With the prevalence of digital payment systems such as PayPal, bitcoin, and Android Pay and Apple Pay, it might seem as though paper currency’s days are numbered. While these electronic payment systems serve online shoppers well, paper currency still rules the physical world. It may surprise you to learn that the money we carry in…

  Throughout the course of history, currency has assumed many forms. From carefully carved and polished shells to the paper and coin we know today. Colonial America began creating their own currency much to the dismay of the Brits but their system and currency were flawed. Most colonies had developed their own coins and some…

Home of Victoria Falls, rhinos, hippos and exotic birds, the landlocked, war torn, former Rhodesia, has undergone numerous changes throughout the years. Notably in the last 3 decades we have seen their currency go through not only basic inflation, but also a full collapse with hyperinflation. Resulting in the abandonment of the official currency and…

Concealed in darkness for a fraction of the year, quite possibly the most dangerous terrain and bearer of the most vicious elements, Antarctica has long been the viewed as a land unknown. Explorers have been seeking understanding and knowledge well before Robert Falcon Scott and Roald Amundsen either died trying to stake claim or succeeding…

George Washington’s birthday is on Sunday, and, while most people recognize our first president on the dollar bill, many don’t know how the first U.S. dollar bill came to be. Before the note we know today, the bill went through many incarnations—two of which included the only portrait of a woman ever found on U.S….

February 12th marks 206 years since Abraham Lincoln was born in a log cabin in Kentucky. It’s hard to fathom how the world has changed since then. To this day, Lincoln remains the most popular president on currency, with both the Lincoln Cent and the $5 bill bearing his likeness. But aside from the Lincoln…

In 1896, the United States Treasury produced silver certificates. Many believe these notes to be the most beautiful paper currency in U.S. history. These certificates debuted to the delight of art lovers and numismatists alike. Commonly dubbed educational currency, these notes were short-lived. Battles between artists — and between puritanical and artistic ideals — were…

These days, it doesn’t matter much whether the $20 bill you’ve got in your wallet was printed in Washington, DC, or Fort Worth, Texas. However, in the early days of the United States, it was pretty important to know which bank issued your money — if you wanted to actually buy something. Up until the…