(
— The public can see historic, centuries-old rare coins from
special exhibit by Banco de México at the World’s Fair of MoneySM (www.WorldsFairOfMoney.com) at the
Center
The “peso de a ocho” silver coins in the
exhibit were frequently used in international trade in the 1700s and 1800s.
“The real de a ocho denomination coins that were
made by
in
and other
and 19th centuries were popular among merchants in
the
and
However, there were problems with counterfeit coins that flooded the
markets in
Curator of the
who is assisting with the Banco de México exhibit.
“Because of the
counterfeiting, merchants in
would test the coins to determine if they were genuine and then punch a small
symbol — a ‘chop mark’ — to indicate
the coin was not a fake. The more chop
marks the better, as far as the Chinese merchants were concerned. In other regions, pieces were cut out of the
coins in order to make change, and both
pieces could then be used in circulation!
These are the kinds of historic Mexican ‘Trade Dollars’ people will see
in this exhibit,” Mudd explained.
The Mexican coins will be among the more than $100
million of rare coins and colorful paper money that will be exhibited at the
World’s Fair of Money.
Sponsored
by the nonprofit American Numismatic Association, the five-day event will have
displays by government and private mints from around the world, and more than
1,000 coin and currency dealers will be buying and selling items ranging in
price from only a dollar to over a million dollars.
Admission
will be free on Free Appraisal Day, Saturday, August 9, when the public can get
complimentary, educational appraisals of their old coins and paper money from
top numismatic experts.
“Money
is history you can hold in your hands.
Every coin and every piece of paper money ever made has a story to tell
about people, places or events,” said Walter Ostromecki, President of the
Congressionally-chartered, 25,000 member American Numismatic Association (www.money.org).
The World’s Fair
of Money will be held in Hall A of the
N. River Rd.
be
Tuesday through Friday, August 5 – 8, and from
Admission is $6 for adults and free for children 12 and
under the first four days of the show.
There will be complimentary admission for everyone on Free Appraisal
Day, Saturday, August 9. Discount
admission coupons and additional details about the show are available online at
www.WorldsFairOfMoney.com.