coins

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Burglars Steal Rare Coins Then Make Very Dumb Move

... which gets them $450 for collection worth thousands

(Newser) - A group of burglars stole a coin collection worth thousands and proceeded to pour it into a coin-counting machine, resulting in a $450 payoff. Authorities say one of the thieves—who also stole jewelry and tools—was the Oregon victim's son. "The crooks were idiots, just simply an...

Tiny Island to Mint Star Wars Currency

Luke, Yoda will be on legal tender for first time

(Newser) - Move over, Queen Elizabeth: Luke Skywalker and friends will soon be sharing a spot on the currency of a tiny Pacific island. Yoda, Leia, and Darth Vader also will appear on the flip side of the soon-to-be-minted coins for the island of Niue. It’s the first time Star Wars...

Family Fights US Mint Over Rare Coins

1933 double-eagles were supposed to have been destroyed

(Newser) - A Philadelphia family is going head-to-head with the US government in a legal battle over ownership of 10 rare "double-eagle" coins worth $20 each when minted, and now valued in the millions. The coins were first produced by the US Mint in 1933 but never distributed. All but two...

2,200-Year-Old Coin Found in Israel

Gold piece was minted in Alexandria

(Newser) - A 2,200-year-old gold coin has been found in Israel. The artifact, which is being hailed as one of the rarest to be found in the country's history, is a nearly a full ounce—about five times heavier than the typical coin of the era. It comes from Alexandria, having...

Penny, Nickel Overhaul Makes No Sense to Many

Many resistant to changing small change

(Newser) - President Obama's plan to save $100 million a year by making pennies and nickels from cheaper material may seem like a no-brainer, but the idea of changing the country's small change isn't an easy one to swallow for some. Laundromat owners, zinc lobbyists, and the many Americans who mistakenly believe...

Bizarre New Design Ruins Our 'Humble Penny'
Bizarre New Design Ruins Our 'Humble Penny'
opinion
Feb 19, 2010 1:42 PM CST

Bizarre New Design Ruins Our 'Humble Penny'

No more Lincoln Memorial? What a shame

(Newser) - The newly designed penny continues the long tradition of ugly-looking US currency, writes William Bostwick. The front of the 2010 cent looks generally the same, but the back now has a Union shield in place of the Lincoln Memorial. That's only "the most emotionally and socially charged building in...

Coin in This Year's Super Bowl Is Out of This World

Literally—it was on Atlantis spaceflight

(Newser) - By the time the coin in this year's Super Bowl lands heads or tails tonight, it will have more than 4 million miles under its belt, reports Space.com . The gold-plated coin accompanied shuttle Atlantis on its 11-day mission in November, and is the first to have flown in space...

Jazz Great Ellington Will Grace DC Quarter

Capital honors native son with commemorative coin

(Newser) - Late jazz legend Duke Ellington has been chosen to appear on the District of Columbia's commemorative quarter, CNN reports. The composer and performer, a DC native who died in 1975, beat out abolitionist Frederick Douglass and surveyor and astronomer Benjamin Banneker in a vote of the capital's residents. Ellington becomes...

Shoppers Go Whole Hog for Piggy Banks

Newly frugal consumers use little pink pals to help save

(Newser) - Piggy banks have been flying off the shelves this holiday season, reports Reuters. Newly frugal consumers see the pigs as symbolic of the need to save, retailers say. The savings rate across America has shot up from zero to 2.8% as worried households start to sock away cash—although...

First Braille Coin Unveiled
 First Braille Coin Unveiled 
Jul 3, 2008 4:41 PM CDT

First Braille Coin Unveiled

Silver dollar celebrates 200th birthday of creator of blind alphabet

(Newser) - The US Mint unveiled the first coin bearing readable Braille letters yesterday. The silver dollar features the letters "Brl," code for Braille, and honors the 200th birthday of the eponymous creator of the alphabet for the blind, the AP reports. "This is going to put Braille in...

Marine In Iraq Suspended Over Bible-Quoting Coins

He reportedly handed them out to Iraqis

(Newser) - A US Marine has been suspended after he reportedly distributed coins with Bible verses at an entry point in Falluja, CNN reports. One coin reportedly asked, in Arabic, “Where will you spend eternity?” Military rules forbid troops from proselytizing. A US spokesman apologized to angry Muslims and said “...

US Rations Silver Dollars as Investors Scoop Them Up

Soaring silver demand means mint can't make coins fast enough

(Newser) - Investors and coin collectors are hopping mad at the US Mint for placing quotas on purchasing silver dollars, the Wall Street Journal reports. The price of silver has more than doubled in the last three years, and investors looking to cash in on the boom—and avoid the stock and...

Prototype Coins Go for $30M
Prototype Coins Go for $30M
Nov 18, 2007 9:53 PM CST

Prototype Coins Go for $30M

Anonymous buyer pays $30 million for rare coin collection

(Newser) - An anonymous buyer spent more than $30 million on a collection of about 1,000 coins that never made it to circulation, the AP reports. The rare “pattern coins,” dated from 1792 to 1942, are trial designs the US Mint rejected before producing them for circulation. Those coins...

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