New Coin? 

I got my first Charles III pound coin yesterday. I have still not had a coin of the new king in my change. This one came from a friend who had another friend who got a bag of them from their bank. King Charles ascended the throne nearly three years ago on 8th September 2022 but hardly anyone has seen coins of the new reign apart from collectors' sets. 

The reality is cash is not used very much as most payments are on line. the main use I have for hard cash now is putting a coin in the slot to get a supermarket trolley. It really is a nice coin with a good portrait, nice lettering and a superb bee design. 

We should see more of them!

 Climb every mountain

Bare headed bust of Lucius Verus, right, wearing cuirass and paludamentum. 

Mount Argaeus with trees, on summit, Helios holding globe and sceptre, at base, animal on left, tree on right. 

© The Trustees of the British Museum

The theme of the meeting this month was bridges, rivers and mountains on coins. Mountains have always been significant in mythology and religion. One of the coins shown at the meeting was a coin from Caesarea in Cappadocia, now Turkey. It features Mount Argaeus and this image or similar was used on coins from  the reign of Tiberius (AD 14-37) until well into the Third Century. The mountain name means “white” and is the highest in Turkey. It is volcanic in origin. Some images show a figure standing on the mountain probably a local god and others have a tree and animal at the base. On some of coins  the mountain is smoking or even fire is depicted. Sources say they there has been no eruption for thousands of years. There was an incident in  253 BC.  The volcanic soil would have made the surrounding area very fertile.

see also 

https://www.cointalk.com/threads/argaios-the-holy-mountain-of-cappadocia.335685/)

https://www.baldwin.co.uk/news/coins-of-the-sacred-mountain/#:~:text=Its%20first%20appearances%20begin%20during,to%20the%20cult%20of%20Mithras.

Money makes the world go round but why are coins round?

here are some coins from India and Malaya which come in all sorts of sizes. 

on the left are older coins made in any shape! these are Byzantine, Afghan and India. 

 

 At the first meeting of the year we thought about dates. Not romantic ones but on coins. 

why are coins dated? 

1928 sixpence unusually had the letters AD with the date

        

What Year Did They Start Putting Dates on Coins?

According to The Guinness Book of World Records, a Samian Silver Tetradrachm struck in Zankle (modern-day Messina) in Sicily is the earliest coin with a date. It is dated year 1 (viz 494 BC) in the form of the letter ‘A’ at one end.

Some ancient coins have regnal years and others can be dated by reference to civic roles such as Consulship.

The same record reference book lists a Silver Penning  as the earliest Christian Era or AD-dated coin. This coin was struck and/or issued by the Bishop of Roskilde, Denmark. This silver coin features a bishop’s hat on the reverse and a crown on the obverse. It also includes the legends +ANNO DOMINI on the obverse and the AD date MCCXXXIIII (1234) on the reverse.

The Hungary Silver Denar with Madonna and Child (c. 1450-1620), is another coin with a date that is significant. This silver coin, among the first to show a full date, features an image of the Madonna, the Patron Saint of Hungary, holding the baby Jesus (reverse). The legend “PATRO HVNGA” (“Patron Saint of Hungary”) followed by the full date (year) surrounds the Madonna and Child image. It is not uncommon to find the date obscured—a result of crude coin manufacturing methods used at the time. The obverse features the Hungarian Royal Coat of Arms. Though coins had dates on them prior to the 13th century, coins using the calendar numbering system we use today did not appear until 1234 A.D.

The first dated coins in England were in two pattern shillings dated 1547 with mm ,Rose, is dated MCXLVII and dated MDXL7.