Animals have been used on coins since… well, the beginning of coins. Deer appeared on early staters—some of the first coins. Greek and Roman coins featured an assortment of animals. But choosing an animal to symbolize an entire country on a coin can leave the population of that country collectively scratching their heads or inspired…. Read more »
Sometime as far back as the Iron Age a person decided to stash a number of coins deep in a cave for safekeeping. Fast-forward to a modern climber who discovers four of these coins and kicks off a full-scale archeological dig at Reynard’s Kitchen Cave in England’s Dovedale Valley. To date, 26 coins have been… Read more »
Since gold was first discovered, people have wanted to know how to make it. Unfortunately, alchemy is not possible. But how is gold — or Au, its elemental name — created? Though geologists have had theories for years about how the Earth creates gold, it wasn’t until recently that scientists discovered how the universe creates… Read more »
Over one thousand years ago near modern-day Cambridge, England, King Ethelbert II of East Anglia, decided to mint coins to commemorate his very successful reign. The only problem was that doing so signaled his independence from the King of Mercia. Offa, the king, didn’t like this one bit. In fact, it’s largely believed that it’s… Read more »
A brooch, a comb and some tweezers don’t seem like they are particularly interesting items. In fact, they can probably be found in many women’s bathrooms today. But archeologists found some of those items that were anything but ordinary on a recent dig. In what was once a Roman villa in Leicester, England, archeologists dug… Read more »
This story is part one of Liberty Coin & Currency’s series “Great American Mines.” On the outskirts of what is now affluent Aspen, Colorado, stands what was once one of the most prosperous silver mines in U.S. history: Smuggler’s Mine. Its history is filled with intrigue and tall tales — everything from dubious land claims… Read more »
Imagine firing up your metal detector, waving it back and forth over the earth rhythmically. You hear the long-awaited ping, and begin to dig into the dirt, not knowing if you’ll find a tin can, or something a little more interesting. Now imagine discovering that ping was set off by a treasure from the 7th… Read more »
On May 5th, 1862, an army of Mexican citizens and soldiers defeated a well-armed French troop nearly three times its size. The battle at Puebla was a moral victory for Mexico, but it was not a battle that led to independence. Mexico declared independence from Spain on September 16, 1810. A commemorative coin was issued… Read more »
Over three thousand years ago, a jug containing what was likely a person’s life savings in silver was placed next to a wall and left there. Untouched. Until last year, that is. That’s when archeologists discovered the jug in the ruins of what is thought to be a tower outside the former Armean city of… Read more »
Liberty Coin & Currency is known for buying rare coins and currency.For example, we just bought a $1.00 1890 Rainbow note and a rare date $3.00 gold coin. But one recent purchase was quite extraordinary: an actual Tiffany putter—in the box. It looks like any ordinary putter, except that the head is made of solid… Read more »
