Money Yesterday & Today

Like traditional currencies Bitcoins are created by private individuals, not central banks. But, in contrast with cowrie shells or spear points, accepted currencies in many societies, Bitcoins remain virtual. You can’t hold them in your hand. They are digital.

Sceptics argued that the introduction of the Euro in 2002 would profoundly change Germany as a nation and would undermine the basic security we associate with money. We're they right?

What’s the opposite of our real economy? An unreal economy, or maybe a surreal economy? Philosopher Andreas Sommer plays on words and casts doubt on seemingly unquestionable truths.

How do the people of Zurich cope with their money? Is there a typical Zurich attitude? An exhibition of the MoneyMuseum addressed this topic in 2006. We will retell you its best stories.

Cervantes, this poet stands for more than just another author in Spain. He represents the Golden Age of the great colonial power embodying its light and its shady side.

Decrees, tables for traders and moneychangers and, of course, books for collectors, this text offers a little insight in the world of numismatics for bibliophile eyes only.

How does money change us? If we have it? If we lack it? How does money change you, when you turn a banknote into ashes holding it above a candle flame. Philosopher Andreas Sommer reflects upon these effects.

In the 19th century Japan became part of the international community. A Western-style currency was part of its absolute opening to the Western world.

The trireme on the Greek 1 Cent piece represents the historical period Greece even today is proud of. It makes us think of the great battle, in which Athens saved the Western world from being conquered by the Persians.

At the beginning of the 17th century Japan isolated itself completely from the outside world. Within this period it developed an own national currency whose history this text is going to tell.

Cash is king is a common phrase. But is it true? Who or better what rules when cash is king? Philosopher Andreas Sommer answers this question.

During the 7th century AD the Japanese government started to issue Chinese-style bronze coins. This text summarizes the history of these coins.

What does the pilgrimage to St. James mean to Spain? And what role did the Way of St. James played for European Christians of medieval times? Here you get the backdrop of the design of the Spanish 1, 2 and 5 cent coins.

It was a long way until the old deities were finally replaced by Christian Trinity in the Roman Empire. The images on coins testify to this change of religion being a difficult one.

Isis, Osiris, Mithras and Cybele – they all were venerated in a way that bears strong resemblance to Christianity. What was the difference of these cults from the traditional kinds of religion in the ancient world?

Bertha von Suttner was at the forefront of a peace movement that considered in the early 20thcentury that all future wars could be prevented. Thus, she is a worthy protagonist for the Austrian euro coins.

The euro coins are a splendid means for all countries in the eurozone to convey their own self-conception, addressing their own citizens who use the small change on a daily basis, addressing all European citizens to whom the coins find their way… So, how do the individual countries represent themselves? What do they deem important enough to be praised on their coins and for what reason? What do the different designs of the euro coins mean in the state where they have been minted? And why did they find their way into the national coinage?

The magical belief of a people of plain peasants constitutes the cornerstone of Roman religion. As the Roman Empire expanded, so did the Roman pantheon as we can deduce from the designs of the Roman coins.

Who believes the Greek gods to be peculiar characters suited to act in comedies à la Orpheus in the Underworld is wrong. They mirror fundamental human experience as the images on coin testify.

What is meant, when we make use of the term ‘luxury’? Is there legitimate and required luxury and at what point does luxury start to be illegitimate? Philosopher Andreas Sommer reflects on this very special word.

What’s to do, when panic drives you out of your mind? How can you invest deliberately, when the (financial) world falls apart. The neurobiologist G. Hüther hushes fears: Panic is nothing else but a reset of the brain enabling us to find other ways.

The art historian Karin Althaus takes us on a tour to remarkable coin portraits from the Renaissance to the beginning of the 20th century.

The British Pound used to be the leading global currency in the 19th century just like the dollar today. How did that happen? And which economic power was behind it? Here you will find a piece of economic and monetary history.

In the cities, you can hardly miss them. They stand in front of both railway and subway stations, in shopping streets, in front of supermarkets or point of interests. And they grow more and more in number: beggars who ask for charity, sometimes wordless, sometimes audibly. An encounter with them creates an ambivalent situation for many people: if they hasten away without giving any alms, they act against their social conscience. Yet, if they give something out of pity then there is always the suspicion that they might have been exploited…

Money is far more than just a means of economic exchange, but just what are those additional aspects today? A stimulating question that we consider here from theological, ethical and sociological perspectives.

Mini-Munich was the world’s first kidstown, where kids, helped by a few adults, run their own mini-city. They learn about the complexities of civic life, including budgets. The idea has been a great success, repeated throughout Europe and Asia.

The founder of the Sunflower Foundation, Jürg Conzett, met with pastor Adelheid Jewanski to discuss the meaning of life and the role of money. Their conversation is as relevant today as it was then.

Our photo tour of Swiss banknotes evokes memories of earlier series of paper currency and we even show some bills that never made it into circulation. We recognize the current 50-franc bill easily enough and we eagerly await the next series of banknotes.

You might assume that philosophy has nothing good to say about money. But that’s not always been the case. Consider, for example, the very different attitudes of Voltaire and Rousseau on the subject of filthy lucre.

The flaws of globalisation can be explored from many angles: Keywords like identity loss, mono-culture or financial guerrilla stir us to reflect on these issues.

The meaning of work has changed dramatically throughout history. Our work-oriented society today evolved from the ideal of leisure in ancient times, the "pray and work" ethic in the Middle Ages and the harsh life of factory workers during industrialisation.

"The rouble rolls," the saying goes, and the story of how the rouble came circulate, from the 10th through the 19th century, is richly informative.

Around 44 BC, the year of Caesar’s assassination, Rome was in turmoil. The great military campaigns and internal power struggles are reflected in the coinage we show, dating from 49–40 BC.

For over 5000 years, we have been called upon to pay taxes: From the levies on the harvest in ancient Egypt to the elaborate tax regimes of the Roman Empire and the tithes and custom duties of the Middle Ages up to today’s value added taxes.