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How to Date a Taiwan Coin

Coin collecting can be a fascinating hobby and an opportunity to learn more about countries around the world. Or perhaps you have found an unusual coin in your change and would like to know more about it. Taiwan has been issuing coins since 1949 and although the coins do not carry the date of issue, you can get a good idea of their age by checking the images on the coins against the information issued by the Central Bank of Taiwan about the country's coinage. Taiwan's currency is the Taiwanese dollar (NT$).

Instructions

- 1
  Look for a map of Taiwan on one side of the coin. The map design was used on Taiwan's first series of coins, issued in 1949 and throughout the early 1950s. The smallest coin dating from this time is the copper-zinc NT$ 0.1 coin, but you'll also find the map on the NT$ 0.2 and NT$ 0.5 coins of this era. The reverse of these coins shows the head of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen in profile.
- 2
  Check for an image of a plant. A new series of coins, issued in the 1960s, replaced the map with flowers and plants. Each of the coins has its value written on it in Chinese characters, but you can use the plant images to identify the value even if you can't read Chinese. The plants will also tell you when the coin was first issued. If your coin is a silver color and shows an orchid, it is a NT$ 0.1 coin issued in 1967. A copper-colored coin with an orchid image is a NT$ 0.5 coin, first issued in 1967, while a plum blossom on a silver-colored coin is a NT$ 1 coin, issued in 1961.
- 3
  Look at the size of the coin. Typically, larger Taiwanese coins have a higher monetary value and were issued later than the smaller value coins. The cupro-nickel NT$ 5 coin measures 29 mm in diameter and carries a profile portrait of President Chiang Kai-Shek on one side and the coin's value in Chinese on the reverse. It was issued in 1970.
- 4
  Check whether you can see the coin's value written in Arabic numerals instead of Chinese characters. The first coins to use Arabic numerals were issued in 1981 and continue to be legal currency today, so if you visit Taiwan you're likely to find yourself using them. The Central Bank of Taiwan issued four coins in this series, valued NT$ 0.5, NT$ 1, NT$ 5 and NT$ 10. With the exception of the NT$ 0.5 coin, which features a plum flower, each of the coins shows an image of former Taiwanese president Chiang Kai-Shek.
- 5
  Check if the coin has a value higher than NT$ 10. The NT$ 20 coin was issued in 2001 --- you can identify it by its image of two canoes under the number 20. Three NT$ 50 coins exist. The coin issued in 1992 has a distinctive circular design with a plum blossom at the center, while the replacement, issued in 1996, features an image of the presidential palace. The only NT$ 50 coin still in circulation shows a full-face portrait of Dr. Sun Yat-Sun.
- 6
  Check any NT$ 10 coins for images other than president Chiang Kai-Shek. The Central Bank of Taiwan has introduced a number of commemorative coins of this value. They include one issued in 1995 carrying the image of a map of Taiwan superimposed on a projection of the earth, one issued in 1999 showing previous coins piled on top of each other and one featuring a sinuous dragon symbol, produced to celebrate the Millennium in 2000.

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