Variable coins: history, meaning, modernity. Small coins of different countries

Change coins are needed in any state, in any city where strict settlements between people are conducted: for the purchase of food and other necessary goods, for the services received. In different countries, small money is very different from each other, it depends on the official currency.

Variable coins: current value

By this phrase we refer to small banknotes, the main function of which is to change the larger means of payment and the most accurate calculation between the seller and the buyer. These elements very quickly turn around and wear out significantly, they often have to be released. Therefore, they are struck from cheaper materials than precious metals. In this sense, the term "change coin" is close to this definition: the purchasing power of the payment means is higher than the cost of the metal or alloy from which the money is made. This avoids the cases of their remelting by the population, as well as exports as valuable metals. In any country, you can not do without these monetary units, because after making any purchase, everyone wants to save and save the earned penny. Let's find out what kind of change coins are in use in different countries, including Russia.

Russian monetary units: history

The very first coins that were exchanged in Russia were pool and money, some were minted from copper, others from silver. In north-eastern Russia, their release began in the XV century. Over time, the ratio of the second to the first changed. There are historical indications of the equality of one money 60 and 72 pool. In the Russian Empire of the XIX century silver coins were used. They were all called bargaining chips, since they were used only for turnover inside the country. We list them:

• Of silver in denomination of 20, 15, 10 and 5 kopecks;
• Of copper with a face value of 5, 3, 2 and 1 kopecks, as well as money (halfpenny) and a half (a quarter of a penny).

Small money of Russia today

The small coins of Russia are pennies. The time of silver and gold means of payment has passed. Now the metal signs denominated in rubles are called exchange notes (for example, 1, 2, 5 and 10), and nominated in kopecks - exchangeable. These include coins with nominal value of 50, 10, 5 kopecks and 1 kopeck. It should be noted that in circulation, it is rarely possible to find 1- and 5-penny copies. The CentroBank of Russia has already received proposals to stop issuing them. But while this is impossible from the point of view of the current legislation, we have to continue to mint these coins to replace worn ones, although they cost 15 and 73 kopecks per each, respectively.

Monetary units of the United States of America

The small change of the US currency in today's understanding is any payment element worth less than a dollar. These include 50, 25, 10, 5 cents and 1 cent. According to the current legislation of the United States, the monetary denominations that are:

• Serve for the exchange of larger ones;
• Minted only by the state (private individuals are not allowed free coinage);
• Are issued in an amount sufficient to service trade (this is protection against depreciation below the face value) ;
• They are minted not out of gold, that is, from the standard monetary metal of the country;
• Are inferior, that is, the nominal value indicated on them is greater than the intrinsic value.

The small coin of Great Britain

The national currency of the United Kingdom of Great Britain (which includes Northern Ireland) is the British pound sterling. This monetary measure is also used on several British islands (Falkland, Gibraltar, Saint Helena). As a unit stands a penny, in the plural - pence. The smallest coin of the UK is one penny, but also denominations of 2 pence, 5, 10 and 50 pence are used in circulation. As a jubilee, one can find copies worth 25 (issued from 1972 to 1981) and 20 (issued since 1982) pence. Before 1992, the money was minted from bronze, and now they are made of steel and covered with copper. They are slightly thicker than their predecessors, but the diameter and mass did not change. On the coins there is an image of the queen - the acting monarch.

What money will come in handy in Turkey

Of course, if you go on a trip, to rest in warm countries, now almost everywhere you can pay with dollars or euros. But let's find out which banknotes and small payment units are used in popular Turkish resorts. The national currency of a country is a lira. Turkey's small coin is kurush. All money worth less than 1 lira is considered to be a bargaining chip, which is 1 kurush, 5, 10, 25 and 50 kurushas. On all coins there is a portrait of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who is considered the father of the Turkish secular state. The exchange rate of the lira against the dollar is floating. It can vary up to 5% per cent during the day, so you can not say exactly what the ratio will be on a particular day.

Currency of Egypt

The national currency of this country is a pound equal to 100 piastres. Just a piastre is a small change (Egypt and some areas of the Sudan are using it today). In circulation there are banknotes in denominations of 25 and 50. Previously, along with them, 5 and 10 piastres were used, but now they are rarely found. The running elements can be recognized by the image of Cleopatra or the minted name of the state. They are made of steel, and then covered with brass. In the resort cities of this country you can calculate the euro or dollars along with piastres.

How to pay in Ukraine

The monetary unit of this country - the hryvnia (in Ukrainian "hryvnia") - is equal to 100 kopecks. Now, the coins of Ukraine are 1, 2, 5, 10, 25 and 50 kopecks. The payment element with a nominal value of 1 hryvnia is already considered exchange rate. Money symbols for 1, 2 kopecks and 5 kopecks are made of stainless steel, and of higher denomination - made of brass or aluminum bronze. All of them have the image of the coat of arms of Ukraine.

Variable banknotes used in the Scandinavian countries

This is the name for the region in the north of Europe, which has its own history and culture, which includes Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Iceland. This is a traditional "composition", and in addition to these countries, Finland is added. All these countries have very unusual and similar stories with national currencies. Let's find out whether these countries use the euro (because they are part of the European Union) or have their own bank notes, is there a small coin of Scandinavia?

Sweden and Norway

The national currency of Sweden is Swedish krona, equal to the 100th era. Despite the fact that this state is part of the European Union, most residents of the country are against the introduction of the euro. Only the population of large cities seeks this, as there is a large influx of tourists, sales volumes and the number of air flights. As a small change coin is the 50th era, the larger coin is estimated at 1 crown. A distinctive feature of this small calculating unit is that it depicts three crowns on copies of the old model and a monogram of King Charles XVI Gustav - on new ones.

Norway also has its own monetary measure - the Norwegian crown, which is equal to the 100th era. But historically, all payment elements made of metal for the 1st, 2nd, 5th, 10th, 25th and 50th centuries have now left the market. The last 50-era coin was withdrawn from use in 2012. So we can say that in Norway there are no exchangeable metal banknotes, only revolving 1, 5, 10 and 20 kroons, as well as banknotes of a larger denomination. Norway is not part of the European Union, so there is no plan to introduce the euro.

Denmark and Iceland

In Iceland, Icelandic krona is used for calculations. It was also 100 aire, but they retired earlier than in Norway, in 1995. In 2002, the government of the country adopted a law, according to which, since 2003, Iceland's bargaining chip does not exist officially, and the koruna is no longer exchanged. There you can see copies worth 1, 5, 10, 50 and 100 crowns.

Denmark, although it was a member of the European Union for 12 years, is not now a member of this community. Like all Scandinavian countries, it uses its national currency, the Danish krone, and does not plan to switch to the euro, as the result of the referendum in 2000 showed. Variable coins of Denmark have a denomination of 1, 2, 5, 10, 25 and 50 years.

Variety of banknotes of the European Union

The European Community uses in all calculations the euro currency, equal to 100 euro cents. Issue of the exchange of units for 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents. The obverse (front side) of coins of the same denomination are the same, but the reversals are different for the states that produce them. It is very interesting to collect a complete collection of changing signs of the European Union, because each of them is original, has an original drawing for a single country. It will be difficult to get only monetary items from the Vatican and Monaco, since their small area does not contribute to the production of a large batch of products and its wide distribution. Coins of 1, 2 and 5 cents are produced from steel, coated with copper, and 10, 20 and 50 - from the alloy of copper, zinc, tin and aluminum, which look like gold, and 20-cent has small notches on the sidewall.

Let's list some countries and images on the reverse of their change coins:

• Austria: flowers of alpine greek, edelweiss, primrose (Alpine primroses), St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna, the main gate to the Upper Belvedere with the coat of arms of Prince Eugene of Savoy, the Vienna Secession (a symbol of the bridge between monetary systems);
• Belgium: profile of King Albert II;
• The Vatican: a portrait of Benedict XVI;
• Germany: an oak branch, the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin;
• Greece: Athenian trirea, corvette, sea tanker, portrait of Riga Fereos, portrait of Capodistria Ioannis, portrait of Eleftherios Venizelos;
• Ireland: Celtic harp;
• Spain: St. Jacob's Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, a portrait of Miguel de Cervantes;
• Cyprus: a pair of mouflons, a ship "Kyrenia" sailing;
• Luxembourg: profile of the Duke Henri of Luxembourg;
• Latvia: small and large arms of the Republic of Latvia;
• Malta: Mnajdra temple complex, state emblem of Malta;
• Monaco: the family coat of arms and the seal of the Grimaldi dynasty;
• Netherlands: profile of Queen Beatrix;
• Slovakia: Krivan mountain (High Tatry massif), Bratislava castle;
• France: the collective images of the young Marianne and the girl-sower.

This is only a partial list of images on the money of different countries. People who are fond of numismatics, especially well know the distinguishing features of each small coin. Perhaps, and you will be interested to see what all this variety looks like. Visit the club of numismatists or their exhibition and admire the wealth of change coins!