Manhattan Euro

This morning I highlighted the fictitious Amero coin with a map on it. Then this evening, on the Cartografie Twitter feed I saw a ling to a real coin, the Dutch Euro, featuring the island of Manhattan:



According the to the Dutch map blog, Studiekring Historische Cartografie, The Netherlands has issued a 5 Euro coin commemorating the 400th anniversary Henry Hudson's discovery of the island of Manhattan, soon to be the city of New Amsterdam, later New York. (Why'd they change it? I can't say. Maybe they like it better that way.)

My best understanding of the Dutch text, using an online translator: The front shows, along with an inset of Queen Beatrix, the exact structures of Manhattan anno 2009. The artist has given the coin a 3D impression of of Southern Manhattan. The back of the coin has the landscape of Manhattan anno 1609, accurately reflected thanks to scientific research of the Wildlife Conservation society in New York.

To my Dutch readers, please feel free to tell me more!

Studiekring Historische Cartografie is another great map blog. The love of maps is universal!

UPDATE 4/8: I knew I could count on the friendly Dutch people to help me out. Here is a link to the English translation

Make Way for the Amero

Snopes.com, the Urban Legend Reference site, today addressed the rumor that the United States will soon replace its currency with the Amero. This new currency would combine the Canadian and United States Dollars with the Mexican Peso to create a single economic union, not unlike the European Community's Euro.

While Cartophilia does not wish to feed the paranoid fears of the wing-nuts, we will heartily endorse this new currency, as long as it includes a map! Daniel Carr of DC-Coin and the Moonlight Mint has created a collectible fantasy Amero coin that does just that:





It is rumored that the postage stamps of this new economic union will feature black helicopters...

#365

Map Quarters

In 2008, the United States Mint will roll out the last five quarter dollars in their 50 State Quarters® Program. Every year for the last nine years, the mint has issued five different quarters, commemorating one of the 50 United States, in the order they were admitted to the union.

• State designs are displayed on the reverse (tails) of the quarters, while the obverse (heads) of the quarters continue to display the familiar image of George Washington. To accommodate state designs on the reverse, the words "United States of America," "Quarter Dollar," "Liberty," and "In God We Trust" all appear on the obverse.
  
• State designs are submitted and recommended via a process determined by the governor of each state. The United States Mint reviews the designs for coinability before each governor recommends a final design. Both the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee and the Commission of Fine Arts provide comments.

So, in other words, they are designed by committee... and it shows. However, I cannot help but be pleased by 15 of the state quarters, as they include maps!

If anyone knows of any coins or paper currency with maps on them, send them my way! Literally. I'm especially fond of the larger denominations... or you could tell me about them in the comments below...