currencies that are still in use might be today.  The following monies are the four oldest that are still being used today.  Might you have a guess what they might be?  Once you see the name of the currency you will readily recognize it.  I found that to be true for myself as I read the list.  Hope you picked at least one of the world's oldest monies.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

#4 - The Meiji government of Japan developed the Japanese Yen in 1871; thus it is about

The Japanese Yen

150 years old.  The word Yen means "round object" which is a good description for the system's coins.  As we do in the United States, Japan has a series of coins that vary in size and amounts of worth.  All their coins are round and the five and fifty yen coins feature a small round hole in them which help them identify the coins in their pocket or purse without looking at them.  Neat idea that I would enjoy having in US money.  The paper yen is colorful and features a large round watermark in the middle to prevent forgeries and counterfeiting.  The yen system was developed in hopes of stabilizing their economy, but by WWII the value had dropped significantly.  At its worst, one yen was worth about 30 cents.  After the war ended, economists tied the value of the yen to the U.S. dollar to help Japan recover.  Today the yen is the most traded currency in Asia and the third most traded in the world.

#3 - The United States currency is actually older than the country by nine days.  

The United States $2

On June 25, 1776, the Continental Congress authorized the first $2 bills.  Nine days later, they would sign the Declaration of Independence.  Therefore, America currency is over 243 years old.  If you find any money printed after 1861, feel free to use it at your local store, since its considered legal tender at its full face value.  Even torn U.S. dollars are legal tender as long as three-quarters of the fill is still visible.  Those bills can also be exchanged at your local bank for new money.  And, despite what many people believe, the US $2 bill is still in print.  As of today there are over $1 billion worth of $2 bills in circulation today.  On a recent trip to my bank, the fellow in front of me was trying to exchange one hundred dollars worth of $2 bills for $20s.  He said he was trying to exchange them in Texas on a recent visit and the police were called to the bank and he was taken to the police station, since the officers had never seen a $2 before and thought it was counterfeit.  After hearing that, I asked the same teller if I could have 25 of those bills for my $50 withdrawal that day.  Made great Christmas stuffers for my grandchildren's stockings.  It was the first time they had ever seen a $2 bill and actually thought I had printed them myself on the press where I work part-time.

#2 - The ruble has been the currency of Russia since the 13th century.  

The Russian ruble

Back then, various states within the country made rubles by snipping off bits of other currencies.  It wasn't until Peter the Great's reign that the currency became official.  At the beginning of the 18 century, the ruble became a regulated, national currency in Russia.  Over the past 300 years the ruble has changed quite a bit.  There was even a time in history when Russia didn't even appear on the global map and Russian rubles weren't in circulation.  After the Revolution of 1917, Russia became part of the Soviet Union and during that time used the Soviet ruble until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.  In 1993 the reformed Russian government created a new version of the ruble which eliminated the Soviet version.  So, the ruble may be 500 years old or only dating from 1998. depending upon which ruble you are talking about.  

#1 - When it comes to talking about the oldest currency in known existence, then you would have to talk about the British Pound.

The British Pound

The pound is 1200 years old, dating back to the time of the Saxon kings.  It was minted as the national currency as early as 928 by Athelstan, the first King of England.  Why is it called a pound?  The coins were originally a unit of weight measurement.  So the term "pounds of sterling," "pounds sterling," and ultimately pounds.  When the rest of Europe moved to the euro, the British kept their ancient currency.  On January 1, 1999, 11 countries made the change to the euro which is now used throughout Europe.   Britain declined to start using the euro when Tony Blair said that the euro didn't pass the "five economic tests" that he came developed.  And, with England possibly leaving the EU, the pound may be around for another thousand years.