Money Museum exhibit launches at Shell Factory
Arizona Coin Collector
http://www.northfortmyersneighbor.com/news/articles.asp?articleID=4953
Tuesday, January 06, 2009 - Time: 11:11:41 PM EST
Money Museum exhibit launches at Shell Factory
By ANDREA GALABINSKI, nfmne...@breezenewspapers.com
The Shell Factory has launched a new exhibit within its
shops, sure to be a favorite with coin enthusiasts. The
Money Museum is a free exhibit that features coins and
notes and "oddities in mediums" from different eras and
from around the world.
There's Greek coins from 356 to 323 B.C., bronze coins
from the Roman Empire circa 253 A.D., notes from each
of the first 13 colonies, original Confederate bills,
specially minted World War II notes and more.
"The exhibit is incredible," said Kathy VanderJaqt,
retail manager. "The history of it is fascinating."
One of her favorite parts of the exhibit is a display
featuring a Mongolian bridal vest, a vest sewn full
of coins.
"Brides wore these in Mongolia and Afghanistan as a
dowry," she said.
She also noted a detailed display of the famous El
Cazador sunken treasure. Also called "The Hunter,"
the ship is famous in the coin world, noted as "the
shipwreck that changed the world."
"If you read the history here, you can see where the
terms 'dollar sign' and two bits come from. It was
said to be America's first currency, the basis of our
currency today."
The Spanish brig of war-loaded treasure included
pieces of minted silver headed for the New World.
The recovered Spanish silver from El Cazador was one
of the largest quantities of coins recovered from
the ocean floor. The Spanish "8 Reales" silver coin
has a time-honored place in coin history, recognized
as the first U.S. dollar used for trade and commerce
in the early days of the country.
The ribbon-wrapped columns sculpted on the coin's
reverse inspired the American dollar sign, experts
say. Fractured "bits" of the 8 gave rise to the wild
west term "two-bits" for a quarter of a dollar.
The Money Museum also has cloth tender, including
money sewn by hand in the days of Betsy Ross. Another
large area of display is a World War II era part of
the exhibit. It contains monies and other memorabilia.
Vanderjaqt herself donated a postcard from her father
sent during the war.
A little known fact - the state of Florida had its
own money at one time. There's a display of
Tallahassee Railroad Company bills from the 1800s,
including a $1 bill from the Bank of West Florida.
In other areas, the exhibit features Mayanmar
rupees, yen from China, Military Payment Certificates
from the Vietnam War and even "Giant Spear Money"
from Africa, used before traditional monies for
currency and trade.
"We're going to expand the exhibit in the future,"
said VanderJaqt. "Everything is for sale in the
exhibit except for some of the donated memorabilia."
Many guests are already commenting on the wide array
of eras and their tender at the new exhibit.
"Of all our new attractions, The Money Museum has
been the most surprising to me," said the Shell
Factory's Pamela J. Cronin. "The historical aspects
of the coins, notes and bonds is extremely
interesting and we are astonished at the level of
interest from the public."
The Shell Factory & Nature Park is located at
2787 N. Tamiami Trail. For information, call
995-2141.
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