Highest circulation denomination coin ever?

Discussion in 'World Coins' started by Williammm, Jun 8, 2019.

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  1. Williammm

    Williammm Member

    What was the highest denomination coin to ever be in general circulation and what coin is the highest denomination for 2019?
     
    Williammm, Jun 8, 2019
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  3. paddyman98

    paddyman98 I'm a professional expert in specializing! Supporter

    o_O strange questions.. you must be bored
     
    paddyman98, Jun 8, 2019
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  4. chrisild

    chrisild Coin Collector

    Problem with that question is, how would "highest denomination" be defined? ;) Many coins from high inflation periods would qualify if you simply look for high amounts. Just as an example, this is a Turkish 100,000 lira piece - an actual circulation coin 15 years ago. Now if you put things into perspective, say value with regard to some fairly stable currency, things look different. Then I would suggest the Swiss 5 Fr coin or the Japanese 500 yen coin.

    Christian
     
    chrisild, Jun 8, 2019
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  5. paddyman98

    paddyman98 I'm a professional expert in specializing! Supporter

    paddyman98, Jun 8, 2019
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  6. chrisild

    chrisild Coin Collector

    Well, when it comes to high denomination circulation coins, forget about the US. ;) 5 CHF is 4.47 EUR or 5.04 USD. And 500 JPY is 4.09 EUR / 4.61 USD ...

    Christian
     
    chrisild, Jun 8, 2019
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  7. tommyc03

    tommyc03 Senior Member

    Is there a prize involved for the best answer?:woot::woot::woot:
     
    tommyc03, Jun 8, 2019
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  8. MeowtheKitty

    MeowtheKitty Well-Known Member

    Meow knows this is not a coin thing, rather a currency thing. But Meow read somewhere that the reason the united states does not make denominations over $100 (currently) is to deter, or make difficult the transportation of illegal money. So as inflation continues to hit the dollar, drug dealers and currency smugglers have to carry more and more banknotes. Maybe one of the reasons Bitcoin is popular.
     
    MeowtheKitty, Jun 8, 2019
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  9. chrisild

    chrisild Coin Collector

    Oh well. Again, Switzerland is way "ahead" - the highest denomination note is the 1,000 Fr (about €893 or $1,007). And that is there to stay, as the 1000 of the new series was just issued three months ago. Over here in the euro area, the €500 is being phased out, but at least we still have the €200 (223 Fr, $225) ...

    Christian
     
    chrisild, Jun 9, 2019
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  10. gxseries

    gxseries Coin Collector

    I believe the current worlds largest value banknote goes to Singapore and Brunei. At face value of $10,000 or about 7300 USD - it's a lot of money!!!
     
    gxseries, Jun 9, 2019
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  11. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    This part is actually a fairly complicated question for a couple of reasons. One would be if we take inflation into account, all kinds of things change because inflation rates were different in different countries during the same time periods throughout history, so denominations kind of lose their meaning in that regard. And two, well how did you intend to determine value when it comes to denominations ?

    So, about the only way I know to answer a question like that would be to consider the weight of the metal content to be the determining factor. And using that criteria, the largest denomination coin ever in general circulation that I can think of off the top of my head would be the Austrian 100 Korona. It contained .98 oz of pure gold, and it was a circulation coin. Of course the Hungarian 100 Korona matches that, but they were identical coins, just minted in different countries at the time.

    And yes, there were quite a few coins larger than the 100 Korona, but they were never general circulation coins. So given that qualifying factor in your question I'd have to rule those out.

    What I'm interested in finding out is if someone can think of one that was bigger than the 100 Korona.
     
    GDJMSP, Jun 9, 2019
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  12. 1934 Wreath Crown

    1934 Wreath Crown Well-Known Member

    Wouldn't the GB 5 pound or quintuple sovereign with a weight of 39.9 grams and gold content of 36.575 grams beat the metal content and possibly the gold content and weight of the Austrian 100 Corona (Korona) at 30.5 grams of gold?? And also the 5 guinea, which was even bigger at 38.5 grams of gold and was a 'general circulation coin'!!
     
    1934 Wreath Crown, Jun 9, 2019
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  13. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    "General circulation" begs for begging the question.

    In the US, I don't think any coin with a denomination higher than $20 has "generally circulated". The Pan-Pac $50 and the half-union and full union ($50 and $100) patterns didn't circulate (I'm not sure the $100 was ever even struck as a pattern). I guess some of the $50 privately-struck pieces in California circulated a bit; you can decide whether gold-rush traffic counts as "general circulation", but if it does, those nearly-2.5-ounce slugs far outweighed the GB and Austria coins above.
     
    -jeffB, Jun 9, 2019
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  14. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    I wondered about those but couldn't remember the weights off the top of my head. But then that's why I asked is someone else could think of some - seems you did :)
     
    GDJMSP, Jun 9, 2019
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  15. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    Those were actually the first ones I thought of, but in my mind at least they didn't meet the general circulation qualification. And if they do, well then some of the 100 ducat coins minted in various European countries leave them in the dust at 10 times that weight. In numbers, they outnumber the slugs, actual usage was about the same I'd guess. It existed, but in numbers so low as to almost not matter.
     
    GDJMSP, Jun 9, 2019
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  16. usmc 6123

    usmc 6123 Active Member

    I have a lot to learn. Good question.
     
    usmc 6123, Jun 9, 2019
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  17. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    Hey, what do you know about ducats? ;)

    Your mention of huge 100 ducat coins ran me off to Google, which quickly ran me right back here. :)
     
    -jeffB, Jun 9, 2019
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  18. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    Funny how that works aint it :)

    Why some folks might even think stuff like that was planned :D

    It wasn't of course, well not recently anyway :rolleyes: Now 15-16 years ago, maaaaybeeee .........
     
    GDJMSP, Jun 9, 2019
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  19. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    Seeing as how you like to "run off to Google" Jeff, try Googling this sometime - GDJMSP. Know what you'll find ? There can be only one !

    And that, that was definitely planned, many, many years ago ;)


    edit - we now return you to our regularly scheduled programming :D
     
    GDJMSP, Jun 9, 2019
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  20. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    I never did answer your question. Well, I watched a guy on TV once, it was an old Errol Flynn movie when I was about 7 years old. That's what started it all ;)
     
    GDJMSP, Jun 9, 2019
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  21. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    It seemed like I remembered something about a guy who did some editing work on the side...
     
    -jeffB, Jun 9, 2019
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