Portal:Numismatics


The Numismatics Portal

Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals, and related objects.

Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also includes the broader study of money and other means of payment used to resolve debts and exchange goods.

The earliest forms of money used by people are categorised by collectors as "odd and curious", but the use of other goods in barter exchange is excluded, even where used as a circulating currency (e.g., cigarettes or instant noodles in prison). As an example, the Kyrgyz people used horses as the principal currency unit, and gave small change in lambskins; the lambskins may be suitable for numismatic study, but the horses are not. Many objects have been used for centuries, such as cowry shells, precious metals, cocoa beans, large stones, and gems. (Full article...)

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The Egyptian pound (Arabic: جنيه مصرى [ɡeˈneː ˈmɑsˤri, ˈɡeni-]; abbreviations: £, , £E, LE, or EGP in Latin, and ج.م. in Arabic, ISO code: EGP) is the official currency of Egypt. It is divided into 100 piastres, (or qirsh, قرش [ʔerʃ]; plural قروش [ʔʊˈruːʃ]; abbreviation: PT, short for "piastre tarif")) and was historically divided into 1,000 milliemes (مليم  [mælˈliːm]; French: millième, abbreviated to m or mill).

Since July 6, 2022, the 10- and 20-pound notes have been made out of polymer plastic paper. (Full article...)

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Credit: US Mint, User:Dbenbenn & Sniff

A stunning 2002 Lincoln cent proof with a mirror-like finish. Lincoln's profile is complemented by a frosty cameo finish.

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Credit: commons:User:Red devil 666
Series of 1886 $1 silver certificates portraying Martha Washington, the only woman in United States history to be featured on its banknotes.

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Numismatic terminology

  • Bullion – Precious metals (platinum, gold and silver) in the form of bars, ingots or plate.
  • Error – Usually a mis-made coin not intended for circulation, but can also refer to an engraving or die-cutting error not discovered until the coins are released to circulation. This may result is two or more varieties of the coin in the same year.
  • Exonumia – The study of coin-like objects such as token coins and medals, and other items used in place of legal currency or for commemoration.
  • Fineness – Purity of precious metal content expressed in terms of one thousand parts. 90% is expressed as .900 fine.
  • Notaphily – The study of paper money or banknotes.
  • Scripophily – The study and collection of stocks and Bonds.

WikiProjects

  • Numismatics
  • Business
  • Philately

Numismatic topics

Modern currency: Africa - The Americas - Asia and the Pacific - Europe - Bullion coins - Challenge coin - Commemorative coins - Token coins

Production: Coining (machining) - Designers - Die making - Mint (coin) • Coinage Metals: Aluminum - Bronze - Copper - Gold - Platinum - Silver - Tin

Exonumia - Notaphily - Scripophily



List articles

Central banks • Currencies • Circulating currencies • Historical currencies • US community currencies • Canadian community currencies • Mints • Motifs on banknotes • Most expensive coins

Subcategories

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Numismatics
Numismatists
Numismatics-related lists
Ancient currencies
Asian numismatic charms
Numismatic associations
Awards for numismatics
Banknotes
Bullion coins
Numismatic catalogs
Chinese numismatics
Coinage standards
Coins
Currency designers
Early Modern currencies
Emergency money
Exonumia
History of British coinage
Numismatics journals
Medieval currencies
Mint-made errors
Modern currencies
Numismatic museums
National numismatic collections
Phaleristics
Philippines currency history
Postal orders
Production of coins
Coin retailers
Silk Road numismatics
Numismatic terminology

Most traded currencies

Most traded currencies by value
Currency distribution of global foreign exchange market turnover[1]
Currency ISO 4217
code
Proportion of daily volume Change
(2022–2025)
April 2022 April 2025
U.S. dollar USD 88.4% 89.2% 0.8pp
Euro EUR 30.6% 28.9% 1.7pp
Japanese yen JPY 16.7% 16.8% 0.1pp
Pound sterling GBP 12.9% 10.2% 2.7pp
Renminbi CNY 7.0% 8.5% 1.5pp
Swiss franc CHF 5.2% 6.4% 1.2pp
Australian dollar AUD 6.4% 6.1% 0.3pp
Canadian dollar CAD 6.2% 5.8% 0.4pp
Hong Kong dollar HKD 2.6% 3.8% 1.2pp
Singapore dollar SGD 2.4% 2.4%
Indian rupee INR 1.6% 1.9% 0.3pp
South Korean won KRW 1.8% 1.8%
Swedish krona SEK 2.2% 1.6% 0.6pp
Mexican peso MXN 1.5% 1.6% 0.1pp
New Zealand dollar NZD 1.7% 1.5% 0.2pp
Norwegian krone NOK 1.7% 1.3% 0.4pp
New Taiwan dollar TWD 1.1% 1.2% 0.1pp
Brazilian real BRL 0.9% 0.9%
South African rand ZAR 1.0% 0.8% 0.2pp
Polish złoty PLN 0.7% 0.8% 0.1pp
Danish krone DKK 0.7% 0.7%
Indonesian rupiah IDR 0.4% 0.7% 0.3pp
Turkish lira TRY 0.4% 0.5% 0.1pp
Thai baht THB 0.4% 0.5% 0.1pp
Israeli new shekel ILS 0.4% 0.4%
Hungarian forint HUF 0.3% 0.4% 0.1pp
Czech koruna CZK 0.4% 0.4%
Chilean peso CLP 0.3% 0.3%
Philippine peso PHP 0.2% 0.2%
Colombian peso COP 0.2% 0.2%
Malaysian ringgit MYR 0.2% 0.2%
UAE dirham AED 0.4% 0.1% 0.3pp
Saudi riyal SAR 0.2% 0.1% 0.1pp
Romanian leu RON 0.1% 0.1%
Peruvian sol PEN 0.1% 0.1%
Other currencies 2.6% 3.4% 0.8pp
Total[a] 200.0% 200.0%

References

  1. ^ Triennial Central Bank Survey Foreign exchange turnover in April 2025 (PDF) (Report). Bank for International Settlements. 30 September 2025. p. 14. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2025-10-12.

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Sources

  1. ^ The total sum is 200% because each currency trade is counted twice: once for the currency being bought and once for the currency being sold. The percentages above represent the proportion of all trades involving a given currency, regardless of which side of the transaction it is on.
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