Square Coins

Square coins are my favorite unusual coin shape. Being from the United States, a square coin is very different from the money I'm used to - it seems quite exotic, the epitome of a "foreign" coin. The square shape seems somewhat impractical - it doesn't roll, and it seems like getting a vending machine or coin sorter to handle square coins would be problematic (though I'm sure that countries that have square coins have these problems figured out). Because of their shape, they are easy to spot in a coin dealer's "junk" box.

Square coins come in 2 different alignments, which I call "edge alignment" and "corner alignment".

A square coin with edge alignment

On an edge-aligned coin, the design is lined up with one of the coin's edges so that when the coin is held right-side up it looks like a square.

A square coin with corner alignment

On a corner-aligned coin, the design is lined up with one of the coin's corners so that when held right-side up the coin looks more like a diamond (though it's really just a square standing on its point).

For each type of square coin alignment, the obverse and reverse can then be medal-aligned (front and back face the same direction) or coin-aligned (front and back are rotated 180 degrees). (For more on medal and coin alignment, see my previous post about terminology).

In the last century, several different countries have used square coins. These are the countries that I am aware of that have had square coins, but this is probably not complete.

World Square Coins

Aruba
Bahamas
Bailiwick of Jersey
Bangladesh
Bhutan
Burma (Myanmar)
Ceylon (Sri Lanka)
East Caribbean States
India
Iraq
Kurdistan
Malaya & British Borneo
Maldives
Netherlands Antilles
Oman
Pakistan
Philippines

Suriname
Swaziland

Looking for square coins to add to your collection?

Check out our Square Coins Set.

Update 11/20/2011: Added Bangladesh and Burma (Myanmar)
Update 4/21/2012: Added Swaziland, Maldives, and Oman

Questions and Answers 1

I sometimes get coin collecting questions from customers, friends, or I run across them on the Web. I wanted to take some time to discuss a couple of recent questions that I think will benefit others who are getting into coin collecting.

What are the 2 sides of a coin called?

Most people know the 2 sides of a coin as "front" and "back", or "heads" and "tails". But the proper numismatic terms for the 2 sides of a coin are obverse (heads/front) and reverse (tails/back).

Venezuela obverse (left) and
reverse (right)

Telling the obverse from the reverse isn't always easy, though. In some countries, such as the United States, Great Britain (along with Canada, Australia, New Zealand, etc.), and Venezuela, there is a person on the obverse (which is why we often call it the "heads" side). Some countries put a national symbol or seal on the obverse, such as Russia, Ukraine, and India. In contrast, on the Euro it is the reverses which mostly look the same (except that the denomination changes), and some countries (like Italy and Austria) have a completely different picture for each obverse.

Singapore - which side is the "front"?

For some other countries, it isn't easy to tell which side should be considered the obverse, and which the reverse. Older coins from Singapore, for example, had the denomination on one side and a picture (animal or plant) on the other. There was no common picture or symbol to offer a good clue as to which side should be considered the "front". In those cases, I usually consider the side that has the country's name on it to be the obverse.

I've not yet run across a situation where it mattered which side of the coin was the obverse, so I wouldn't be too worried if you can't decide which side is which. When displaying coins in a collection, I prefer to put the side I like better in the front - it doesn't matter if it's the obverse or the reverse.

How should I organize my coin collection so I can easily add to it?

One option is to keep your collection in coin boxes which are specially made to hold 2-inch-by-2-inch flips upright (like files in a filing cabinet). This makes it easy to add new coins anywhere you want.  But coin boxes aren't as nice a way to display your coins as binder pages, and it isn't as easy to flip through your collection looking for specific coins.

Keeping your collection in binder pages definitely makes it harder to add coins if you are trying to keep the coins organized. If a new coin needs to go in between 2 coins, you have to remove each coin and move it one square forward to make room for your new coin. Here are some tricks that I use to help reduce the amount of coin shuffling that I need to do when I have a new coin to add to my binder pages:

Leaving empty space at the
end of each country

• Start each country on its own row. Binder pages (standard, 2x2 size) are made up of 5 rows with 4 coin pockets in each row, to hold a total of 20 coins per page. I start each country on a new row of the page. This lets me add coins to a country by only moving the coins in that country (at least until I have too many and they run into the country on the next row). You can also take this to the extreme and start each country on its own page - so even if you only have 3 coins from Bulgaria, you've got 17 more spots to fill in with more Bulgarian coins in the future.
• Leave strategic empty spaces. One of the reasons that starting each country on its own row helps is because that usually leaves you a few spaces on the end to grow into. If you have 5 coins from Chile, they take up 4 spots on one row and 1 spot on the next - leaving you 3 more spots to add coins from Chile. Even if you want to add a new coin to the front, you only have to move the 5 coins you already have, not every coin on the whole page. If you have 4 or 8 coins, leave the entire next row empty to grow into.You can also leave empty space at the beginning of a country, so that coins can be shifted either forward or backward, and even in the middle of a country (especially if you know that there is a coin you don't have, such as a 5-Euro-cent coin from Ireland, that could go in that spot). Yes, leaving empty spaces in your collection means that you'll use more pages than are absolutely necessary, but you'll save yourself a lot of time shifting coins later on.
• Don't be afraid to start a new page. If you have 3 Saudi Arabia coins on the last row of a page, and you get 2 new ones you need to add, it is sometimes easier to start a whole new page (and maybe move all the Saudi Arabia coins to it) instead of shifting everything on the next page to make room for one new coin. It requires less coin shifting, and leaves you with strategic empty spaces to grow into.
• Use binder pages with thumb cutouts. All binder pocket pages should have openings in the top (or sometimes on the side) to slide your flips into. Some also have a small cutout (sometimes called a "thumb-cut") on the opposite side of each pocket. This cutout is used for pushing a flip out of a pocket so that it is easier to grasp and remove, and it is a definite time- and finger-saver when you need to shift coins around in your pages. If your binder pages don't have thumb-cuts, you can add your own with a sharp knife or scissors by cutting a small rectangle or triangle out of the bottom of each pocket (but please be careful - this should be done by adults only).
• Wait until you have several coins to add. Because it takes time to shift coins around in binder pages, you might want to wait until you have several coins that need to be added before tackling the job. For example if you wait until you have 3 coins from Japan to add, you only have to do the shifting once.

Even with these tricks, it's still a time-consuming process to add new coins to binder pages. I like the way the binder pages display coins, so I'm willing to put in the time to keep it organized.

Is it better to collect older or newer coins for a specific KM number?

KM numbers are a coin numbering standard created by the Standard Catalog of World Coins, where each different coin for each country gets a number. For example, the 3-pence coin from Great Britain from 1937 to 1948 has a KM number of 849. In 1949, the 3-pence coin was changed (the obverse, reverse, and even the edge changed), so in the catalog it has a new KM number (873). KM numbers allow coin collectors to refer to a specific coin with more precision than just country, year, and denomination might allow. When collecting, you may only want to collect one of each KM number - the 1940 and 1941 3-pence coins are identical, except for the year, so do you really need to have both of them in your collection?

(Note that when using KM numbers, you need to specify the country - KM# 849 for Germany is different than KM# 849 for Great Britain.)

Since KM numbers can span multiple years, the question becomes: of the coins with the same KM number for a country, is it better to have an older coin or a newer coin? For Great Britain KM# 849, which is the 3-pence coin from 1937 to 1948, would it be better to have one closer to 1937 or to 1948?

There is no consistent rule that says that it is always better to have an older or a newer coin in this situation. Let's say that you have a 1937 and a 1948 3-pence coin, and you're trying to decide which to keep and which to trade.  In addition to the coins' age, you also want to consider:

• Condition. Having a coin that is in better condition is usually more important than having one that's a few years older. If there is a significant difference in the quality of the 2 coins, the better-looking coin is probably the one you should keep. If the age difference is large (20 or more years), then the older coin, even though it is in worse condition, is probably better.
• Mintage. Mintage is the number of coins that were made in a particular year. This information can usually be found in the Standard Catalog of World Coins and some online coin collecting sites. A coin from a year with a lower mintage can be slightly more valuable than from a year with a higher mintage because it means there were fewer of those coins made. For our example coins, the mintage for the 1937 3-pence coin was 45 million and for the 1948 is only 5 million, so there are 1/9th as many 1948s as 1937s. In reviewing the mintage information in the Standard Catalog of World Coins, it's been my experience that the first year of a new design - in our example, the 1937 3-pence coin - often has a very high mintage compared to the years after, so it is often less desirable to have the first coin of a new design. If you have a way of reviewing mintage numbers, then for a particular KM it's usually better to collect the year that has the smallest mintage - but keep in mind that low mintage doesn't always mean higher value.
• Value. If you have access to a coin catalog like the Standard Catalog of World Coins, then you should also consider the coin's estimated value when determining which coin you should keep. According to my 2004 catalog, the most valuable year for Great Britain KM# 849 is1946. Of the 1937 and 1948 we're trying to decide between, the 1948 coin has the higher estimated value. Even though the values given by the catalog are from 2004, it still lets you compare the relative value between coins - if one coin is estimated to be more valuable than another, it will probably stay that way.

If you don't have easy access to the mintage or value estimates for your coins, then my suggestion is to aim to collect better-looking coins instead of older coins for the same KM number.

Using Paper Coin Flips

What are Paper Coin Flips?

Inside (left) and outside (right)

Paper flips (also known as cardboard flips) are flat, rectangular pieces of thin cardboard lined with a clear plastic film on one side. The flip folds in half, forming a square, with the plastic on the inside. Each half of the flip has a hole, or window, in the cardboard (but not in the plastic), and they line up so that when folded in half, you can see all the way through the flip. If you put a coin in the folded flip, it can be seen from both sides but will be covered, and protected, by the plastic film.

Flips perform several important jobs for your coins:

• They protect coins from exposure to dust, moisture, and fingerprints
• They protect coins from scratches
• They allow coins to be labeled
• They allow coins to be stored in a pocket page in a binder without falling out

I like paper flips because they are inexpensive (usually less than 10 cents each), and because I can write directly on the flip. However, they do have a couple of drawbacks compared to other storage methods (such as plastic flips):

• They can't be re-used
• You can't reposition or rotate the coin once the flip is sealed

Properly Using Paper Flips

Paper flips are very easy to use, but using them correctly requires a little practice. I'm going to guide you through the process so that you'll be better prepared when you start putting your own coins in flips.

Picking a Flip Size

Flips are usually available in 3 different sizes - 1.5x1.5, 2x2, or 2.5x2.5. These represent the width and height, in inches, of the flip when it is folded (remember, they start as a rectangle, but you fold them in half to store a coin). A 1.5x1.5 flip will fold into a square that is 1.5 inches wide and 1.5 inches tall.

The size of the flip should match how you are going to store your flips once you have put coins in them. If you are going to put them in a binder with pocket pages, then get flips that are the same size as the page pockets (the binder page should say - the pockets will either be 1.5x1.5, 2x2, or 2.5x2.5). A 1.5x1.5 flip will of course fit in a 2x2 page pocket, but it will not be held as securely as a 2x2 flip would be - it is best to get the same size flip as your binder page pockets.

In my experience, 2x2 flips and pocket pages are the most common. So if you're not sure what you should get, start with 2x2 flips and pages.

Picking a Window Size

On the left, the window is too small for the coin.
On the right, the window is too big.

In addition to picking the size of the flip itself, you need to pick the size of the window, or hole, that is in the center of each half of the flip. You want the window to be slightly bigger (1/8 to 1/4 inch) than the coin you want to store. If the window is too small, then the edge of the coin will be hidden under the cardboard. If the window is too big, then the coin will move around once the flip has been sealed.

In the US, flips are usually sold according to the size of US coin that the window can correctly hold. From smallest to biggest, these are: dime, penny, nickel, quarter, small dollar (Presidential and Native American dollars), half-dollar, and large dollar (old "silver" dollars).

Small window (left) vs. large window (right)

World coins come in a lot of different sizes, so you should have flips with a couple of different window sizes on hand to pick from when you're putting new coins in your collection. That way you can pick the flip that has the appropriate size window for each coin. But you don't have to have every size of flip listed above (for example, any coin that would fit in a dime-sized flip would fit just as well in a penny-sized flip). I find that most of the world coins I collect will fit correctly in either a quarter-sized flip or a half-dollar-sized flip. The rest are either very small and should use a penny-sized flip, or are larger and need a large dollar-sized flip.

For very thick coins (such as the pound from Great Britain), the window should be a bit bigger than you'd normally pick. This is because the thickness of the coin could cause the plastic to stretch and break if you choose a window size that is just big enough for the coin.

Sealing a Coin in a Flip

Once you've picked a flip with the correct window size, you're ready to seal a coin inside it. Flips have 2 sides - the outside is usually white, and the inside is usually brown/grey (the color of cardboard) and has the plastic film on it.

Placing a coin

Place the "outside" face down on a flat surface, so that one hole is above the other (not to its side).

Pick which side of the coin you want to be on the "front" of the flip. The "front" is the side of the flip you are going to label, so it will be the side that is seen more often (you'll still be able to see both sides). You may want to pick the "heads" side of the coin, or the side with the most interesting picture. Place the coin in the center of the bottom window of the flip so that the side you've picked to be in the front is facing you and is right-side up.

Folded flip, folded edge
is on top

Fold the top half of the flip down so that it covers the coin.  The 2 window holes should line up exactly, and the coin should now be covered both front and back by the thin plastic.

Pick the flip up while holding it closed, and place your fingers on the window so that the coin can't move. The coin is protected by the plastic, so your finger oil is not touching the coin.

Sealed flip (3 staples)

Use tape or a stapler to close the bottom, left, and right sides of the flip. The 4th side (the top) is already sealed because that is where the flip folded in half. If you're using staples, staple with the "front" side of the coin facing up, so that the main bar of the staple will be visible on the side of the coin you prefer.

The coin is now sealed and protected inside its flip.

Tape or Staples?

Should you seal your flips with tape or with staples? I prefer staples because they allow the flip to be sealed closer to the coin. If you use tape, the crimped point of the flip - the spot where the flip is being held together - is way out at the edge of the flip. That means that the flip is not as tight on the coin as it would be if you used properly-placed staples (discussed below), and so a coin in a properly-sized flip could still move around.

Tape does have one advantage over staples - if you need to open a flip, you can cut the tape and then seal it shut again with a new piece.

Three or Four Staples?

Flip sealed with 4 staples

When you fold a flip in half, it is unsecured on 3 sides - the fourth side has the fold, and is already sealed shut. You need to staple, at a minimum, the three unsecured sides so that they won't come open and will better seal out air, dust, and even moisture. The fourth side, with the fold, doesn't require a staple to stay closed, but without one that fourth side will be less tight than the other three and your coin may tend to slide toward that side. Even so, I prefer to use 3 staples so that the folded edge has maximum room to write.

Staple Placement

Don't staple too near the edge of the flip - it won't hold the coin as tightly, and if you get too close to the edge the staple might come loose. Also, don't staple too near the window - it could grip the coin too tightly and tear the protective plastic, or you might put a hole in the window plastic and allow air and dust to get inside. Usually you can aim for halfway between the flip's edge and the window. If the coin is thick, or just barely fits in the window, staple closer to the edge. If the coin is significantly smaller than the window, staple closer to the window so that the plastic is tighter against the coin.

Labeling Flips

Once your coin is sealed, it's time to label it. Putting what you know about the coin on the flip saves you from needing to look it up again later, and paper flips are great for writing on.

The most common information to put on a flip is:

• Country (what country is the coin from?)
• Year (what year was it made - what year is written on it?)
• Denomination (what kind of money is the coin for - cents, pesos, francs, euros, yen, etc.)
• Amount (how many of the denomination is it - 5 cents, 10 francs, 100 yen, etc.)

You may not know all of this right now about the coin, and that's fine - write down what you know and leave room to fill in the other information later.

Other information you could write on the flip, if you know it or can look it up:

• Mint mark (if the coin exists with different mint marks, write down which mint mark is on this coin)
• Grade (the quality of the coin - poor, good, very good, uncirculated, etc.)
• Composition (what the coin is made of)
• The date you acquired the coin
• KM number (each different coin is given a different number in the Standard Catalog of World Coins, and this is the KM number; it is frequently used by collectors to quickly identify a particular coin)

Labeled flip

Using a pen or pencil (pen will last longer and fade less), write the coin's information on the "front" side (the side of the coin that you decided was the best looking) of the flip. If you've used 3 staples instead of 4, the unstapled side should have ample room for keeping track of your most important information (country, year, denomination, and amount). If the coin has a mint mark, include that with the year, like "1995 B". Information like the grade, composition, and KM number can be at the bottom or on the back of the flip - this is information that you'll probably use less often, so it is OK if it is not prominently displayed.

When you label your flips, be consistent - always write everything in the same place on each flip. This will make it easier to look through your coins later.

Store Your Flips

Now your flip is ready to be stored in either a binder page or a coin storage box.

Once your coins are secured into flips and labeled, you'll find your collection is much easier to organize, and you won't have to worry as much about further damaging your coins.

Cleaning Coins

Everyone would love to have a collection of perfect, shiny coins in their binder. Because we're working with circulated coins, however, we're going to end up with scratched, dirty, or otherwise imperfect specimens. You may find coins that have actual dirt/grime on them, have been written on, or have tarnish or blemishes from being handled by the dozens of people whose pockets the coin went through before coming into your possession.

Don't Clean Valuable Coins

Though your first reaction might be to clean and scrub every coin in your collection until it looks brand new, you should generally avoid cleaning coins unless:

• You know for certain that the coins are not valuable, or
• You don't care if the coins are valuable

Like all collectibles, cleaning anything that may potentially be valuable is best left to professionals. Cleaning to preserve value and avoid further damage takes great care and an understanding of the type of metal in the coin and the type of stain/blemish/coating that is affecting it. If you have coins that you would like to get professionally cleaned, talk to a local coin shop and see if they offer cleaning services or can recommend a local, respectable cleaning service (they may have one they use for the coins in their shop).

Cleaning Up Your Non-Valuable Coins

You could write a book on all the different ways to clean different types of coin problems. I'm going to cover a couple of different cleaning methods I've used, but they are by no means the only ways to deal with dirty coins. Do not use any of these cleaning methods on valuable coins, or coins made of silver or gold!

For a mild cleansing to remove loose dirt and surface oil, you can start with simple soap and water. Fill a bowl with water, add a squirt of liquid hand soap and mix it together. Take one or two handfuls of coins and swish them around in the bowl for about a minute. Take them out, rinse them with plain water, and immediately dry them with a towel - if any water drops are left to dry on the coins themselves, they could create new stains. Repeat with the rest of your coins.

If there is stuck-on dirt or grime, you can try to scrape it off with a pencil eraser or toothpick. You don't want to use anything that's harder than the metal you're cleaning, or you could cause new scratches. Toothpicks are especially handy for clearing dirt out of corners, letters, or other small designs in a coin.

Before (left) and after (right)

To give a coin more of a scrub/polish, you can try rubbing the coin with toothpaste. You can either use a soft-bristled brush (not the brush you use yourself) or apply toothpaste to a washcloth, and gently rub/scrub the coin on both sides. Most toothpastes include a mild abrasive, which on the coin will scrub away the outer-most layer of metal and reduce the appearance of stains or tarnish. Rinse the coin well with water when you're done, and then immediately dry it.

Before (left) and after (right)

Some tarnish, oil, and dirt can be removed by soaking the coin in an acidic liquid like vinegar. Put some vinegar in a glass container and drop the coin in. Let it lay for 5 minutes on one side, then flip it over so that the other side gets exposure to the liquid and soak for 5 more minutes. Remove it, rinse well with water, and then dry.

There are many different cleaning solutions that you can buy online or from a coin shop that are designed for cleaning coins. Ask your coin shop for a product that they recommend, or do some searches online to see what other coin collectors like or don't like.

After Cleaning

Once you've cleaned your coins, you need to handle them as little as possible to keep them clean. Hold cleaned coins only by the edges so that your fingers don't touch the front or back. You can use soft cotton gloves to handle coins once they've been cleaned (and it's not a bad idea to use them anytime you handle coins) to avoid transferring finger oil onto the coins. Seal your coins in paper or plastic flips so that they won't be exposed to more fingerprints or dust, and then store them in your chosen container (see my earlier post about starting a coin collection for more information about flips, albums, and boxes).

To Clean or Not To Clean?

Unless you are preparing coins for a gift or display, I feel that you're usually better off not cleaning your coins. The benefit you get from cleaning is very small, and you run the risk of reducing whatever value the coin might have. There is no doubt that a good cleaning can make a coin look significantly better, but authenticity often trumps appearance for collectibles - leaving your coins unaltered is usually the safest choice.