World War 2 Coins - Last Page - Coin Community Forum

Posted 12/09/2013 11:42 pm

I've collected coins from WWII (and WWI) so have some input. I am writing from memory so forgive me if I make some mistakes:

The most common low value WWII Japan coins are the 1, 5, and 10 sen coins. They are made from alumimum or tin. A few feature Mt. Fuji, a few have chrysanthemums. They don't reckon dates like we do, so they translate to about Showa Era 16-21.

The most common French coins are the aluminum 1 and 2 Franc coins. They also exist in 10, 20, 50 centimes. They are easily spotted by the Axe device and the motto "Travail, Famille, Patrie" rather than the usual French motto "Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite". There are also coins of French colonies like Indochina or African colonies with similar devices but they are less common.

USA coins would be the 1943 steel cent or the 1942-1945 silver nickels. I'm not impressed by the 'recycled shell case' cents of 1944-1946 and doubt most people would notice a difference.

Italy had several coins from late 1930s-1945, many made from stainless steel. They often feature the fasces (as in fascism). I think they all feature King Victor Emmanuel III on the obverse.

The most popular German coins are the ones with swastikas, which were produced from the late 1930s-1945. In the early years they were made in nicer metals like silver or bronze, but in later years they were made in cruddy metals like aluminum and zinc. These are widely available but a little more expensive due to the desirability of the swastika.

I suspect you're more familiar with the Canadian coins so will leave that to you. :)

None of the UK coins leap to mind as distinctly WWII varieties. There were changes to the coinage like changing from silver to copper-nickel but this was a persistent change.

Some coins are notable because they were made out of a different material, like the USA. This is also true for peripheral countries like Iceland and Switzerland.

Other coins were made in different mints. For example the USA made coins for Netherlands Antilles and Australia with the 'S' San Fransisco mint mark.

Other coins are notable because the political entities only existed during the war. This includes Vichy France, Japanese-occupied China, and Nazi-occupied Belgium, Netherlands, and Bohemia-Moravia.

Many of these are cheap. If you have a coin store nearby you can get them in the junkbox. Basically if you find a zinc or iron or aluminum coin from the early 1940s, it's probably a WWII coin. If you don't have a nearby store, you'll have to try your luck from ebay.

-wheatiefan

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