Not everyone knows what the sides of the coins are called

2024 Author: Sierra Becker | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-26 03:45

Not everyone knows the history of the coin, few know how it got its name. And if you ask about the names of the sides of the coins, they will answer you without hesitation: heads, tails. The very word "coin" has a divine origin - it was an epithet for the name of the wife of Jupiter - Juno (Juno Moneta). In her honor, in ancient Rome, a temple was erected on the Capitoline Hill, next to which money was minted in the 3rd century BC. These round pieces of metal became known as coins.

It is unlikely that in those days they thought about how the sides of the coins are called. It is worth noting that Juno was not only the patroness of women, the protector of marriage and a mentor, but also the goddess of exchange. Coins were minted from a mixture of silver and gold. This alloy was called "electrum". And only when the weight of the metal and its quality began to be certified by the state by means of a stamp, the coin acquired the status of a universal means of payment.

A “bargaining” (or can) coin became if less valuable metals were used for its manufacture - a mixture of low-grade silver, nickel, copper.

Two sides of the coin

Many people don't know what the sides of coins are called. The definitions of “heads” and “tails” have taken root among the people to this day. Moreover, there is a certain conviction that the more successful side is the eagle. In fact, any encyclopedia, dictionary or numismatist's reference book will give you a different definition of the sides of the coin, referring again to mythology, in particular to the two-faced god Janus.

It should be noted that the primacy of one or another side of the coin is highly controversial, since the signs of this are not entirely obvious, as well as the differences in the significance of the two faces of the god Janus. There are still disputes about this. Nevertheless, history places its accents, and today the name of the main side of the coin (the same applies to the medal) is the obverse. It becomes obverse if it shows a sign like a seal, which guarantees the authenticity of the coin. It can be a coat of arms, an emblem of the state. For example, on modern Russian coins (on their obverse) a double-headed eagle is depicted - the emblem of the Bank of Russia. The reverse side of the coin is the reverse. The flat sides of the coin were never the same, and it was also not observed that any image was missing on one of the sides. According to a long tradition, the image of the ruler was applied to the front side. At the present time, as a rule, an image is applied that is characteristic of a particular state. Along the edge of the coin, they began to apply an inscription about state affiliation or indicating the title and name of the ruler. The obverse of today's coin of Russia is that side on which it is appliedimage of the coat of arms and the inscription "Bank of Russia". Its face value is applied to the reverse of the Russian banknote. The only difference of the commemorative Russian coin is that its reverse contains its target image.

Third party

We must not forget that the coin has one more side, the third is the cylindrical surface of its edge. In the old days, this surface was cut down, reducing the value of the coin (committing a kind of theft). With the development of technology, images began to be applied to this narrow edge - the third side of the coin, which is called the "edge". An inscription was pressed onto a edge of valuable coins, and an elementary pattern was applied to a edge of less valuable coins.

In the modern world, unique coins are issued with precious stones, with fragments of meteorites that fell to the ground, with folding sundial and “rising” Egyptian pyramids, with calendars, luminous bulbs (when you press the coin) and even in the form of men's jewelry - cufflinks, watches. Now we know not only how the sides of the coins are called, but also that there are more than two of them, and each of them plays a role.