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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsFound this coin while I was working at Publix in Lakeland. They don't make these anymore
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It's a 1950 5 Belgian Franc coin. It has Belgique, the French name for Belgium. It has the head of Ceres, the Greek goddess of Agriculture. Belgium went to the Euro in 2002. My aunt has a collection of foreign currency, most of which are no longer used.
MLAA
(18,187 posts)tornado34jh
(1,221 posts)For example, Greece had the drachma, Italy had the lira, Spain had the peseta, the Netherlands had the guilder, Germany had the Deutsch Mark, Austria had the schilling, so finding them is rather hard to do. While some countries in Europe had discussed potentially going back to their old currency, I think it is very unlikely, at least for the ones that have already fully converted to the Euro. By the time I was in Europe from 2009-2011, the Euro took hold in many countries. But there still are countries that still retain their currency, such as Switzerland, Czech Republic (or Czechia as it known), UK, Denmark, Sweden, Iceland, and most of the Balkans and Eastern Europe.
AllaN01Bear
(22,406 posts)i was with someone and we found a canadian coin in a parking lot.
a little blurb about your coins .
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgian_franc
MLAA
(18,187 posts)tornado34jh
(1,221 posts)But some European currencies date back even earlier. The guilder, which was the currency of the Netherlands, dates back to 1434, so almost 600 years ago.
MLAA
(18,187 posts)tornado34jh
(1,221 posts)When I compare other currencies, it's interesting. In the US, I have only occasionally seen a $2 bill, and I have very rarely seen any coin above a quarter. The highest bill denomination I have seen is $100, but in practice, the highest denomination that is commonly used in stores is $20. In fact, many stores won't accept anything higher than $20 bill denominations.
MLAA
(18,187 posts)When I was a kid in the mid 60s my grandpa collected silver dollars and silver dimes. I think I had a couple silver dimes. They stopped making them in 1965.
Unwind Your Mind
(2,114 posts)When we were little kids we saved wheat pennies for him
I inherited the tendency to tuck away unusual or retiring coins. I have a tidy stash of bicentennial quarters among other things. I think Grandpa would be happy 😊
MLAA
(18,187 posts)Thanks for the nostalgic memory of looking for them. I also had a couple of buffalo nickels. Going through mom and dads change looking for treasures!
Unwind Your Mind
(2,114 posts)I havent looked through my coins in a long time, I think I will this weekend
tornado34jh
(1,221 posts)Based on the images I have found, they look lighter colored than regular pennies.
tornado34jh
(1,221 posts)A lot of countries, even when they have used the same currency, have had different iterations/denominations over time. The newer 1 and 5 Belgian franc coins for example had King Baudouin and King Albert II in the obverse side.
ProfessorGAC
(68,460 posts)I've got a margarine tub full of European coins from my travels there. I never brought them & when they switched to the Euro, they all became worthless.
I doubt I have anything special, though.
Lots of Italian coins, but some from probably a dozen countries.
tornado34jh
(1,221 posts)Unfortunately, the ones we do have were before I was in Europe. I think my aunt also has some old currency from Africa and Asia I believe.