Small World Coins

In the United States, our smallest circulating coin is the dime (10 cents). Its diameter is 18mm (a little less than 3/4 of an inch), which is only 1mm smaller than the penny (1 cent). The size difference is not easily noticed, which is why the dime is a different color (silver) and has a reeded edge to make the 2 coins more distinguishable.

While the dime seems pretty small, there have been plenty of modern world coins which are even smaller. The main reason to mint a small coin is, of course, to use less metal (which makes the coins less expensive to make). But from a practical sense, a country probably can't make all of its coins small because it would be more difficult to tell them apart. And smaller coins are easier to lose, which is why typically only the lowest denomination (value) coins which are made small.

There is also a practical limit to how small a coin can be. It has to be big enough to be able to read the information on it (year, country, value) and heavy enough to not blow away in a light breeze.

The prize for smallest circulating coin issued since 1900 probably goes to Panama's 2 1/2 centismo, which was issued in 1904 and then again from 1975-1982. This coin was only 10mm wide (almost half the size of a US penny), and due to its tiny size received the nickname "Panama Pill". A 10mm coin seems like it would be difficult to use and easy to lose. In 1907 a new 2 1/2 centismo was minted which measured in at a whopping 21mm (in comparison).

Here is a list of many of the small coins which have been issued around the world since 1900. If you know of anything missing from the list, let us know in a comment.

Algeria 1 centime
Argentina 1 centavo
Armemia 10 luma
Aruba 5 cents
Australia 1 cent, 3 pence
Azerbaijan 1 qepik
Bahamas 1 cent
Bahrain 25 fils
Bangladesh 1 poisha
Belgium 25 centimes
Bolivia 2 centavos
Brazil 5 centavos, 20 reis
Brunei 5 sen
Bulgaria 1 stotinki
Cambodia 50 riels
Costa Rica 5 centimos
Ceylon 1 cent
Chile 5 centavos, 1 peso
China 1 fen
Croatia 1 lipa
Cyprus 1 cent
Czech Republic 10 haleru
Finland 1, 10 penni
Denmark 1, 5 ore
Egypt 1/10 qirsh
Euro 1 cent
Guatemala 1/4 real
Iceland 10 aurar
India 10 paise
Japan 1 sen
Kazakhstan 1 tenge
Mexico 5, 10 centavos
The Netherlands 1/2, 10 cents
Netherlands Antilles 1 cent
Norway 10 ore
Pakistan 1 pie
Panama 2 1/2 centismo
Philippines 1 sentimo
Poland 1 grosz
Romania 5 bani
Russia 1 kopek
Singapore 1 cent
South Africa 1 cent
Spain 1 peseta
Thailand 25 satang
Turkey 1 kurus
United Arab Emirates 1 fil

Andorra's New Euro Coins In 2014

The winning designs for Andorra's new euro coins.

Andorra is a small country (a microstate) with a population of around 85,000 located in Europe between France and Spain. Andorra is about half the size of Rhode Island, the smallest US state, to give you an idea of how small it is.

Being so small, Andorra does not have its own currency. Before the year 2000, both the Spanish (peseta) and French (franc) currencies were used for transactions within Andorra. In 2000 both Spain and France switched to the euro, and Andorra similarly changed its legal tender.

In 2011, Andorra requested, and eventually received, approval from the European Union to issue its own country-specific Euro coins. The resulting agreement between the EU and Andorra authorizes Andorra to mint and distribute coins with a face value of up to 2.5 million euros annually.

In early 2013, the Andorran government held a contest for the designs of the new coins (except for the 2-euro coin, which would display the Andorran coat-of-arms), and the results were announced in May. The 1, 2, and 5 euro cent coins will feature the image of a Pyrenean chamois (a goat-like animal native to the area); the 10, 20, and 50 euro cent coins depict the fresco of Christ in Majesty at Sant Marti de la Cortinada; and the 1 euro coin will display an image of the former Andorran Parliament building - the Valley House. The new coins are expected to be available starting in January of 2014.

For foreign coin collectors, what is exciting is that we get new euro coins without replacing an existing currency. Most European countries, when they switch to the euro, must leave their old money behind - so while the collecting world gets a new euro to collect, the country's former coins are taken out of circulation. Since Andorra doesn't have its own currency (though it did occasionally issue coins),  we don't have to say good-bye to any existing coins.

Soccer Coins

Football (or soccer, as it is known in the US) is undoubtedly the most popular sport in the world, regularly played by hundreds of millions of children and adults in all corners of the globe. It should come as no surprise, then, to find out that such an important activity has found its way onto a variety of countries' circulating coins. I don't think that any other individual sport has been featured on as many coins as soccer has.

Great Britain 1996 2 pound coin

My favorite soccer-themed coin of all is the Great Britan 2 pound coin from 1996. This coin commemorated the 10th European Football Championship (Euro 96), which was held in England. The reverse of the coin is designed to look like a soccer ball, and the 16 small dots surrounding the year represent the 16 teams which participated. (Germany won.)

Spain 1980 1, 5, 25, and 50 peseta coins

In 1982 Spain hosted the World Cup, and in 1980 Spain's coins celebrated the occasion with special soccer imagery on their reverses.

Somalia 2001 25 shillings

In 2001, Somalia's 25 shilling coin featured a uniformed soccer player on the back.

Congo 2002 50 centimes

In 2002, the Democratic Republic of Congo's 50 centime coin had a similar idea, with a uniformed soccer player heading a ball.

Here are other circulating soccer-themed coins that I know of.  If you are aware of any that are missing, mention them in the comments.

• Argentina 1977-1978 50 pesos
• Belgium 2000 50 francs
• China 1991 1 yuan
• Ethiopia 1974 2 birr
• Germany 2011 10 euro
• Jamaica 1982 1 dollar
• Mexico 1986 200 pesos
• Netherlands 2000 5 gulden
• Poland 2002, 2006 2 zlote
• South Africa 2002 50 cents
• United Arab Emirates 1991 1 dirham

Update 7/4/2013: Added Spain 1, 50 peseta coins to picture.

New Singapore Coin Designs in 2013

Singapore is a small island city-state located in Southeast Asia, just off the southern tip of Malaysia (near Indonesia and Australia). It spent the first half of the 20th century as a British colony, but gained its independence and became the Republic of Singapore in 1965. Singapore's current population is around 5 million people.

The 20, 10, 5, and 1 cent coins from
Singapore's first series (1967-1984)

Singapore issued its first independent coins in 1967. These coins, known as the "first" or "marine series", primarily featured images of marine life local to Singapore (including a lionfish, seahorse, and swordfish). Neighboring Australia and New Zealand had both started using coins with similar designs featuring important or well-known local fauna only a year prior (1966). And the Cayman Islands' first coins, issued in 1972, are again quite similar.

The 20, 10, 5, and 1 cent coins from
Singapore's second series (1985-2012)

In 1985, a new series of coins was released. This second, or "floral", series (in use through 2012) included a redesign of the reverse to include the Singapore coat-of-arms and "Singapore" in the country's 4 official languages - English, Malay, Mandarin (Chinese), and Tamil. The obverses contain images of local plant life, including the Vanda Miss Joaquim orchid (Singapore's national flower), Star Jasmine, and the Yellow Allamanda.

The coins of Singapore's third series
starting in 2013 (Images from the
Monetary Authority of Singapore)

In 2013, Singapore will release their third series of circulating coins. The new coins feature images of important or iconic Singapore landmarks, such as the Port of Singapore (one of the 5 busiest ports in the world), the Changi Airport, and the Esplanade at the Theatres on the Bay center for performing arts. Singapore stopped minting a 1-cent coin in 2002, so this new series will only contain 5 cent, 10 cent, 20 cent, 50 cent, and 1 dollar coins. The 1 dollar coin in the third series will be bi-metallic for the first time, and include laser-etching to make it more difficult to counterfeit. (It also features the image of a merlion, an important mythical figure for Singapore.)

For collectors, the new series is a welcome addition to the coins of Southeast Asia. We look forward both to adding this new set to our collections, and making sure to fill in any holes we might have from the first and second series coins.