Monday, January 28, 2019

2 Unique Examples of World Paper Money Every Collector Must Look For

The thrill of collecting World currency can be experienced only when you take up the hobby more seriously. It is not possible to keep adding rare world banknotes to your collection. However, you can always look for different currencies of the world that have a rich history behind it. Let’s take a look at two such examples of world paper money and study their designs. 

50 HELLER Banknote of Liechtenstein 


These unique world banknotes were issued for the House of Liechtenstein in the year 1920. They bore the denomination 50 HELLER and featured a vertical design. The obverse side of this amazing world paper money featured a checkered background with coat of arms at the centre. The name of issuing authority was printed at the top centre. Other texts include the value in words, promise text below followed by signatures. All the legends on these banknotes of the world were in German. The reverse side of these rare banknotes of the world were very unique as it featured an image of the Castle in Vaduz in blue colour.
Krone was the official currency of Liechtenstein from 1898 to 1921. One krone was made of 100 Heller. After the Austro-Hungarian Empire was dissolved in the year 1918, Austro-Hungarian krone and Austrian krone was used. As Krone started becoming more and more unstable, Swiss franc was chosen as the national currency in 1921. Smaller denominations such as 10, 20, and 50 Heller were issued in 1920 as there was a shortage of coins. When you collect such wonderful banknotes from around the world, you must also make an effort to understand their history.

100 Afghanis note from Afghanistan  


Here is another stunning example of world currency that’s easily available. This red-coloured 100 Afghanis note was issued in the year 1961. The obverse side featured the Arabic legend 'Bank of Afghanistan' on top right with promise text. The numerical year of issue and value in words was shown below it. Signatories were also printed with names below on the face. The National emblem of Afghanistan is positioned at the bottom centre while the Name of printer in Latin can be seen below it. The prefix with serial number is printed at the bottom right and left corners. Denomination 100 Afghanis in Arabic is shown at centre right, while denomination in Latin is featured at centre left. A portrait of the last King of Afghanistan, Mohammed Zahir Shah in military uniform is depicted on the left side of these amazing banknotes of the world.
The reverse side featured the Arabic Legend 'Bank of Afghanistan' on top right, while denomination 100 Afghanis in Latin is shown at top left and in Arabic at bottom right corner. Vignette of Friday mosque in Heart is shown at centre. The interesting aspect of these world banknotes is that, they were printed at Thomas De La Rue & Co. Ltd. in London, England, with a multicolour underprint. The watermark features an effigy of King Muhammad Zahir Shah.

So don’t get disheartened if you don’t find rare world paper money because there are several other unique and interesting varieties to explore.

Friday, January 18, 2019

Coin Collecting Supplies Can Be Your Real Saviour

It’s always better to live without any regrets in life. It takes a lot of effort, research and patience to put together an impressive coin collection, but it doesn’t even take a moment to lose or destroy them. That’s the reason why, every collector should definitely take preventive measures to safeguard a coin collection from the very beginning. If you choose to remain careless, you might have to regret later when you have no other option but to sell your coins at a lesser price. More than the monetary losses, coins have a lot of historical significance. They speak a lot about our rich culture and traditions. It’s our responsibility to protect these amazing pieces of history using quality coin collecting supplies.

Image Courtesy: www.mintageworld.com
Since coins are small in size, there are high chances that you might misplace them if you store them in random boxes or drawers. If you take your hobby seriously, then you should invest in good coin collecting accessories so that you don’t lose your precious coins. These accessories come in different sizes and shapes and each one of them have their own functionality. Coin albums contain several pages and each page has multiple plastic pouches in which you can insert your coins. You also have the option to buy coin pages separately in case there is no space left in your album. Make sure that you purchase branded coin collecting supplies because local brands manufacture their products using inferior quality materials. Branded coin accessories might be a bit costly, but they will definitely last longer and more importantly, they will keep your collection safe from any kind of dust, moisture or scratches.

Coin capsules are generally made of hard plastic and they protect your coins from any kind of external abrasions. Coin storage boxes look very classy and sophisticated. They are generally used by collectors to store rare or precious coins. They come with a soft padding which gives extra protection to coins. Coin holders are mostly made of hard cardboard and a transparent plastic see-through. They help in naming coins and keeping them intact inside an album.

So think twice before you select your coin collecting accessories, because they are the best friends of your collection.

Monday, January 14, 2019

Old Currency Bank Notes of India – Interesting Facts and History

Old Currency Bank Notes issued after independence are known as republic India notes. However, the Reserve Bank of India continued to issue and circulate extant notes of British India till 26th January 1950 when the constitution of India was formed. The first ever 1 rupee notes of republic India were designed in the year 1949 by the Government of India. Ever since then, the Government of India has been issuing 1 rupee notes for India while all the remaining denominations are issued by the Reserve Bank of India. The latest denomination is the 200 Rupees note that was introduced last year and the 2000 rupees note that was introduced in 2016. Designs of 10 Rs and 50 rupees republic India notes have also be revamped recently.    

At first, it was decided that the old republic India notes would feature a portrait of the father of our nation, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi. Strangely though, the decision was revoked at the last moment and the Lion Capital of Sarnath was chosen. This was probably because they didn’t want to depict a personality on the first republic India notes. Instead they wanted to feature a symbol that represents our country.

Old notes of republic India that were issued after 1953 started using Hindi language more boldly. Did you know that the Reserve bank of India had issued old currency banknotes of high denominations such as Rs 1,000, Rs. 5,000 and Rs. 10,000 in the year 1954? Another interesting fact about republic India notes is that the size of notes were reduced in the year 1967 as the nation was facing economic crises and the government wanted to implement cost-cutting measures. A commemorative series of republic India notes was issued in the year 1969 to celebrate the birth centenary of Mahatma Gandhi. Unlike other old notes of republic India, these special notes featured a seated Gandhiji with the Sevagram Ashram in the background.

The very first 20 Rs notes of republic India were introduced in the year 1972 and the first 50 rupees notes were circulated two years later, in 1975. The high denomination old currency banknotes were demonetised in 1972. The ancient mathematician Aryabhatta was featured on the 2 Rupees notes of republic India in 1980s. Similarly, the oil rig was featured on 1 rupee note and Farming mechanism was featured on 5 rupees notes issued during this period. The Konark wheel and Peacock were featured on 20 rupees and 10 rupees notes of this time.  

There are many such interesting facts related to old currency banknotes that need to be explored as a true Indian. So, start collecting different types of republic India notes to enhance your knowledge.

Monday, January 7, 2019

Tips for Collecting Rare Banknotes of India and Enhancing Knowledge

There is a large community of people who are crazy about collecting Indian banknotes. Some are interested in rare banknotes while others look for notes with fancy serial numbers. No matter where your speciality or expertise lies, there is a lot to learn through the study of old currency banknotes.

We have reached a stage where countries are now producing polymer notes, but do you know how  early banknotes of India were made? Most of these notes were made using handmade white paper, due to which it is very difficult to find early banknotes in extremely good condition.

The East India Company had made different territories in the Indian subcontinent namely, Bombay Presidency, Madras Presidency and Bengal Presidency for administrative purposes. Private and semi-government banks such as Bank of Hindostan, issued Indian presidency banknotes that were circulated only within these specific territories. Some of these early banknotes come in unique denominations such as 8 rupees, 16 rupees, 5000 rupees and more. Many of them had designs only on one side. If you have any one of these rare banknotes in your collection, you can make a lot of money by auctioning them. The unique calligraphy and designs on these old banknotes of India make them even more precious.

It is very important to take care of these early banknotes by using quality banknote albums as they are very delicate. Only if you maintain the condition of your notes, will you be able to fetch good returns in the future.  Apart from that, join as many online and offline communities who are into collecting early Indian banknotes. This way, you will get to know about the historical significance of certain unique banknotes of India.

Knowledge is everything in this hobby. If you don’t keep researching, dealers and sellers might try fooling you by selling notes at a much higher value than its actual market value. The best way to increase your knowledge about early banknotes is by reading reference books and catalogues written by famous notaphilists. When you are aware about each variety of Indian banknotes, you will be able to put together a more impressive collection. So, lose yourself into the world of early Indian banknotes and enhance your knowledge along with your collection.