World's Most Unusual Coins

These 1 dollar coins from Palau contains a small vial of water from the Grotto at Lourdes, France. First coin minted in 2007 became very popular and were sold out quickly. The second coin was issued in 2008 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Apparitions of The Virgin Mary at the Grotto in 1858. The 2008 issue was struck on silver plated copper. It has a mintage of 25,000 pieces and is 38.6 mm in diameter.

This unusual silver and gold two-part coin from Nauru features Pope John Paul II. The coin comes in two parts: a one ounce .999 fine silver Proof base and a gold plated image of Pope John Paul II. The coin is designed so the capsule may be opened and Pope can be placed in a special slot so that the Pope is standing. Each piece is numbered and dated. The reverse of the silver base bears the Nauru arms. The coin is denominated as 10 Dollars and is dated 2007. It has a mintage of only 5000 pieces.


This unusual odd-shaped, jeweled, gold on silver coin was issued to commemorate Pope Benedict XVI's visit to Valencia, Spain in July of 2006. The sterling silver coin pictures the famed Valencia Cathedral in gold, with seven Swarovski crystal jewels in location of the cathedrals great stained glass window. The unusual shape outlines the odd shape of the entrance of the Cathedral, which was built upon a mosque. The Cathedral contains what is claimed to be The Holy Grail, the chalice used by Jesus at the Last Supper. The 2006 dated coin was struck by the Cook Islands for sale to collectors in Europe. It is denominated as 5 Dollars and pictures Queen Elizabeth on the obverse. It has a mintage of just 2500 pieces.



This unusual multi-colored silver heart-shaped coin bears the legend “my everlasting love”. Featured on the reverse is cupid, and two multi-colored roses, one red and one purple. Because it is a legal tender issue of the Cook Islands, Queen Elizabeth is on the obverse. The 37mm sterling silver 5 Dollar coin is dated 2008. It has a mintage of only 2500 pieces.


This coin is embedded with the pearl in the raw form as found in the sea. This coin is among the Marine Life Protection series of coins issued by Republic of Palau. It was very difficult to embed a pearl on the coin, many prior trials were failed. It is a 5 Dollar coin issued in 2007. This coin also has a very low mintage.

This is the first coin in the world with a moving picture inside the coin. This coin was issued by Cook Island to commemorate the 80 Years of Television in 2006. It has a moving picture of the inventor of Television, J.L.Baird. The picture starts moving with the press of button. It is a 1 Dollar coin and has a very low mintage. It is a best way to pay a tribute to the inventor.


This is the first talking coin issued by Mongolia in 2007. It has a picture of John.F.Kennedy. Few words can be heard when the button is pressed. Very limited number of coins have been issued.



In this coin a small part of meteorite is embedded. This 1 Dollar coin is from Palau issued in 2006. The picture of meteorite fall in a farm is shown with a farmer with his cattles. This coin also has a very low mintage.

This is one more coin with embedment of meteorite in it. It is issued by Cook Island on 2006. It contains a meteorite fallen at Brenham. The reverse side has the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II. This 1 Dollar coin also has a limited mintage.

The Federal Republic of Somalia issued a set of six silver-plated multi-colored coins shaped like motorcycles! The designs are based on Harley-Davidson and other popular motorcycles. The coins are dated 2007 and carry the denomination of 1 Dollar. Each coin is approximately 45mm (1.75 inches) long and 25mm (1 inch) high. The coins are legal tender issues that do not actually circulate.


These multi-color guitar coins are designed after famous electric guitars. The coins are dated 2004 and were issued to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Rock 'n Roll. The designs include the classic red and white Fender Stratocaster, an American Flag Stars and Stripes Gibson Flying V, a black Gibson Flying V, a pink star Guitar used by various rock stars including Gary Glitter and Abba, a blue Gibson X-Plorer and a yellow Klein. The coins are 1 Dollar legal tender coins issued by the two countries Somali Republic and Somalia . They are approximately 45mm (1.75 inches) long. These coins are issued in copper-nickel and silver-plated but Somalia had issued only in gold-plated.


In 2008 Somalia released a set of six multi-colored coins depicting North American wildlife - in the shape of the animals. The silver-plated coin 1 Dollar coins include a Polar Bear, wolf, buffalo, moose, mountain lion and Grizzly Bear The animals are depicted in color on one side of the coins. The denomin-ation, date and arms of the Federal Republic of Somalia is on the other.


These three colorful silver Proof coins from the island nation of Vanuatu are beautiful. Each is in the shape of a different tropical fish. The underlying silver causes the colors to almost shimmer in the light, similar to a real tropical fish. Each coin contains 50 grams of silver (over 1.5 ounces) and has a mintage of just 1500 pieces. The set includes a Clownfish, a Butterfly Fish and a Queen Angel Fish . The denomination of 50 Vatu appears on the tails of the fish, while the Vanuatu arms and 2006 date are on the reverse. The coins are 42mm to 55mm long.

This wooden coin is issued by Democratic Republic of Congo in 2005. It was issued with the theme of protection of animals. This coin has the message to protect the Gorilla. Even though there were limited issues, the coins were sold at very low prices to spread the message all over.

These are the notgeld (emergency money) coins of Germany made from Porcelain. They were issued by different states during emergency period between 1914 to 1923. These old and delicate coins are beautiful and not even costly.


This is a silver and crystal coin from St.Georgia Islands. The middle part is made of crystal and besides its silver. During minting many difficulties were faces as the crystal was breaking during the making process with silver. It shows all the different lifestages of a Penguin. It is a 2 Pound coinissued in 2006. This coin also has a very low mintage.

These coins are not any pattern coins or fantasy coins, they are the legal tender money issued by various countries. But obvoiusly, these coins cannot be used for circulation. So, here the question arises that why these coins are being minted ? These coins are minted by small countries who dont have much more sources of national income. So, they mint these kinds of special coins in limited quantity only for dealers and collecters and sell them at high rate. These coins are sold by the national banks of the country.

Image & Information Courtesy : Joel Anderson - http://www.joelscoins.com/