world's largest coin (diameter)?

Fine, but our euro coins aren't really all that big.

Hmm. A coin that you only get if you specifically ask for it does not really count as a general circulation piece in my opinion. Or else you can add next year's French €50 coin: silver, Ø 43 mm ...

Christian

 

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Dare I ask the flip side of the question, what was the smallest coin ever in circulation... ?

 

From 765 to 1820, the Jutes then the English then the British used silver pennies. Originally one-twentieth of an ounce of silver, these were gradually debased and reduced in size until they were only 11mm in diameter.

These tiny silver pennies are still minted for the Maundy Ceremony but are not, of course, circulation coinage any more.

Towards the end of their circulation life, they were much criticized as being far too small for everyday use. Indeed any coin below about 18mm in diameter seems to have been criticized in the same way.

The current representative of this tolerable minimum of 18mm in the UK is the 5 pence piece. Its US equivalent, the dime, is very slightly smaller at 17.91mm.

Later,

John

 

Around here (Euroland) the smallest coin is the 1 cent piece which is 16.25 mm in size. The Netherlands had, in the gulden years, a 10 cent coin with 15 mm. The smallest coins ever - don't know, but I think that Chinese Pan Liang coins, say from about 200 BC (Kao Tsu) had about half that diameter, and even had a central hole ...

Christian

 

Some Indian fanams get down to 4.5 mm

 

I reckon the British £5 coin is the biggest: 38.61mm diameter and still in circulation.

 

Depends on how you define "circulation", I think. If you have one and try to spend it, some places will indeed accept a £5 piece. But - and for me that would be part of the circulation concept - you will hardly ever get one back. Even the mint admits that these are different from your regular coins: http://www.royalmint.com/discover/uk-coins/coin-design-and-specifications/five-pound-coin

Oh, and -- welcome to Coin Talk! Hope you'll like it here.

Christian

 

British Crowns/25-pence/£5 never circulated well for two reasons, very occasional issues, reserved for royal anniversaries or major events and now due to monetary value. I do love these big coins!

Another country that had heavy circulating coinage was New Zealand during the first 23 years of decimalization (1967-1990). Nothing like a nice big coin, regardless of metal composition.

I have recently purchased a string of high denomination $10 coins minted by the Franklin Mint in the 1970s and 1980s. The Bahamas, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago all issued $10 coins in sterling silver for sets and copper-nickel for "circulation," but often in such low mintages, collectors bought them all. Each of these coins is 45mm in diameter. The silver coins are nice and hefty!

 

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Current, maybe not. But the 20 Balboa coin from Panama has a diameter of 61mm. That's 2.4 freedom inches.

 

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First, welcome to the neighborhood!

I don't know whether you noticed or not, but this thread is more than 3 years old.

Also, the Royal Canadian Mint has that Panamanian coin beaten. See below!

https://online.kitco.com/1M

Chris

 

Maybe not in current circulation, but legal tender nonetheless. The 5oz silver bullion America The Beautiful commemorative quarter dollar has a diameter of 76.2mm, or 3".

 

"""Circulation""" being the key word here.

 

Oops! I missed that.

Chris

 

No problem, and I have myself beat again already with the US ATB silver quarter, @ 76.2mm.