| Historians don't agree when exactly numismatics | | | | in circulation than what was considered their |
| started gaining importance. History proposes that | | | | current face value. So, numismatics actually refers |
| the first traces of coin minting that can be seen | | | | to the value of a coin, whereas coin collecting |
| date back as far as 11 centuries B.C. | | | | refers to the hobby. |
| Human communities have never failed to buy and | | | | Another example of numismatics that could be |
| sell supplies, stimulating commerce among | | | | given was the run during the seventies in |
| countries, cities and each other. As commerce | | | | Switzerland on all coins minted before 1968. |
| became more generalized and goods started | | | | These contained such a high amount of pure |
| flowing from afar, an acceptable common | | | | silver, that when the world market price for silver |
| exchange denominator had to be found for the | | | | started reaching heights never seen before, it |
| payment of goods. | | | | became more interesting to melt the coins for |
| Soon transactions took place with carefully | | | | their silver content, turning a nice profit in the |
| weighed precious metals like gold or silver. Two | | | | process, than to keep them or continue paying |
| main advantages emerged: it became obvious | | | | with them. |
| that swindlers could not operate easily any more | | | | The logic behind this action is easy to understand. |
| and that commerce was facilitated. It didn't take | | | | Would you pay for a bottle of water worth 35 |
| long for standardized coins to appear. | | | | cents with a gold coin that fetches 1000$ on the |
| To this day, in some countries, people still accept | | | | market? |
| payment in goods or propose goods or animals in | | | | This had two consequences: Swiss mint stopped |
| guise of payment. Some South Africans accept | | | | producing the high grade silver coins, and all coins |
| cows as payment for "lobola", or dowry. In North | | | | minted before 1968 became rare, which made |
| Africa, wealthy merchants merrily propose | | | | their collector value rise. |
| fathers to blonde daughters a string of camels in | | | | In the end, knowing the history of coins has a |
| exchange for the future bride. | | | | direct relation to coin collecting value and the |
| Numismatics could be described as the study of | | | | numismatist's fine tuned sense of the value, or |
| the evaluating of the true worth, or true market | | | | true market price of a coin. Not knowing this |
| value of a coin. Julius Caesar was known to pay | | | | history will jeopardize his ability to spot real |
| more for some type of coins that were no longer | | | | opportunities. |