Numismatics is technical name for the study and collection of money, and is the second largest collecting hobby in the world, right behind stamps. Just having some cash in your wallet doesn’t qualify you as a numismatist though. If that were the case, it’s safe to say that stamp collecting would be a distant second.
Today we look at this interesting article written by Laura McClure and Hillery York for The National Museum Of American History which discusses felines depicted on coins all over the world through time. It was written in honor of World Cat Day 2017 (generally falls on August 8th).
Among the coins and banknotes they cover are from Sierra Leone (1791, lion), Isle of Man (1970, manx cat), Oman (1977 caracal lynx) and Uruguay (1942, cougar).
After checking out the article and doing some research, we came up with a few nice additions.
2010 Turkish Lira
This is a beautifully drawn non-circulating coin with a value starting from around US$5 online. The Turkish Angora is an ancient and natural breed of cat originating in the Ankara region of Turkey. Check out more details here on Numista.
2015 Turkish Lira
Also a non-circulating coin, this one starts from around US$3.52 for specimens in VF (Very Fine) condition. Get more details here on Numista.
(1988-Current) Isle Of Man Cat Coins By Pobjoy Mint
Since 1988, Pobjoy Mint has produced a coin with a different cat breed design each year (legal tender non-circulating) and these are all highly collectible. Thus, doing the math, we have 32 editions of these coins so far.
Most of them are available from ebay, coin auction sites and numistatic exchanges all over the internet, starting at around US$17 each. Several of them are still avaible on Amazon via reputable seller SMCoins at the links below.
2004 Congolese Franc
This 2004 Franc from Congo features the African Golden Cat. which is in danger of extinction due to hunting and deforestation. Detailed info on Numista here.
2008 Belarus – 20 Roubles
This Belarussian coin shows a 2D cat standing on a base of decorative symbols that include the sun, fire, and hearth and home – the symbol of a family. More info here on Numista.
1983 Belize – 100 Dollars Gold Coin
This high value 100 Belize dollars gold coin (approx US$50) is a non circulating coin featuring a Margay jungle cat. Check it out here on Numista.
*There are many other coins that we have not mentioned here, so let us know in the comments which good ones we’ve missed out on and we’ll do a Part 2 in the near future. Thanks for reading and hope you’ve enjoyed the article!
