World Coin Clinic: The Practical, and Attractive, Uses of Edge Lettering
Reader questions explore the purpose, production, and history of edge lettering, along with other practical features used on coins around the world.
Are roller presses still used to make coins?
Roller presses are no longer employed to make coins; however, since 1892, they have been used to press impressions onto existing coins, resulting in the very collectible elongated coinage seen at many historic and amusement establishments. Some hand-cranked roller presses still exist, but most elongated coins are now impressed by automated machinery.
How is a lettered edge applied to a coin?
Lettered edges are added to coins either using a separate rolling process if the obverse and reverse have already been struck or with a segmented collar. When using the former method, coin edge lettering is applied separately, so the lettering may appear at random on either the obverse or the reverse. The latter impresses the lettering simultaneously along with the obverse and reverse designs.
A lettered edge is attractive, but does it serve any purpose beyond aesthetics?
Edge lettering, just as does a reeded edge, can prevent a coin from being clipped or otherwise manipulated. It is also a security feature because it is challenging for counterfeiters to copy. A lettered edge can also assist the sight-impaired. In 1663, English medalist Thomas Simon used an elaborate lettered edge on his famed Petition Crown through which he solicited King Charles II for a contract to strike coinage. Charles didn’t give Simon the contract, but Oliver Cromwell, who overthrew the king, did.
How should I define odd and curious money for collecting purposes?
Odd and curious money and primitive currency are the same thing, within reason. Almost anything that has been used as barter falls into the odd and curious money category, while primitive money is the form of money used by societies that have yet to adopt coinage. Odd and curious money can include items such as tobacco or cigarettes, tokens, Swedish plate money, and anything that makes sense to use as barter when coined money isn’t available. Primitive money includes items such as the Katanga cross, tiger tongues (cast-metal bars, not the animal’s tongue), various bracelets, shells, and animal pelts.
Have odd and curious money objects been counterfeited?
Due to the simplicity of many odd and curious items, it isn’t difficult to counterfeit many of them. Manilas, the bronze or copper bracelets traded as money in Africa, were also produced in England for use in the slave trade. Germans made porcelain wild dog teeth for barter as a substitute for the real thing traded by the Mafulu. Wampum was made by both American Natives and settlers who traded with them.
When and where was the first ringed bimetal coin issued?
Bimetal coins and medals, where there is an inner plug comprised of a different metal than the outer ring, have been made on occasion since the time of Roman Emperor Hadrian, who ruled between 117 and 138. There are late 17th-century English farthings with a copper plug and a tin rim. In modern history, you can credit the Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato for introducing the ringed bimetal coin as we now know it in 1982.
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