Collection Highlights



  • June 25, 2014

    5 Cents: Canada, 1943

    The beaver briefly disappeared from our nickel during World War II. So did the nickel typically used in minting the coin, a consequence of wartime rationing of the metal.
  • June 25, 2014

    1 Cent, Framed: Canada, 1908

    In January of 1908, Countess Grey, wife of the Governor General, inaugurated the new Canadian branch plant of the Royal Mint by ceremonially striking a one-cent piece- the first produced in Canada.
  • June 25, 2014

    $10 Bill, Bank of Montreal: Canada, 1859

    As the nineteenth century advanced, measures taken to foil counterfeiters became increasingly sophisticated.
  • June 25, 2014

    1 Cent Piece: Province of Canada, 1858

    In 1858 the Province of Canada (Québec and Ontario) officially bid farewell to the pounds and shillings of its British superiors, choosing a decimal base for its first coin issue.
  • June 25, 2014

    $2 Bank Note, Farmer’s Bank of St. Johns: Canada, 1837

    Phantom banks were not banks but the brainchildren of shady characters who produced legitimate looking bank notes without any capital to back them up.
  • June 25, 2014

    Shipwrecked Louis d’or: France, 1724

    Coins for New France were minted in France and shipped across the Atlantic.
  • June 25, 2014

    Playing Card Money: New France, 1749

    In 1685, the garrisons of New France found themselves short of the French coinage needed to pay their soldiers. An ingenious solution was proposed: use playing cards as paper money.
  • June 25, 2014

    10,000,000,000,000 Mark Note: Germany, 1924

    With the Allied Nations demanding reparation payments of billions in gold after the First World War, Germany very quickly slid into inflation.
  • June 25, 2014

    1 Pound Mafeking Note: British Army, South Africa, 1900

    During the Boer War, the small British garrison town of Mafeking was besieged by the Boer Army for 31 weeks.
  • June 25, 2014

    1 Kwan Note: China, circa 1368-1398

    This is an example of some of the earliest paper money. Like all early paper money, it was redeemable for hard currency or precious metal - in this case 1000 copper coins weighing around 3 kilograms.
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