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Dime (United States coin)

The dime, in United States usage, is a ten-cent coin, one tenth of a United States dollar, labeled formally as "one dime". The denomination was first authorized by the Coinage Act of 1792.

The dime is the smallest in diameter and is the thinnest of all U.S. coins currently minted for circulation, being 0.705 in in diameter and 0.053 in in thickness. The obverse of the current dime depicts the profile of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the reverse has an olive branch, a torch, and an oak branch, from left to right respectively.

The word dime comes from the Old French disme (Modern French dîme), meaning "tithe" or "tenth part", from the Latin decima [pars]. The dime is currently the only United States coin in general circulation that is not denominated in terms of dollars or cents. , the dime cost 5.65 cents to produce.

History
The Coinage Act of 1792 established the dime (spelled "disme" in the legislation), cent, and mill as subdivisions of the dollar equal to $1/10$, $1/100$ and $1/1000$ dollar respectively.

The first known proposal for a decimal-based coinage system in the United States was made in 1783 by Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, and David Rittenhouse. Hamilton, the nation's first Secretary of the Treasury, recommended the issuance of six such coins in 1791, in a report to Congress. Among the six was a silver coin, "which shall be, in weight and value, one-tenth part of a silver unit or dollar".

From 1796 to 1837, dimes were composed of 89.24% silver and 10.76% copper, the value of which required the coins to be physically very small to prevent their commodity value from being worth more than face value. Thus dimes are made small and thin. The silver percentage was increased to 90.0% with the introduction of the Seated Liberty dime; the use of a richer alloy was offset by reducing the diameter from 18.8 millimeters (0.740 inches) to its current figure of 17.9 millimeters (0.705 inches).

With the passage of the Coinage Act of 1965, the dime's silver content was removed. Dimes from 1965 to the present are struck from a clad metal composed of outer layers of 75% copper and 25% nickel alloy, bonded to a pure copper core. Pre-1965 dimes followed Gresham's law and vanished from ordinary currency circulation at face value. Most now trade as informal bullion coins known as junk silver, priced at some multiple of face value, which price follows the spot price of silver on commodity markets.

Starting in 1992, the U.S. Mint began issuing Silver Proof Sets annually, which contain dimes composed of the pre-1965 standard of 90% silver and 10% copper, then switched to .999 fine silver from 2019 onward. These sets are intended solely for collectors and are not meant for general circulation.

Design history
Since its introduction in 1796, the dime has been issued in six different major types, excluding the 1792 "disme". The name for each type (except for the Barber dime) indicates the design on the coin's obverse.

 * Draped Bust 1796–1807
 * Capped Bust 1809–1837
 * Seated Liberty 1837–1891
 * Barber 1892–1916
 * Winged Liberty Head (Mercury) 1916–1945
 * Roosevelt 1946–present

"Disme" (1792)

The Coinage Act of 1792, passed on April 2, 1792, authorized the mintage of a "disme", one-tenth the silver weight and value of a dollar. The composition of the disme was set at 89.24% silver and 10.76% copper. In 1792, a limited number of dismes were minted but never circulated. Some of these were struck in copper, indicating that the 1792 dismes were in fact pattern coins. The first dimes minted for circulation did not appear until 1796, due to a lack of demand for the coin and production problems at the United States Mint.

Draped Bust (1796–1807)
The first dime to be circulated was the Draped Bust dime, in 1796. It featured the same obverse and reverse as all other circulating coins of the time, the so-called Draped Bust/Small Eagle design. This design was the work of then-Chief Engraver Robert Scot. The portrait of Liberty on the obverse was based on a Gilbert Stuart drawing of prominent Philadelphia socialite Ann Willing Bingham, wife of noted American statesman William Bingham. The reverse design is of a small bald eagle surrounded by palm and olive branches, and perched on a cloud. Since the Coinage Act of 1792 required only that the cent and half cent display their denomination, Draped Bust dimes were minted with no indication of their value.

All 1796 dimes have 15 stars on the obverse, representing the number of U.S. states then in the Union. The first 1797 dimes were minted with 16 stars, reflecting Tennessee's admission as the 16th state. Realizing that the practice of adding one star per state could quickly clutter the coin's design, U.S. Mint Director Elias Boudinot ordered a design alteration, to feature just 13 stars (for the original Thirteen Colonies). Therefore, 1797 dimes can be found with either 13 or 16 stars.

Also designed by Robert Scot, the Heraldic Eagle reverse design made its debut in 1798. The obverse continued from the previous series, but the eagle on the reverse was changed from the widely criticized "scrawny" hatchling to a scaled-down version of the Great Seal of the United States. The Draped Bust/Heraldic Eagles series continued through 1807 (although no dimes dated 1799 or 1806 were minted). Both Draped Bust designs were composed of 89.24% silver and 10.76% copper.

Capped Bust (1809–1837)

The Draped Bust design was succeeded by the Capped Bust, designed by Mint Assistant Engraver John Reich. Both the obverse and reverse were changed extensively. The new reverse featured a bald eagle grasping three arrows (symbolizing strength) and an olive branch (symbolizing peace). Covering the eagle's breast is a U.S. shield with six horizontal lines and 13 vertical stripes. Also on the reverse is the lettering "10C," making it the only dime minted with the value given in cents (subsequent issues are inscribed with the words "ONE DIME"). The lack of numeric value markings on subsequent dime coins causes some confusion amongst foreign visitors, who may be unaware of the value of the coin. Also, the Capped Bust dime was the first dime to have its value written on the coin. Previous designs of the dime had no indication of its value, the way people determined its value was by its size

Capped Bust dimes minted through 1828 are known as the Large type. This is partially because they were struck without a restraining collar, which gave them a broader appearance. In 1828, Chief Engraver William Kneass introduced the close collar method of coining (which automated the process of placing reeds on a coin's edge). In addition to standardizing the diameter of coins, the new method allowed the Mint to produce thicker coins. To maintain a standard weight and alloy, the diameter of most coins was reduced. In particular, the dime was reduced in diameter from 18.8 to 18.5 millimeters. This new Capped Bust dime, which began production in 1828, is known as the Small type. There are 123 varieties known of Capped Bust Dimes.

Seated Liberty (1837–1891)
Christian Gobrecht completed the design of the Seated Liberty dime, whose obverse was used with every circulating silver U.S. coin of the period. Mint Director Robert Maskell Patterson requested a new coin design, to be reminiscent of the Britannia image found on coinage of the United Kingdom. Chief Engraver William Kneass drew the original sketches, but suffered a stroke and was too ill to finish them or to oversee preparation of the dies. The task then fell to Gobrecht, who was promoted to Second Engraver.

The obverse features an image of Liberty sitting on a rock, wearing a dress and holding a staff with a liberty cap on top. Her right hand is balancing a shield with the inscription "LIBERTY." The reverse featured the inscription "ONE DIME," surrounded by a wreath. All Seated Liberty dimes contain 90% silver and 10% copper, and are 17.9 millimeters (0.705 inch) in diameter. This size and metal composition would continue until 1965, when silver was permanently removed from circulating dimes.

There were several minor varieties during the Seated Liberty's run. The initial design (1837) had no stars on the obverse and, further, the dates were minted in a Large Date and Small Date variety. These two types can be distinguished by noting the "3" and the "7" in the date. In the Large Date variety, the "3" has a pointed serif at top, and the horizontal element of the "7" is straight. In the Small Date variety, the "3" has a rounded serif, and there is small a knob, or bulge, in the "7" horizontal element. Only the Philadelphia Mint made both varieties. The Small Date is slightly rarer. The New Orleans Mint also made the Seated Liberty Dime in this year, but only in the Small Date variety.

Thirteen stars (symbolizing the 13 original colonies) were added to the perimeter of the obverse in 1838. These were replaced with the legend "United States of America," which was moved from the reverse in mid-1860. At the same time, the laurel wreath on the reverse was changed to a wreath of corn, wheat, maple, and oak leaves and expanded nearly to the rim of the coin. This reverse design continued through the end of the series in 1891 and was changed only slightly in 1892, when the Barber dime debuted. Another variety is the 1838–40 dime minted with no drapery underneath the left elbow of Liberty.

Arrows at the date in 1853 and 1873 indicated changes made in the coin's mass (from 2.67 grams to 2.49 grams in 1853, then to 2.50 grams in 1873). The first change was made in response to rising silver prices, while the latter alteration was brought about by the Mint Act of 1873 which, in an attempt to make U.S. coinage the currency of the world, added a small amount of mass to the dime, quarter, and half-dollar to bring their weights in line with fractions of the French 5-franc piece. The change also ensured the quarter dollar (which is valued 2.5 times the dime) weighed 2.5 times the dime (6.25g), and the half dollar (twice the value of the quarter dollar) weighed twice what the quarter dollar weighed (12.5g). In this way, a specific weight of these coins, no matter the mixture of denominations, would always be worth the same. This relation in weight and value continued in the cupronickel coins from 1965 on.

This produced the greatest rarities in the Seated Dime Series, the 1873 and 1874 Carson City Dimes, with arrows and the unique 1873 Carson City Dime without arrows.

Barber (1892–1916)
The Barber dime is named for its designer, Charles E. Barber, who was Chief Engraver of the U.S. Mint from 1879 to 1917. The design was shared with the quarter and half-dollar of the same period. Extensive internal politics surrounded the awarding of the design job, which had initially been opened to the public. A four-member committee (which included Barber), appointed by then-Mint Director James Kimball, accorded only two of more than 300 submissions an honorable mention. Kimball's successor, Edward O. Leech, decided to dispense with the committees and public design competitions and simply instructed Barber to develop a new design. It has been speculated that this is what Barber had wanted all along.

The Barber dime, as with all previous dimes, featured an image of Liberty on the obverse. She is wearing a Phrygian cap, a laurel wreath with a ribbon, and a headband with the inscription "LIBERTY". This inscription is one of the key elements used in determining the condition of Barber dimes. Liberty's portrait was inspired by two sources—French coins and medals of the period, as well as ancient Greek and Roman sculpture. The obverse also contains the long-used 13 stars (for the 13 colonies) design element. The reverse contained a wreath and inscription almost identical to the one used on the final design of the Seated Liberty dime. Dimes were produced at all four of the mints that operated during the period. While circulated coins of the entire series are readily available to collectors there is one outstanding rarity, the 1894-S Barber Dime. Twenty-four were minted, with 9 currently known.

Winged Liberty Head ("Mercury") (1916–1945)

Although most commonly referred to as the "Mercury" dime, the Winged Liberty Head does not depict the Roman messenger god. The obverse figure is a depiction of the mythological goddess Liberty wearing a Phrygian cap, a classic Western symbol of liberty and freedom, with its wings intended to symbolize freedom of thought. Designed by noted sculptor Adolph A. Weinman, the Winged Liberty Head dime is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful U.S. coin designs ever produced. The composition (90% silver, 10% copper) and diameter (17.9 millimeters) of the "Mercury" dime was unchanged from the Barber dime.

Weinman (who had studied under Augustus Saint-Gaudens) won a 1915 competition against two other artists for the design job, and is thought to have modeled his version of Liberty on Elsie Kachel Stevens, wife of noted poet Wallace Stevens. The reverse design, a fasces juxtaposed with an olive branch, was intended to symbolize America's readiness for war, combined with its desire for peace. Although the fasces was later officially adopted by Benito Mussolini and his National Fascist Party, the symbol was also common in American iconography and has generally avoided any stigma associated with its usage in wartime Italy.

Franklin D. Roosevelt (1946–present)
Soon after the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in April 1945, legislation was introduced by Virginia Congressman Ralph H. Daughton that called for the replacement of the Mercury dime with one bearing Roosevelt's image. The dime was chosen to honor Roosevelt partly due to his efforts in the founding of the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis (later renamed the March of Dimes), which originally raised money for polio research and to aid victims of the disease and their families.

Due to the limited amount of time available to design the new coin, the Roosevelt dime was the first regular-issue U.S. coin designed by a Mint employee in more than 40 years. Chief Engraver John R. Sinnock was chosen, as he had already designed a Mint presidential medal of Roosevelt. Sinnock's first design, submitted on October 12, 1945, was rejected, but a subsequent one was accepted on January 6, 1946. The dime was released to the public on January 30, 1946, which would have been Roosevelt's 64th birthday. Sinnock's design placed his initials ("JS") at the base of Roosevelt's neck, on the coin's obverse. His reverse design elements of a torch, olive branch, and oak branch symbolized, respectively, liberty, peace, and strength.

Controversy immediately ensued, as strong anti-Communist sentiment in the United States led to the circulation of rumors that the "JS" engraved on the coin was the initials of Joseph Stalin, placed there by a Soviet agent in the mint. The Mint quickly issued a statement denying this, confirming that the initials were indeed Sinnock's. The same rumor arose after the release of the Sinnock designed Franklin half dollar in 1948.

Another controversy surrounding Sinnock's design involves his image of Roosevelt. Soon after the coin's release, it was claimed that Sinnock borrowed his design of Roosevelt from a bas relief created by African American sculptor Selma Burke, unveiled at the Recorder of Deeds Building in Washington, D.C. in September 1945. Sinnock denied this and stated that he simply utilized his earlier design on the Roosevelt medal.

With the passage of the Coinage Act of 1965, the composition of the dime changed from 90% silver and 10% copper to a clad "sandwich" of pure copper inner layer between two outer layers of cupronickel (75% copper, 25% nickel) alloy giving a total composition of 91.67% Cu and 8.33% Ni. This composition was selected because it gave similar mass (now 2.268 grams instead of 2.5 grams) and electrical properties (important in vending machines)—and most importantly, because it contained no precious metal.

The Roosevelt dime has been minted every year, beginning in 1946. Through 1955, all three mints, Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco produced circulating coinage; production at San Francisco ended in 1955, resuming in 1968 with proof coinage only. Through 1964 "D" and "S" mintmarks can be found to the left of the torch. From 1968, the mintmarks have appeared above the date. None were used in 1965–67, and Philadelphia did not show a mintmark until 1980 (in 1982, an error left the "P" off a small number of dimes, which are now valuable). To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the design, the 1996 mint sets included a "W" mintmarked dime made at the West Point Mint. A total of 1,457,000 dimes were issued in the sets, making it the lowest mintage Roosevelt dime up to that time. Since then, the "P" mint mark 2015 reverse proof dime and "W" mint mark 2015 proof dime, minted at Philadelphia and West Point for inclusion in the March of Dimes collector set, have the lowest mintages with 75,000 pieces struck for each.

title: Dime (United States coin)


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Settle, North Yorkshire

Settle is a market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town had a population of 2,421 in the 2001 census, increasing to 2,564 at the 2011 census.

History
Settle is thought to have 7th-century Anglian origins, its name being the Angle word for settlement. Craven in the Domesday Book shows that until 1066 Bo was the lord of Settle but after the Harrying of the North (1069–1071) the land was granted to Roger de Poitou.

In 1250, a market charter was granted to Henry de Percy, 7th feudal baron of Topcliffe by Henry III. A market square developed and the main route through the medieval town was aligned on an east–west direction, from Albert Hill, Victoria Street, High Street and Cheapside and on through Kirkgate. This road led to Giggleswick where the citizens attended the parish church. The first bridge over the River Ribble was mentioned in 1498.

During the English Civil War, the Cliffords, the lords of the manor were Royalists, but their subjects were not. John Lambert of Calton in Malhamdale, was a general in Cromwell's army and his troops camped at Settle in August 1651 while on the road to an encounter in Lancaster.

Infrastructure
Daniel Defoe wrote "Settle is the capital of an isolated little kingdom of its own surrounded by barren hills." Because of its remoteness Settle saw mostly local commerce. The old roads were pack horse trails and drovers' roads along hilltops  because the valley was soft and swampy before field drainage and the dredging of stream estuaries.

In the 1700s, textile industrialists supported by traders and landowners campaigned for a turnpike to connect with growing industrial towns. The minute book for the Keighley and Kendal Turnpike Trust shows that most investors were mill owners from the Giggleswick district. In 1827, the trust, having miscalculated the cost of road maintenance, was in debt by £34,000. When in 1877 the trust was terminated, the investors received on average 54% of their deposit. The investors benefited because Settle was now well connected and its cotton mills boomed. The mill owners imported coal and, like the heavy industries that exported agricultural lime and sandstone masonry, welcomed the turnpike for access via carrier waggons to the Leeds and Liverpool Canal at Gargrave. The first passenger stagecoach arrived in 1763. The Mail Coach was running regularly in 1786. The Union coach for passengers ran each way on alternate days in the early 1800s and daily by 1840.

The "little" North Western Railway reached Giggleswick in 1847 and, in 1849, the railway company constructed Station Road from Giggleswick to Settle. In 1875, the Settle to Carlisle Railway was built and opened to goods traffic; passenger services commenced the following year when Settle railway station opened along with a goods warehouse, cattle pens, signal box and water cranes.

In the late 18th century, cotton spinning became the town's main employment. Bridge End Mill was converted from corn milling to cotton spinning. John Procter operated mills at Runley and King's Mill which were taken over by his son Thomas. He built the row of workers' cottages, Procter's Row in Lower Kirkgate. In 1835, Dog Kennel Mill and Brennand's Weaving Shed, Settle had five mills employing 333 people.

Governance
Settle is part of the parliamentary constituency of Skipton and Ripon, represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Julian Smith MP, a Conservative.

Before 1 April 2023, Settle was in the Settle and Ribblebank ward of Craven District Council and the Ribblesdale division of North Yorkshire County Council. Following local government reorganisation, it is now in the Settle & Penyghent division of the new North Yorkshire Council unitary authority. The division is represented by 1 Conservative Councillor.

Settle is served by a town council made up of 10 councillors. The mayor is elected annually and the current Town Mayor is Councillor Debi Rymer. The Deputy Mayor is Councillor Stephen Hogg.

Since 1992, the town has been twinned with the French Mediterranean seaside town of Banyuls-sur-Mer.

Geography
Settle was part of the West Riding of Yorkshire. It is located in Ribblesdale, at the southern edge of the Yorkshire Dales, within a few miles of the Three Peaks. Immediately overlooking the town is Castlebergh, a 300 ft limestone crag, and to the east is Malham which was in the former Settle Rural District. The River Ribble provided power for Settle's former cotton mills; it is now being harnessed by Settle Hydro, a micro hydroelectric scheme, to provide 50 kW of power to the National Grid, which was opened in 2009.

Transport

Settle railway station is situated on the Settle to Carlisle line. It is served by Northern Trains, who operate services between Leeds and Carlisle. Giggleswick railway station is sited 1 mile away from Settle and is on the Bentham line between Leeds and Morecambe.

Bus routes are operated by Kirkby Lonsdale Coaches and North Yorkshire Council, which link the town with Giggleswick, Horton in Ribblesdale, Kirkby Lonsdale, Skipton and Wigglesworth.

The town is located 29 mi from Leeds Bradford Airport.

The main road through Settle is the B6480, which links to the A65; it connects the town with Leeds, Ilkley, Skipton and Kendal.

Local media
Since the town is closest to the Lancashire and North Yorkshire border, local news and television programmes are provided by BBC North West and Granada Television that broadcast from Salford. Local radio stations are BBC Radio York on 104.3 FM, Greatest Hits Radio Yorkshire on 107.8 FM, and Dales Radio on 104.9 FM. The town's local newspaper is the Craven Herald & Pioneer.

Tourism
Settle's market is held weekly on Tuesdays in the town-centre marketplace and in the Victoria Hall, a short distance away on Kirkgate. Settle Town Hall was sold by Craven District Council to a developer in October 2011. The Square is surrounded by local businesses, most of which are family-owned, with some offering items for sale unique to the Settle area. The Naked Man is believed to be the oldest cafe in the country.

The Yorkshire Festival of Story brings internationally known and award-winning artists to the town and has a range of paid-for and free events suitable for all age ranges. The festival attracts visitors from around the world and audiences have more than trebled in size since the first festival in 2010. The event is the largest of its kind in the North of England. The Yorkshire Festival of Story is produced by Settle Stories an arts and heritage charity based in the town.

The Folly is a 17th-century Grade I listed building on the main street. In 1996, the North Craven Building Preservation Trust purchased part of the Folly, restored it and opened it to the public in 2001. The Folly houses the Museum of North Craven Life and hosts exhibitions during the open season. There are permanent displays, including the Settle to Carlisle Railway, Robert (Mouseman) Thompson furniture and local history. The rest of the building has been purchased by the trust. The museum is independent and run by volunteers.

The Gallery on the Green is thought to be the smallest art gallery in the world: drawings, paintings, photographs and other works are housed in a former BT telephone kiosk. Gavagan Arts at Linton Court Gallery is situated in a courtyard off Duke Street. The gallery presents a series of temporary exhibitions of modern and contemporary art.

The Listening Gallery is an audio gallery in an old phone box. The gallery has changing exhibitions and is open 365 days a year and is free to enter. The box is maintained and was created by Settle Stories.

The district has several caves where prehistoric remains have been found, the most notable being Victoria Cave, so-called because the inner chamber was discovered in 1837 on the day of Queen Victoria's accession. The cave is a geological SSSI and scheduled monument. Victoria Cave contained fossil remains. The earliest, at 130,000 years old, include mammoth, straight-tusked elephant, cave bear and hippopotamus, Bos primigenius, Rhinoceros leptorhinus and spotted hyenas (as a bed of hyena bones). They date to an Upper Pleistocene interglacial. After the last Ice Age the cave was used by hibernating brown bear and reindeer. Associated with the later deposits were a harpoon head carved from antler; flint implements and other ornaments. The discovery of flint is noteworthy as it is not found naturally in the area. Craven Museum & Gallery in Skipton has an exhibition of items which includes a bear's skull found in one of the caves.

Cultural
The composer Edward Elgar visited Settle on many occasions to visit his friend Dr Charles William Buck. There is a blue plaque at Cravendale to commemorate this.

Education
Settle has two schools, with Settle Primary School and Settle College. Settle Middle School closed as part of the money-saving measures taken by North Yorkshire County Council. To the west of the town is Giggleswick School, one of the principal private schools in the North of England, founded in 1512.

Notable people

 * Richard Bache (1737–1811), merchant, American Postmaster General and son-in-law of Benjamin Franklin
 * George Birkbeck (1776–1841), founder of the Mechanics' Institutes; Birkbeck, University of London is named after him
 * Reverend Benjamin Waugh (1839–1908) founder of the NSPCC, commemorated by a plaque on what is now the Neil Wright Estate Agents in Settle town square
 * George Howson (1860–1919), reforming headmaster
 * Francis Morphet Twisleton (1873–1917), military leader and letter writer
 * Theodore Rigg (1888–1972), agricultural chemist
 * Annice Sidwells (1902–2001), radio singer
 * James Frederic Riley (1912–1985) radiologist and finder of the link between mast cells and asthma
 * Claire Brooks (1931–2008), lawyer and politician
 * Don Wilson (1937–2012), England and Yorkshire cricketer
 * Susan Brookes (born c. 1943/44), television chef, born in Settle
 * Mike Harding (born 1944), singer and comedian
 * James Brown (born 1984), guitarist from Pulled Apart by Horses attended Settle College
 * Emma Lonsdale (born 1984), freestyle skier and 2014 Winter Olympian
 * James Newman (born 1985), singer, songwriter and the representative for the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 and 2021
 * John Newman (born 1990), soul singer

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Settle, North Yorkshire


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Face value

The face value, sometimes called nominal value, is the value of a coin, bond, stamp or paper money as printed on the coin, stamp or bill itself by the issuing authority.

The face value of coins, stamps, or bill is usually its legal value. However, their market value need not bear any relationship to the face value. For example, some rare coins or stamps may be traded at prices considerably above their face value. Coins may also have a salvage value due to more or less valuable metals that they contain.

Overview
The face value of bonds usually represents the principal or redemption value. Interest payments are expressed as a percentage of face value. Before maturity, the actual value of a bond may be greater or less than face value, depending on the interest rate payable and the perceived risk of default. As bonds approach maturity, actual value approaches face value.

In the case of stock certificates, face value is the par value of the stock. In the case of common stock, par value is largely symbolic. In the case of preferred stock, dividends may be expressed as a percentage of par value.

The face value of a life insurance policy is the death benefit. In the case of so-called "double indemnity" life insurance policies, the beneficiary receives double the face value in case of accidental death.

The face value of property, casualty or health insurance policies is the maximum amount payable, as stated on the policy's face or declarations page.

Face value can be used to refer to the apparent value of something other than a financial instrument, such as a concept or plan. In this context, "face value" refers to the apparent merits of the idea, before the concept or plan has been tested.

Face value also refers to the price printed on a ticket to a sporting event, concert, or other event (the price the ticket was originally sold for by the organization hosting the event). The practice of re-selling tickets for more than face value (or a certain amount above face value) is commonly known as ticket scalping.

Taking someone at face value is assuming another person's suggestion, offer, or proposal is sincere, rather than a bargaining ploy.

title: Face value


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Implementation Force

The Implementation Force (IFOR) was a NATO-led multinational peace enforcement force in Bosnia and Herzegovina under a one-year mandate from 20 December 1995 to 20 December 1996 under the codename Operation Joint Endeavour.

Background
NATO was responsible to the United Nations (UN) for carrying out the Dayton Peace Accords. The Dayton Peace Accords were started on 22 November 1995 by the presidents of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia, on behalf of Serbia and the Bosnian Serb Republic. The actual signing happened in Paris on 14 December 1995. The peace accords contained a General Framework Agreement and eleven supporting annexes with maps. The accords had three major goals: ending of hostilities, authorization of military and civilian program going into effect, and the establishment of a central Bosnian government while excluding individuals who are serving sentences or under indictment by the International War Crimes Tribunals from taking part in the running of the government. IFOR's specific role was to implement the military Annexes of The General Framework Agreement for Peace (GFAP) in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

IFOR relieved the UN peacekeeping force UNPROFOR, which had originally arrived in 1992, and the transfer of authority was discussed in Security Council Resolution 1031. Almost 60,000 NATO soldiers in addition to forces from non-NATO nations were deployed to Bosnia. Operation Decisive Endeavor (SACEUR OPLAN 40105), beginning 6 December 1995, was a subcomponent of Joint Endeavor. IFOR began operations on 20 December 1995.

The Dayton Agreement resulted from a long series of events, notably, the failures of EU-led peace plans, the August 1995 Croat Operation Storm and expelling 200,000 Serb civilians, the Bosnian Serb war crimes, in particular the Srebrenica massacre, and the seizure of UNPROFOR peace-keepers as human shields against NATO's Operation Deliberate Force.

U.S. Secretary of Defense William Perry and his Russian counterpart, Pavel Grachev agreed on October 8 that the peacekeeping operation name will be Implementation Force of the Peace Agreement on Bosnia-Herzegovina, that is without reference to NATO; other differences were unresolved at that time (chain of command, area of command and control). On October 27 they agreed that "the Russian unit will not be part of the NATO peacekeeping force, but will perform special engineering, transport and construction activites".

Admiral Leighton W. Smith Jr., Commander in Chief Allied Forces Southern Europe (CINCSOUTH), served as the first Joint Force Commander for the operation, also known as Commander IFOR (COMIFOR). He commanded the operation from IFOR's deployment on 20 December 1995 from headquarters in Zagreb, and later from March 1996 from the Residency in Sarajevo. Admiral Thomas J. Lopez commanded the operation from 31 July to 7 November 1996, followed by General William W. Crouch until 20 December 1996. Lt Gen Michael Walker, Commander Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC), acted as Land Component Commander for the operation, commanding from HQ ARRC (Forward) based initially in Kiseljak, and from late January 1996 from HQ ARRC (Main) in Ilidža. This was NATO's first ever out-of-area land deployment. The Land Component's part of the operation was known as Operation Firm Endeavour.

At its height, IFOR involved troops from 32 countries and numbered some 54,000 soldiers in-country (BiH) and around 80,000 involved soldiers in total (with support and reserve troops stationed in Croatia, Hungary, Germany, and Italy and also on ships in the Adriatic Sea). In the initial phases of the operation, much of the initial composition of IFOR consisted of units which had been part of UNPROFOR but remained in place and simply replaced their United Nations insignia with IFOR insignia.

Components
NATO member states that contributed forces included Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Non-NATO nations that contributed forces included; Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Morocco, New Zealand, Pakistan, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Sweden, Russia, and Ukraine.

The tasks of the Land Component were carried out by three Multi National Divisions: On 20 December 1996, the task of IFOR was taken over by SFOR. In turn, SFOR was replaced by the European EUFOR Althea force in 2004.
 * Multi-National Division (South-East), Mostar – French led. Also known as the 'Division Salamandre.' The divisional headquarters was provided by 6th Light Armored Division then 7th Armoured Division.
 * French Brigade Alpha, Jablanica
 * 2nd Foreign Parachute Regiment
 * Moroccan Battalion - Igman
 * French Brigade Bravo, Sarajevo
 * 6th Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment
 * 21st Marine Infantry Regiment
 * Ukrainian Battalion
 * Italian Bersaglieri Brigade "Garibaldi", Sarajevo
 * 8th Bersaglieri Regiment
 * Portuguese Battalion
 * Egyptian Battalion
 * 42nd Spanish Mountain Brigade, Medjugorje - Col Julio López-Guarch Muro
 * 64th “Galicia” Mountain Cazadores Regiment - Morstar
 * 11th "España" Light Armored Cavalry Regiment - Trebinje
 * Multi-National Division (South-West), Banja Luka – British led. The British codename for their armed forces' involvement in IFOR was Operation Resolute. Division headquarters was provided by 3 (UK) Division then 1st (UK) Armoured Division.
 * 4th UK Armoured Brigade, Šipovo - Brig Richard Dannatt
 * 2nd Bn, The Light Infantry
 * 1st Bn, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers
 * Dutch Battalion - Šišava
 * Malaysian Battalion - Livno
 * 2nd Canadian Mechanized Brigade, Ćoralići - Brig Gen Bruce Jeffries
 * Canadian Battalion
 * Queen's Royal Hussars - Mrkonjić Grad
 * Czech Battalion - Ljubija
 * Multi-National Division (North), Camp Eagle at Tuzla – US led. Task Force Eagle. The US Army 1st Armored Division under the command of Major General William L. Nash, constituted the bulk of the ground forces for Task Force Eagle. They began to deploy on 18 December 1995 and would return to Germany in late 1996.
 * 1st Brigade, 1st Armored Division, Camp Kime - Col Gregory Fontenot.
 * 1st Sqdn, 1st Cavalry - Camp Gentry
 * 3rd Bn, 5th Cavalry - Camp McGovern
 * 4th Bn, 67th Armor - Camp Stephens
 * 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division, Camp Lisa - Col John Batiste
 * 3rd Sqdn, 4th Cavalry - Camp Molly, Camp Alicia
 * 4th Bn, 12th infantry - Camp Demi, Camp Pat
 * 2nd Bn, 68th Armor - Camp Linda
 * 1st Russian Independent Airborne Brigade, Camp Ugljevik - Col Alexander Ivanovich Lentsov
 * 1st Battalion - Priboj
 * 2nd Battalion - Simin Han
 * Nordic-Polish Brigade, Doboj - Danish Brigadegeneral Finn Særmark-Thomsen
 * Danish Battalion (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania each provided a platoon size element to reinforce the battalion) - Camp Dannevirke, Camp Valhalla
 * Swedish Battalion - Camp Oden
 * Polish Battalion - Teslić, Žepče
 * Finnish Engineer Battalion - Camp Jussi
 * Norwegian Logistics Battalion - Modrica
 * Turkish Brigade, Zenica - Col Ahmet Berberoglu
 * Turkish Battalion
 * Romanian Engineer Battalion

NATO began to create service medals once it began to support peacekeeping in the former Yugoslavia, which led to the award to IFOR troops of the NATO Medal.

title: Implementation Force


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Weston Park Museum

Weston Park Museum  is a museum in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. It is one mile west of Sheffield city centre within Weston Park. It is Sheffield's largest museum and is housed in a Grade II* listed building and managed by Museums Sheffield. Until 2006 it was called Sheffield City Museum and Mappin Art Gallery.

History
The museum opened in 1875 in Weston House, whose grounds later became the park. A neoclassical extension, in the Ionic order, was added in 1887. The Mappin Art Gallery was built to house the collection of work bequeathed to the city by the Rotherham businessman John Newton Mappin. Weston Hall was demolished in the 1930s and a purpose-built structure, adjoining the Mappin Art Gallery, and funded in part by donations from local businessman J. G. Graves, was completed in 1937.

For much of its history the complex was officially known as the Sheffield City Museum and Mappin Art Gallery. The museum contained Sheffield's archaeology, natural history, decorative art and social history collections. The Mappin Art Gallery held Mappin's own collection and temporary art exhibitions. In December 1940 the Mappin Art Gallery suffered a direct hit in the Sheffield Blitz, destroying a significant part of the building and damaging much of the rest. During the 1950s and 1960s the museum remained open to the public, whilst the Mappin Art Gallery was left in a partially demolished state after the structure had been made safe. The Mappin Art Gallery reopened in 1965. From 1965 to 2003 it hosted significant art exhibitions, such as the British Art Show, and celebrated its centenary in 1987.

The two buildings closed in March 2003 for complete renovation. The £17.3 million re-development was partly funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, Sheffield City Council and Objective 1 for South Yorkshire. The building reopened in October 2006 as Weston Park Museum. This removed the separate identity of the Mappin Art Gallery. The museum closed again in summer 2016 for a refurbishment and to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the renovation.

The museum's archaeology exhibits include a replica of the Bronze Age rock art from Gardom's Edge and many items collected by Thomas Bateman, notably the Benty Grange helmet which closely matches the descriptions of warriors' helmets in Beowulf. There are seven galleries: the Harold Cantor Gallery; Sheffield Life and Times; History Lab; Arctic World; What On Earth!; Treasures; and Picturing Sheffield. The Harold Cantor Gallery houses temporary exhibitions, which include major touring exhibitions from national partners such as the V&A and British Museum.

The museum is home to one of the longest serving weather stations in the country, providing data on Sheffield's weather since 1882.

Weston Park museum receives around 250,000 visitors a year and was nominated for the prestigious Gulbenkian Prize in 2007. In 2008 the museum won The Guardian's Family Friendly Museums award.

title: Weston Park Museum


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Half dollar (United States coin)

The half dollar, sometimes referred to as the half for short or 50-cent piece, is a United States coin worth 50 cents, or one half of a dollar. In both size and weight, it is the largest circulating coin currently minted in the United States, being 1.205 in in diameter and 0.085 in in thickness, and is twice the weight of the quarter. The coin's design has undergone a number of changes throughout its history. Since 1964, the half dollar depicts the profile of President John F. Kennedy on the obverse and the seal of the president of the United States on the reverse.

Although seldom used today, half-dollar coins were once common in circulation and saw regular use alongside other denominations of US coinage, but have become uncommon in general circulation for several reasons. Half-dollars were produced in fairly large quantities until the year 2002, when the U.S. Mint reduced production of the coin and ceased minting them for regular circulation. As a result of its decreasing usage, many pre-2002 half dollars remain in Federal Reserve vaults, prompting the change in production. Presently, collector half dollars can be ordered directly from the U.S. Mint, and circulated half dollars minted from 1971-2001 are generally available at most American banks and credit unions. Beginning In 2021, half dollars were again produced for general circulation.

Circulation
Half-dollar coins saw heavy circulation until the mid 1960s. For many years, they were (and in many areas still are) commonly used by gamblers at casinos and other venues with slot machines. Rolls of half dollars may still be kept on hand in cardrooms for games requiring 50-cent antes or bring-in bets, for dealers to pay winning naturals in blackjack, or where the house collects a rake in increments. Additionally, some concession vendors at sporting events distribute half-dollar coins as change for convenience.

By the early 1960s, the rising price of silver neared the point where the bullion value of U.S. silver coins would exceed face value. In 1965, the U.S. introduced layered-composition coins made of a pure copper core sandwiched between two cupronickel outer faces. The silver content of dimes and quarters was eliminated, but the Kennedy half-dollar, introduced in 1964, contained silver (reduced from 90% in 1964 to 40% from 1965 to 1970). Even with its reduced silver content, the half dollar attracted widespread interest from speculators and coin collectors, which led to extensive hoarding of half dollars dated 1970 and earlier. In 1971, the composition of the half was changed to match that of the clad dimes and quarters, and with an increase in production, the coin saw a moderate increase in usage; however, by this time many businesses and the public had begun to lose interest in the half dollar and gradually, its usage began to wane. By the end of the 1970s, the half dollar had become uncommon in circulation. Merchants stopped ordering half dollars from their banks, and many banks stopped ordering half dollars from the Federal Reserve, and the U.S. mints sharply reduced production of the coins.

From 2001-2020, half dollars were minted only for collectors, due to large Federal Reserve and government inventories of pre-2001 coins; this was primarily due to a lack of demand and large quantity returns of halves from casinos that switched to using "coin-less" slot machines. Eventually, the reserve supply of halves began to run low and in 2021, the mint resumed production of half dollars for general circulation. Modern-date half dollars can be purchased in proof sets, mint sets, rolls, and bags from the U.S. Mint, and existing inventory circulation pieces can be obtained or ordered through most U.S. banks and credit unions. All collector issues since 2001 have had much lower mintages than in previous years. Although intended only for collectors, 2001-2020 half dollars can often be found in circulation.

Aspects of early history
On December 1, 1794, the first half dollars, approximately 5,300 pieces, were delivered. Another 18,000 were produced in January 1795 using dies of 1794, to save the expense of making new ones. Another 30,000 pieces were struck by the end of 1801. The coin had the Heraldic Eagle, based on the Great Seal of the United States on the reverse. 150,000 were minted in 1804 but struck with dies from 1803, so no 1804 specimens exist, though there were some pieces dated 1805 that carried a "5 over 4" overdate.

In 1838, half-dollar dies were produced in the Philadelphia Mint for the newly established New Orleans Mint, and ten test samples of the 1838 half dollars were made at the main Philadelphia mint. These samples were put into the mint safe along with other rarities like the 1804 silver dollar. The dies were then shipped to New Orleans for the regular production of 1838 half dollars. However, New Orleans production of the half dollars was delayed due to the priority of producing half dimes and dimes. The large press for half-dollar production was not used in New Orleans until January 1839 to produce 1838 half dollars, but the reverse die could not be properly secured, and only ten samples were produced before the dies failed. Rufus Tyler, chief coiner of the New Orleans mint, wrote to Mint Director Patterson of the problem on February 25, 1839. The Orleans mint samples all had a double stamped reverse as a result of this production problem and they also showed dramatic signs of die rust, neither of which are present on the Philadelphia produced test samples. While eight Philadelphia minted samples survive to this day, there is only one known New Orleans minted specimen with the tell-tale double stamped reverse and die rust. This is the famous coin that Rufus Tyler presented to Alexander Dallas Bache (great grandson of Benjamin Franklin) in the summer of 1839 and was later purchased in June 1894 by A. G. Heaton, the father of mint mark coin collecting. The 1838 Philadelphia-produced half dollars are extremely rare, with two separate specimens having sold for $632,500 in Heritage auctions in 2005 and 2008 respectively. The sole surviving Orleans minted 1838 is one of the rarest of all American coins. In 1840, this mint produced nearly 180,000 half dollars.

In 1861, the New Orleans mint produced coins for three different governments. A total of 330,000 were struck under the United States government, 1,240,000 for the State of Louisiana after it seceded from the Union, and 962,633 after it joined the Confederacy. Since the same die was used for all strikings, the output looks identical. However the Confederate States of America actually minted four half dollars with a CSA (rather than USA) reverse and the obverse die they used had a small die crack. Thus "regular" 1861 half dollars with this crack probably were used by the Confederates for some of the mass striking.

There are two varieties of Kennedy half dollars in the proof set issues of 1964. Initially, the die was used with accented hair, showing deeper lines than the president's widow, Jacqueline Kennedy, preferred. New dies were prepared to smooth out some of the details. It is estimated that about 1 to 3% (40,000 to 100,000) of the proof halves are of the earlier type, making them somewhat more expensive for collectors.

List of designs

 * Silver half dollars
 * Flowing Hair 1794–1795
 * Draped Bust 1796–1807
 * Draped Bust, Small Eagle 1796–1797
 * Draped Bust, Heraldic Eagle 1801–1807
 * Capped Bust 1807–1839
 * Capped Bust (Large Size), With Motto 1807–1836
 * Capped Bust (Small Size), No Motto 1836–1839
 * Seated Liberty 1839–1891
 * Seated Liberty, No Motto 1839–1866
 * Seated Liberty, With Motto 1866–1891
 * Barber 1892–1915
 * Walking Liberty 1916–1947
 * Franklin 1948–1963
 * Kennedy 1964 (General circulation issue) (the last 90% silver half dollar for circulation, contains 0.36169 oz. net silver per coin, or 7.234 oz. silver per roll)
 * Kennedy 1992–present (silver proof sets available; 90% silver until 2019, 99.9% since)

 * 40% silver half dollars
 * Kennedy 1965–1970
 * Kennedy 1976 (only collectors sets produced with 40% silver)

 * Copper-nickel clad half dollars
 * Kennedy 1971–1974, 1977–present
 * Kennedy Bicentennial 1975–1976 (all dated 1776-1976)

List of early commemorative issues

 * Columbian half dollar (1892–1893)
 * Panama–Pacific half dollar (1915)
 * Illinois Centennial half dollar (1918)
 * Maine Centennial half dollar (1920)
 * Pilgrim Tercentenary half dollar (1920–1921)
 * Missouri Centennial half dollar (1921)
 * Alabama Centennial half dollar (1921)
 * Grant Memorial half dollar (1922)
 * Monroe Doctrine Centennial half dollar (1923)
 * Huguenot-Walloon half dollar (1924)
 * Lexington-Concord Sesquicentennial half dollar (1925)
 * Stone Mountain Memorial half dollar (1925)
 * California Diamond Jubilee half dollar (1925)
 * Fort Vancouver Centennial half dollar (1925)
 * United States Sesquicentennial half dollar (1926)
 * Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar (1926–1939)
 * Vermont Sesquicentennial half dollar (1927)
 * Hawaii Sesquicentennial half dollar (1928)
 * Maryland Tercentenary half dollar (1934)
 * Texas Centennial half dollar (1934–1938)
 * Daniel Boone Bicentennial half dollar (1934–1938)
 * Connecticut Tercentenary half dollar (1935)
 * Arkansas Centennial half dollar (1935–1939)
 * Arkansas-Robinson half dollar (1936)

 * Hudson Sesquicentennial half dollar (1935)
 * California Pacific International Exposition half dollar (1935–1936)
 * Old Spanish Trail half dollar (1935)
 * Rhode Island Tercentenary half dollar (1936)
 * Cleveland Centennial half dollar (1936)
 * Wisconsin Territorial Centennial half dollar (1936)
 * Cincinnati Musical Center half dollar (1936)
 * Long Island Tercentenary half dollar (1936)
 * York County, Maine Tercentenary half dollar (1936)
 * Bridgeport, Connecticut Centennial half dollar (1936)
 * Lynchburg Sesquicentennial half dollar (1936)
 * Elgin, Illinois, Centennial half dollar (1936)
 * Albany Charter half dollar (1936)
 * San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge half dollar (1936)
 * Columbia, South Carolina Sesquicentennial half dollar (1936)
 * Delaware Tercentenary half dollar (1936)
 * Battle of Gettysburg half dollar (1936)
 * Norfolk, Virginia, Bicentennial half dollar (1936)
 * Roanoke Island half dollar (1937)
 * Battle of Antietam half dollar (1937)
 * New Rochelle 250th Anniversary half dollar (1938)
 * Iowa Centennial half dollar (1946)
 * Booker T. Washington Memorial half dollar (1946–1951)
 * Carver-Washington half dollar (1951–1954)

title: Half dollar (United States coin)


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Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Stabilisation Force (SFOR) was a NATO-led multinational peacekeeping force deployed to Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Bosnian War. Although SFOR was led by NATO, several non-NATO countries contributed troops. It was replaced by EUFOR Althea in December 2004.

Mission
The stated mission of SFOR was to "deter hostilities and stabilise the peace, contribute to a secure environment by providing a continued military presence in the Area Of Responsibility (AOR), target and co-ordinate SFOR support to key areas including primary civil implementation organisations, and progress towards a lasting consolidation of peace, without further need for NATO-led forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina".

Structure and history
SFOR was established in Security Council Resolution 1088 on 12 December 1996. It succeeded the much larger Implementation Force IFOR which was deployed to Bosnia and Herzegovina on 20 December 1995 with a one-year mandate. The commanders of the SFOR, who each served one-year terms, were General William W. Crouch, General Eric Shinseki, General Montgomery Meigs, Lt. General Ronald Adams, Lt. General Michael Dodson, Lt. General John B. Sylvester, Lt. General William E. Ward, Major General Virgil Packett and Brigadier General Steven P. Schook.

SFOR operated in support of NATO Operation Joint Guard and Operation Joint Forge.

Troop levels were reduced to approximately 12,000 by the close of 2002, and to approximately 7,000 by the close of 2004. During NATO's 2004 Istanbul Summit the end of the SFOR mission was announced.

It was replaced by the European Union's EUFOR Althea, on 2 December 2004 at NATO HQ, Camp Butmir, Sarajevo, B-H. Operation Joint Forge was succeeded by the EU's Operation Althea.

SFOR was divided into three zones of operation:
 * Mostar MND(S) – Italian, French, German, Spanish
 * Banja Luka MND(W) – American, British, Canadian, Czech, Dutch. The British code name for their activities in IFOR was Operation Resolute and SFOR was Operation Lodestar (to June 1998) and Operation Palatine (from June 1998). The Canadian mission was named Operation Palladium (1996 to 2004).
 * Tuzla MND(N) – American, Turkish, Polish, Russian, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish.

(Some units had troops stationed outside the assigned zone)

The three AOs were known collectively as Multi-National Divisions until the end of 2002 where they were reduced in scope to Multi-National Brigades.

SFOR operated under peace enforcement, not peacekeeping, rules of engagement. For example, it was cleared, in 1997, to neutralise Serb radio-television facilities. During its mandate, SFOR arrested 29 individuals who were charged with war crimes. Those arrested were transferred to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in the Netherlands. U.S. service members serving in SFOR were awarded the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal and the NATO Medal.

SFOR operated as part of Operation Joint Guard and Operation Joint Forge. As time progressed, the numbers of troops allotted to SFOR declined. On 2 December 2004, SFOR disbanded and its functions were assumed by military units from the European Union organized as European Union Forces (EUFOR).

Air operations
Several sequential air operations supported the stabilization efforts.
 * Operation Deny Flight (April 1993 – December 1996)
 * Operation Decisive Edge (December 1995 – December 1996)
 * Operation Decisive Guard (December 1996 – June 1998)
 * Operation Deliberate Forge (June 1998 – September 2004)

Member forces
SFOR participated in Operation Joint Guard (21 December 1996 – 19 June 1998) and Operation Joint Forge (20 June 1998 – 2 December 2004). NATO nations providing troops included: • Albania

• Belgium

• Bulgaria

• Canada

• Czech Republic

• Denmark

• Estonia

• Finland

• France

• Germany

• Greece

• Hungary

• Iceland

• Italy

• Latvia

• Lithuania

• Luxembourg

• Netherlands

• Norway

• Poland

• Portugal

• Romania

• Spain

• Slovakia

• Slovenia

• Turkey

• United Kingdom

• United States

Non-NATO nations providing troops included: • Argentina

• Australia

• Austria

• Egypt

• Malaysia

• Morocco

• New Zealand

• Republic of Ireland

• Russia

• Sweden

• Ukraine


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Twisted Sister

Twisted Sister was an American heavy metal band formed in 1972, originally from Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey, and later based on Long Island, New York. Their best-known songs include "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock", both of which were associated with music videos noted for their sense of slapstick humor.

Twisted Sister evolved from a band named Silver Star, and experienced several membership changes before settling on the classic lineup of Jay Jay French (guitars), Eddie "Fingers" Ojeda (guitars), Dee Snider (lead vocals), Mark "The Animal" Mendoza (bass), and A. J. Pero (drums) in 1982. It was this lineup which recorded the band's first four albums. Twisted Sister's first two albums, Under the Blade (1982) and You Can't Stop Rock 'n' Roll (1983), were critically well-received and earned the band underground popularity. The band achieved mainstream success with their third album, Stay Hungry (1984), and its single "We're Not Gonna Take It", which was their only Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. Their next two albums, Come Out and Play (1985) and Love Is for Suckers (1987), did not match the success of Stay Hungry, and Twisted Sister disbanded in 1988.

The band briefly reunited in the late 1990s before more permanently reforming in 2003. The band released two more albums: Still Hungry (2004), a rerecording of their third album, and the Christmas album, A Twisted Christmas (2006). Following Pero's death in 2015, the band embarked on a farewell tour and broke up again after completing the tour in 2016.

Although Twisted Sister is often regarded as glam metal due to its use of makeup, Snider considers the term to be inappropriate. Twisted Sister is also ranked No. 73 among VH1's 100 greatest artists of hard rock.

Early days (1972–1976)
In late December 1972, Manhattan resident John Segall (who later renamed himself "Jay Jay French") auditioned for and was asked to join the "glitter band" Silver Star from Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey. Silver Star was formed by drummer Mel Anderson ("Mel Star") as the "New Jersey version of the New York Dolls", and consisted of Billy Diamond (lead guitar), Wayne Brown (lead vocals and guitar), Tony Bunn (bass), and Steve Guarino (keyboards). Michael O'Neill took over the lead singer role from Wayne Brown who had left; Segall hated the name "Silver Star" and pushed to have it changed. O'Neill came up with the name Twisted Sister at a rehearsal on Valentine's Day in February 1973. Along with the name change came stylistic changes that eventually resulted in several members leaving the band amicably. Bunn and Guarino left, and Diamond, Star, Segall (now "Johnny Heartbreaker" and soon to change his name permanently to "Jay Jay French"), and new bass player Kenneth Harrison Neill made up the next lineup of Twisted Sister.

The band found work immediately and started playing six nights a week. The group secured a residency at the Mad Hatter in East Quogue, New York for the summer of 1973 and played 78 shows there, and another 27 shows elsewhere, for a total of 105 shows from Memorial Day to Labor Day. By December 1974, Jay Jay had already played nearly 600 nights and about 3,000 performances as the band played five 40-minute shows per night, each with costume changes, some ending as late as 8 a.m. the following morning. At this point the band broke up and a second version of the band brought in a new lead singer (Rick Prince) and guitar player (Keith Angel). After singer Prince failed to show up for a rehearsal in early 1975, Jay Jay took over the lead vocals and management duties. The band split up after Labor Day weekend 1975. In October 1975, the fourth version of the band started to play the club circuit. Jay Jay hired a former high school friend named Eddie Ojeda, who joined as co-lead singer and second guitarist, and got drummer Kevin John Grace after reading an ad that Kevin had put in the Village Voice. Bassist Neill remained and completed the lineup. The band followed a more glam rock direction, influenced by David Bowie, Slade, Mott the Hoople, the Rolling Stones, and the New York Dolls. They played at local clubs, but floundered in relative obscurity.

Club days (1976–1982)
In February 1976, at the suggestion of the band's agent, Kevin Brenner, Jay Jay was told that the band could only go so far without being able to play Led Zeppelin cover songs and urged Jay Jay to hire Danny Snider (Dee Snider), who had been in the bands Peacock and Heathen. Danny changed his name to Dee at Jay Jay's suggestion and thus began line up number six of Twisted Sister. This version lasted just six weeks, with drummer Grace departing. The group took a heavier musical direction in April of 1976 with the addition of new drummer Tony Petri, who was heavily influenced by Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Slade, and Alice Cooper. In 1978 Neill became a born-again Christian after a stint in rehab for alcoholism; his parish, however, objected to his participation in the band, which they deemed to be Satanic. After his departure, the band recruited Dictators bassist Mark Mendoza to replace him.

The band moved in a more heavy metal direction in 1978, when the group began to record its demos. Two of their demos found their way to compilation albums by New York classic rock radio station WBAB, and were later re-recorded for the band's first two albums.

Having audience participation in the "Sweet Jane Gong Show" and the "Death to Disco" stage routines became legendary. The band broke attendance records at large halls in the Tri-State Area and its growing fan base began to take the name "S.M.F.F.O.T.S.", for Sick Motherfucking Friends Of Twisted Sister, later shortened to "S.M.F." for "Sick Mother Fuckers". NME reported that Twisted Sister had sold out the 3,000 capacity New York Palladium for a March 16 show without a recording contract or radio airplay. Fan hysteria and the seemingly "lost art of entertainment" soon became the hallmark of a TS show. After selling out the Palladium, the group began aggressively pursuing a recording contract, with an aim to get out of the club circuit before its impending collapse due to the upcoming change of the drinking age from 18 to 21.

The band went through three more line up changes between 1979 and 1982. Drummer Joey Brighton replaced Tony Petri, former Dictators drummer Richie Teeter replaced Brighton and, finally, on April 1, 1982, AJ Pero replaced Teeter. Future Shark Island and The Scream drummer Walt Woodward III was also in the band for three days in 1982.

The band started its own T-shirt company and record label. The group released two singles that eventually made it over to the UK and caught the attention of Martin Hooker, the president of indie label Secret Records, a small British label that was mainly a punk outlet. Jay Jay remained as manager through 1981 at which time he hired Mark Puma, a local promoter, to manage the band. This lineup (Dee Snider, Jay Jay French, Eddie Ojeda, Mark Mendoza and A.J. Pero) is considered the "official Twisted Sister line up" because this version is responsible for almost all the studio albums, singles, videos and DVDs. On the suggestion of two reporters from Sounds and Kerrang! magazines, Twisted Sister left New York to find a label in the UK. There, in April 1982, they were finally signed by Secret Records. The band also took $22,000 to the UK to appear on the show The Tube.

First two albums (1982–1984)
In July 1982, the group released its first EP, Ruff Cutts, on the Secret Records label, still featuring Tony Petri on the drums. This was followed shortly by the group's first studio album, Under the Blade, produced by Pete Way of UFO. Despite rather low production quality, the album was an underground hit in the UK, providing the band with sufficient name recognition to open for such metal acts as Motörhead. The album had an overall raw metal sound and included "Tear It Loose", a very fast speed-metal song featuring a guitar solo by "Fast" Eddie Clarke of Motörhead. Another single, the future hit "We're Not Gonna Take It", was planned for release, but Secret Records went out of business before Snider was able to complete the lyrics.

After that appearance on the music TV program The Tube, Atlantic Records approached the band and signed them. Atlantic was one of the labels that had turned Twisted Sister down in the Club Days period. The band's first LP under Atlantic, You Can't Stop Rock 'n' Roll, produced by Stuart Epps, was released in 1983 and included the UK No. 18 hit "I Am (I'm Me)". From a production standpoint, the album sounded better than its predecessor, and it was every bit as heavy. Upon the success of the album the company decided to promote the band more heavily. A music video was made for the title track of You Can't Stop Rock'n'Roll, which was to become the first of a series of comedic videos that popularized the band.

Mainstream popularity (1984–1985)
International fame came for Twisted Sister when the band's third LP, Stay Hungry, hit the stores on May 10, 1984. During the successful tour, a young Metallica supported the band. Stay Hungry sold more than two million copies by the summer of 1985, and went on to sell more than three million in subsequent years. It remains the band's biggest success.

Videos of hit singles "We're Not Gonna Take It" (No. 21 hit in the United States) and "I Wanna Rock" (No. 68 in the United States) ran almost constantly on MTV. The acclaimed surreal comedy film Pee-wee's Big Adventure took this further with the band having an appearance making a fictional video for "Burn In Hell" on the Warner Bros. backlot only to be interrupted by Pee-wee Herman passing through. Despite being comedic in nature, the videos featured violence against parents and teachers, which placed the band under heavy criticism by conservative organizations. The group was singled out by the PMRC in 1985. Their songs "Under the Blade" and "We're Not Gonna Take It" were specifically mentioned in the associated Senate hearings. Snider, along with John Denver and Frank Zappa, testified before a Senate committee during these hearings on September 19, 1985.

Decline and fall (1985–1989)
On November 9, 1985, the band released its fourth studio album, Come Out and Play, produced by Dieter Dierks. It was not nearly as successful as its predecessor, although it did earn the band a gold certification for sales of 500,000 copies. Some speculate that the failure was partly due to MTV choosing not to air the video for "Be Chrool to Your Scuel" on the grounds that it was graphically offensive. The song featured such guests as Alice Cooper (who also stars in the video), Brian Setzer, Clarence Clemons and Billy Joel. The tour supporting the album was a near fiasco, with low attendance and many cancelled dates. Not even Atlantic's re-release of a remixed Under the Blade helped the band recover its popularity. Come Out and Play was one of the first CDs to go out of print.

After the tour, Pero left to rejoin Cities. He was replaced by ex-Good Rats drummer Joey "Seven" Franco. The nickname "Seven" comes from his being the band's seventh drummer.

In 1986, Snider embarked on a solo project, reportedly approaching future Iron Maiden guitarist Janick Gers, but this did not work out. Janick recalls it as follows: "He rang me up and we talked but I remember saying, 'There is no way in this world that I am putting on make up or anything like that, I'm just not into that shit.' But we had a chat and he seemed like a nice enough guy. But I never heard back from him."

Snider then recorded an album with Franco programming the drum machine and featuring several session musicians such as Reb Beach on guitar and Kip Winger (just before they formed Winger) and Steve Whiteman of Kix. Atlantic Records refused to release it unless it was labeled as a Twisted Sister album. So, on August 13, 1987 Love Is for Suckers made its debut. Although the band had not played in the recording sessions, it was mentioned on the album cover as if the group had, and the band did play some of the songs in subsequent shows. Beau Hill's production gave the album a very polished pop metal sound. The band's members had also removed the makeup that they had been wearing since their early days. The music video for the lead single "Hot Love", featuring the band members without their makeup, had moderate success on MTV. Commercially though, the album was a complete failure and many of the band's metal fans were disappointed with the pop sound.

On October 12, 1987, almost two months after the release of Love Is for Suckers, Snider left the band, the record label cancelled its contract, and Twisted Sister disbanded. The public announcement of the band's demise came in January 1988.

Separation period (1989–1997)
After the band's break-up, former members were involved in different projects:
 * Snider formed Desperado, Widowmaker, and SMFs. Joey Franco also played drums in Widowmaker. Snider also wrote and starred in the movie Strangeland.
 * Ojeda went on to join Scarerow and then formed Prisoners of War. He also worked as a session guitarist and guitar instructor.
 * French stopped performing except for some guest appearances. He formed French Management and produced the alternative metal band Sevendust's first self-titled album.
 * Mendoza briefly joined Blackfoot. Then he worked as a producer and manager. He also occasionally pursued solo projects.
 * Pero was involved in several projects and subsequently toured with Snider's SMFs. Pero for a time during this period also worked in a now defunct (as of January 2017) Staten Island, NY audio shop called Clone Audio.
 * Franco worked as a session drummer and played with Snider's Widowmaker.

In 1992, Atlantic Records, released a "best of" album Big Hits and Nasty Cuts that also featured some live performances from the Under The Blade period. This album was compiled by French. A live album from the Stay Hungry era named Live At Hammersmith was released in 1994 by CMC International.

Reunions and reissues (1997–2014)
In 1998, the band recorded a song for the soundtrack of Snider's movie Strangeland.

In 1999, Spitfire Records re-issued the group's back catalog, supplemented with previously unreleased tracks. This was followed by Club Daze Volume 1: The Studio Sessions, an album containing demo recordings from the pre-Under the Blade era, which has three songs that were written by French, this was the first time someone other than Snider was writing songs and Club Daze Volume 2: Live In The Bars, a live counterpart.

In 2001, Koch Records released a tribute album under the name Twisted Forever: A Tribute To The Legendary Twisted Sister. The album featured a wide range of artists and bands who had been influenced by Twisted Sister, including Lit, Motörhead, Chuck D, Anthrax, Overkill, Cradle of Filth, Joan Jett, Sebastian Bach, and HammerFall. Oddly for a tribute album, Twisted Sister was also present with a cover of AC/DC's "Sin City".

In November 2001, the reunited Twisted Sister joined fellow New York metal artists Anthrax, Overkill, Sebastian Bach, and Ace Frehley to headline a benefit concert for NYPD and FDNY Widows and Orphans Fund in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center. New York Steel raised over $100,000 for the charity, and the reaction to the first Twisted Sister set in 14 years was overwhelming. The demand for more live dates was immediate and the band took the first steps toward returning to the concert stage.

In 2002, a remastered "best of" compilation named Essentials was released. Fans generally consider this to be a better compilation than the one previously issued by Atlantic.

2002 also saw the featuring of "I Wanna Rock" as one of the gameplay radio songs on the videogame Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. The song features in the playlist of the fictional radio station "V Rock".

In 2003, Snider and Franco collaborated on a Halloween-themed project called Van Helsing's Curse. The project's first album, Oculus Infernum, was released by Koch Records and featured a blend of heavy metal and orchestral elements in the style of Trans-Siberian Orchestra.

Twisted Sister, this time including Mark Mendoza, reunited again for the Sweden Rock Festival in June 2003. The band also appeared in August of that same year at the Wacken Open Air festival. Footage from that show was filmed for a DVD release, which featured former Violent Apathy and Spite member, Tom Fuller.

In March 2004, the band entered the studio to completely re-record the group's Stay Hungry album for Demolition Records. The band members reported that they were not happy with the original album's production, so this time they produced it themselves. The re-recording was released under the name Still Hungry and contained seven bonus tracks.

In July 2005, the group played a free concert in Edmonton for the Klondike Days festival. In late 2005, Snider appeared on Numbers from the Beast: An All-Star Tribute to Iron Maiden, performing vocals for the Iron Maiden classic "Wasted Years". Snider was joined by his contemporaries and peers George Lynch, formerly of Dokken, and Bob Kulick. Also in 2005, the band released the 2003 Wacken show on CD and DVD simply titled Live at Wacken. It also went on tour with Alice Cooper, acting as the support band but delivering a set similar to a headliner's.

In 2006, Snider and French worked with Lordi to produce and play on a few tracks on their new album The Arockalypse. Snider was featured on the first track, "SCG3 Special Report", as the voice of Lordi warning of the upcoming Arockalypse. French guest starred on the song "Chainsaw Buffet". In June 2006, the band announced that it had signed with the American record label Razor and Tie to release a final album, of heavy metal Christmas music, called A Twisted Christmas. The album was released on October 17, 2006, and was a commercial success. On July 8, 2006, Twisted Sister played in front of 80,000 people in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The show featured Scorpions as the headliner. It also played a small concert at the Wolverhampton Civic Center.

Before each of the main shows, they would perform as Bent Brother, practicing their set and appearing without makeup, usually at reduced ticket prices.

Twisted Sister was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame on October 15, 2006. On December 13, 2006, Twisted Sister made an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. The group performed its rock version of "O Come, All Ye Faithful", which is arranged in the style of "We're Not Gonna Take It". On December 22, 2006, Twisted Sister performed the song on CBS's The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. On an episode of Snider's syndicated radio program "The House of Hair", he stated that due to the success of the Christmas album, and also due to the response to the tour promoting the album, that Twisted Sister might not retire, and the band's future was being discussed.

On July 15, 2007, Twisted Sister performed at metal festival Rocklahoma.

Twisted Sister's "I Wanna Rock" was featured in the game Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s as a playable song (instead of being a cover like several songs featured in the game, it was the version from the 2004 remake of the group's classic album Stay Hungry, titled Still Hungry).

In 2008, Snider appeared on the CMT television show Gone Country. On February 25, 2008, Twisted Sister performed at "Aftermath - The Station Fire 5 years later" in Providence, Rhode Island. On May 10, 2008, Twisted Sister performed a free concert at the Bulgarian town Lovech. On July 13, 2008, Twisted Sister performed at Snatch Rock n Roll Lounge, in Calgary, Alberta. On September 1, 2008, Twisted Sister performed at the Rock The Bayou Festival in Houston, Texas. On June 4, 2009, Twisted Sister performed Stay Hungry in its entirety for the first time at the Sweden Rock Festival. This included never before played songs such as "Don't Let Me Down" and "Horror-Teria: Street Justice".

On July 16, 2009, in an interview on Live with Regis and Kelly, Snider said that 2009 was the last year that the band would perform with makeup and costumes.

On February 16, 2010, Twisted Sister were confirmed to play at Bloodstock Open Air 2010.

On July 15, 2011, Twisted Sister were confirmed to play at Masters of Rock.

Twisted Sister performed at Copenhell 2014 in Denmark to an audience of 20,000 as part of the group's Stay Hungry 30th Anniversary World Tour. This was the group's first show in Denmark in 30 years. The Twisted Sister show was praised as one of the best concert performances. The band was "..As Sharp, Crazy and Witty as 30 years ago" according to the Danish press.

On October 13, 2011, the band announced a five-disc DVD set of live performances over the group's entire career entitled From the Bars to the Stars, with a release date of November 8.

Former Twisted Sister drummer Richard Teeter, who had played with the band in 1980 and 1981, died from complications due to esophageal cancer on April 10, 2012.

Death of A. J. Pero and farewell tour (2015–2016)
On March 20, 2015, drummer A. J. Pero died in his sleep of a heart attack. Twisted Sister released the following statement: "The members of Twisted Sister are profoundly saddened to announce the untimely passing of our brother, AJ Pero. The band, crew and most importantly the family of AJ Pero thank you for your thoughts and prayers at this time." Shortly thereafter, Adrenaline Mob, which also featured Pero on drums, released a statement revealing that Pero had died while sleeping on the band's tour bus.

On April 7, 2015, TMZ.com reported that Twisted Sister would embark on its final tour, dubbed "Forty and Fuck It", in 2016. Mike Portnoy (of The Winery Dogs and Transatlantic and formerly of Dream Theater and Adrenaline Mob) filled in for Pero on drums on this tour. The band also announced tribute shows in honor of A. J. Pero; the first was in Las Vegas, Nevada, on May 30 and was recorded for the CD/DVD release Metal Meltdown—Featuring Twisted Sister Live at The Hard Rock Casino—Las Vegas, released that July. The second was dubbed "Twisted Sister – A Concert to Honor AJ Pero" and held in Sayreville, New Jersey on June 13. On this tour a recording of a drum solo, from one of AJ's last concerts with Twisted Sister, was shown on the stage screen, giving the fans one final experience of the classic line-up together. The recording was from the Faroe Islands Summarfestival. The group played its final concert on November 12, 2016 in Monterrey.

Metal Hall of Fame induction and potential reunion shows (2023–present)
On January 26, 2023, Twisted Sister reunited as they were inducted into the Metal Hall of Fame at The Canyon Club in Agoura Hills. At the event, they performed a special one-off onstage three song set once again featuring drummer Mike Portnoy filling in for A. J. Pero and guitarist Keith Robert War, who filled in for Eddie Ojeda after contracting COVID-19.

On April 7, 2023 Dee Snider announced the band will reunite in 2024 for appearances at various Democratic political rallies during the 2024 election season. On April 8, 2024 Snider stated to podcast "The Hook Rocks!" that offers the band are receiving for a reunion are "getting close to being impossible to refuse". Although he reiterated that the numbers are "not there yet" but they "sure as hell seem to be going in that direction".

Musical style and influences
Twisted Sister is generally classified as heavy metal,  glam metal,   and hard rock. They have also been called a shock rock band. Despite its classification as glam metal, Greg Prato of AllMusic compared the band's debut album Under the Blade to early 1980s new wave of British heavy metal. Moreover, despite the disdain that thrash metal musicians and fans in the 1980s had towards glam metal, Twisted Sister bridged the gap and could appeal to both thrash metal and glam metal fans, with thrash metal band Metallica even opening for Twisted Sister in the 1980s, despite Metallica's disdain for glam metal music at the time. Thrash metal bands Anthrax and Overkill had covered Twisted Sister songs. Snider spoke about this, saying:

"Twisted was a band that confused people a bit. When we first played at the Marquee in London, it was a really mixed crowd. There were metalheads and punks and skinheads, and everyone was looking around 'Wait a minute? What are we about to see here?' At the beginning there was no hair metal or glam movement. We were just a weird metal band at that point! But then we started to break through and we were pulling in people from all areas.""

Snider rejected the glam metal label of the band, saying: "I don't think Twisted Sister is 'Glam' because that implies glamour, and we're not glamorous. We should be called 'Hid' because we're hideous." In interviews, Dee Snider cited Slade, the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, KISS, Grand Funk Railroad, Black Sabbath, the Rolling Stones, Paul Revere & the Raiders, the Monkees, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, David Bowie, Queen, Van Halen and AC/DC as influences. Snider underscored Slade and said: "If not for the [English glam rock] band Slade, there would be no 'We're Not Gonna Take It'."

Band members
The following principal lineup recorded on every Twisted Sister studio album (with the exception of Love Is for Suckers, in which only Pero was absent.)
 * Jay Jay French – guitars, backing vocals (1972–1987, 1988, 1997, 2001, 2003–2016, 2023)
 * Eddie "Fingers" Ojeda – guitars, backing vocals (1975–1987, 1988, 1997, 2001, 2003–2016)
 * Dee Snider – lead vocals, occasional guitar (1976–1987, 1988, 1997, 2001, 2003–2016, 2023)
 * Mark "The Animal" Mendoza – bass, backing vocals (1978–1987, 1988, 1997, 2001, 2003–2016, 2023)
 * A. J. Pero – drums, backing vocals (1982–1986, 1997, 2001, 2003–2015; his death)

Extended plays

 * Ruff Cutts (1982)
 * Feel Appeal: Love Is for Suckers Extras (2021)

Compilations

 * Big Hits and Nasty Cuts (1992)
 * Club Daze Volume 1: The Studio Sessions (1999)
 * The Essentials (2002)
 * Still Hungry (2004)
 * We're Not Gonna Take It & Other Hits (2003)
 * The Best of the Atlantic Years (2016)

Live albums

 * Live at Hammersmith (1994)
 * We're Not Gonna Take It! (1999)
 * Club Daze Volume II: Live in the Bars (2002)
 * Live At Wacken: The Reunion (2006)
 * A Twisted Christmas - Live (2007)
 * Live at the Astoria (2008)
 * Live at the Marquee (2011)
 * Rock 'n' Roll Saviors - The Early Years - (2016)
 * Metal Meltdown (2016)
 * Up Against The Wall: Live 1979 (2020)

Videos

 * Stay Hungry Tour (1984)
 * Come Out and Play (1985)

DVDs

 * Live at Wacken - The Reunion (2004)
 * The Video Years (2007)
 * A Twisted Christmas Live: A December To Remember (2007)
 * Live At The Astoria (2008, recorded in 2004)
 * Double Live: Northstage '82 & Ny Steel '01
 * Metal Meltdown - Featuring Twisted Sister Live At The Hard Rock Casino - Las Vegas (2016)

title: Twisted Sister


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Commemorative coin

A commemorative coin is a coin issued to commemorate some particular event or issue with a distinct design with reference to the occasion on which they were issued. Many coins of this category serve as collector's items only, although some countries also issue commemorative coins for regular circulation.

Subcategories
Commemorative coins can be seen as being of one of three types:

 * Regular issue coinage are the normal coins intended to be used in commerce every day and are typically issued with the same design for several years, e.g. euro coins.
 * Circulating commemoratives are intended to be used for commerce, but the design will only be issued for a limited time to commemorate an event, anniversary, person or location, among other items. Examples include the €2 commemorative coins and U.S. 50 State Quarters.
 * Non-circulating legal tender (NCLT) are coins which are legal tender, and thus can in theory be used to purchase goods or services, but are not intended to be used in such a manner. Rather, they are intended as collector's items with numismatic value, and are often produced in gold or silver, either in uncirculated condition or with a proof finish.

History
Historically, the coins issued by any state have always reflected the current political or economic situation. Many ancient and pre-modern coins certainly commemorate events in contemporary times. For instance, Roman coins often have references to military campaigns and the defeat of foreign powers. These reverse types often symbolically represent the subordination of recently conquered territories to Roman authority. Such coins are examples of ancient political propaganda. The Roman Empire may be represented by a proud warrior 'raising' an undersized figure, representing the defeated enemy.

Throughout history, coins have commonly been issued on special occasions, without necessarily citing that occasion explicitly. In some cases, emergency money have been issued under unfavourable conditions, such as a city under siege. Such emergency coins were issued in Vienna in 1529, while the city was besieged by the troops of the Ottoman Empire. Due to the conditions at the time, such coins are frequently minted on square flans, rather than round ones (it was easier and quicker to produce a square flan than a round one). European square coins of this era are known by their German name 'klippe'. Coins might also be issued with the specific purpose of financing a military campaign, or for the payment of tribute or war indemnity by a feudal lord to his sovereign.

During recent centuries, specially prepared coins have been issued to proclaim the coronation of a new monarch. Such coins are known as 'largesse' coins. This type of coins were issued in India during the Mughal era (the 'nisar' coinage), and in Europe in the age of absolutism. In Europe, such coins were scattered from the royal chariot, to achieve attention and applause from the public. In Sweden, coins of this type were issued as late as 1873 (known as "kastpenning").

During the era of the formation of the European nation states, the issuance of special coins explicitly commemorating various events became increasingly common. These coins were frequently devised to establish a public notion of nationhood, and also to honor the ruling monarch and his dynasty. During the economically exhausting Napoleonic wars, a one sixth rigsdaler was issued in Denmark from voluntary contributions from the public, intended to finance the creation of a new fleet. Another notable coin is the Prussian thaler of 1871, commemorating the victory of the Franco-Prussian war, opening the gates for the Prussian king to be crowned as Emperor of the unified German nation. After the (political and monetary) unification of Germany, some German states continued issuing separate coins on special occasions, such as the jubilee of a ruling monarch. The issuance of these royal jubilee coins became common throughout Europe in the late 19th and early 20th century. In some cases, these became collector items already at the time of their minting.

Before World War II, commemorative coins were always made of precious metals. The base metal coins were probably not considered appropriate for, or worthy of, honoring the nation or the ruling dynasty. However, during the 20th century, the use of precious metals for circulating currency became increasingly scarce. World War I and the world economic crisis of the 1930s brought about temporary or permanent abolition of the convertibility of bank notes to silver and gold coins. Gradually, the issuance of precious metal coins became increasingly restricted, and definitively abandoned about 1970. While the commemoratives of these decades continued to be issued predominantly in precious metals, their use as circulating currency became scarce or ceased entirely. Thus, the commemoratives developed into a separate class of coins with no immediately recognisable link to the coins and notes used in everyday transactions. This class of coins were collectors items, or in some cases objects for economic investment.

When West Germany replaced the silver 5 mark coin with a copper-nickel one in 1975, the silver 5 mark commemoratives also reverted to copper-nickel (in 1979). Already in 1965, the Soviet Union issued a copper-nickel-zinc rouble commemorating the victory in World War II. This, and the next four commemorative roubles, were issued in several millions of copies, and circulated as regular currency.

In the United Kingdom, before decimalisation of the money system in 1971, the usual commemorative coin was a crown, or five shilling piece. These were issued to mark coronations of monarchs; one was also issued on the occasion of the death of Winston Churchill. Some decimal crowns (worth 25 pence) were issued, but since 1990 the £5 has been the usual non circulating commemorative coin. Other denominations such as the 50 pence and £2 are issued as circulating commemoratives.

The circulating and non-circulating commemoratives may be issued jointly, but have quite different purposes. Denmark, for instance, has since 1990 developed a pattern of issuing aluminium bronze 20 kroner commemoratives and accompanying silver 200 krone commemoratives. The aluminium bronze coins are circulating along with the non-commemorative 20 krone coins, while the silver coins are never circulated. The circulating commemoratives brings variation into the circulating coin mass, while the silver coins are collectors items and a source of revenue for the state. Likewise, in East Germany, some commemorative coins were issued with a primary purpose of earning foreign currency, while others actually circulated, albeit in smaller quantity than the bank notes of the corresponding denominations.

Significance of non-circulating commemoratives
Many countries issue large quantities of non-circulating legal tender purely for seigniorage as a profit making exercise. The events that these coins commemorate are often chosen based on a perceived market, rather than events of significance to the country. Technology developed for non circulating coins has moved to circulation issues - coloured coins were first issued as non circulating legal tender, but Canada and Australia have issued coloured commemorative coins into circulation.

title: Commemorative coin


text:
The Scarecrow of Oz

The Scarecrow of Oz is the ninth book in the Oz series written by L. Frank Baum. Published on July 16, 1915, it was Baum's personal favorite of the Oz books and tells of Cap'n Bill and Trot journeying to Oz and, with the help of the Scarecrow, overthrowing the cruel King Krewl of Jinxland. Cap'n Bill and Trot (Mayre Griffiths) had previously appeared in two other novels by Baum, The Sea Fairies (1911) and Sky Island (1912).

The plot is a re-working of Baum's 1914 silent film, His Majesty, the Scarecrow of Oz. It was followed by Rinkitink in Oz (1916).

Plot summary
Cap'n Bill, a sailor with a wooden peg-leg, and his friend, a little girl named Trot, set out from California on a calm day for a short ride in their row-boat. A freak whirlpool capsizes their boat and pulls them under water, where they are carried by mermaids (referred to but not seen) to a cave. They are soon joined by a flying creature called an Ork. Passing through a dark tunnel out of the cave, the three arrive at an island inhabited by a grim man calling himself Pessim the Observer. Cap'n Bill and Trot reduce their size by eating magic shrinking-berries, and the Ork carries them away from the island to the land of Mo, where they eat another type of magic berries and resume their normal size.

They meet the Bumpy Man, who specializes in serving sugar and molasses and has some of their appearance too. They run into Button Bright, the boy from The Road to Oz who has gotten lost again. Cap'n Bill calls down some of the native birds (who, like all birds in fairy countries, can talk back) and offers them the "growing" berries to make them large enough to carry himself, Trot, and Button-Bright to the land of Oz. When they make it across the desert, Button-Bright, Cap'n Bill, and Trot are set down in a field and the Ork leaves them to find his own country, which he got lost from on a routine flight.

The place Button-Bright, Cap'n Bill, and Trot have arrived in, Jinxland, is cut off from the rest of Oz by a range of high mountains and a bottomless crevice. The kingdom has had a turbulent recent history. The rightful king of Jinxland, King Kynd, was removed by his prime minister Phearse, who was in turn removed by his prime minister Krewl who now rules over the land. An unpleasant but wealthy citizen named Googly-Goo seeks to marry King Kynd's daughter, Princess Gloria; however, she is in love with Pon, the current gardener's boy, who is the son of the first usurper Phearse. King Krewl and Googly-Goo hire a witch named Blinkie to freeze Gloria's heart so that she will no longer love Pon. Cap'n Bill happens on this plot, and to keep him from interfering, Blinkie turns him into a grasshopper. She then freezes Gloria's heart. Googly-Goo proposes to her, but now that her heart is frozen, she does not love anyone at all, including Googly-Goo, whose proposal she scornfully declines.

The Scarecrow is at Glinda's palace in the Quadling Country and learns about these events from reading Glinda's Great Book of Records, a magical volume which transcribes every event in the world at the instant it happens. The Scarecrow wants to help Cap'n Bill, Button-Bright, and Trot, and Glinda sends him to Jinxland with some of her magic to aid him. The Scarecrow travels to Jinxland and joins forces with Trot, Cap'n Bill (who is still a grasshopper), and the Ork, who flies off to his homeland for reinforcements. The Scarecrow attempts to depose Krewl and is captured, with Googly-Goo suggesting the Scarecrow be burned, but then the Ork arrives just in time with fifty other Orks, who attack the Jinxlanders and turn the tables on Krewl. The victorious party then arrives at Blinkie's and makes her undo her magic on Cap'n Bill and Princess Gloria by using a magic powder to shrink her in size. When she has undone her evil spells, the Scarecrow stops Blinkie's shrinking, but she remains at a small size and loses all her magic powers.

Gloria takes the throne of Jinxland and elevates Pon to be her royal consort, and the Scarecrow, Button-Bright, Cap'n Bill, Trot, and the Orks return to the Emerald City for a celebration.

Background
The novel is dedicated to "The Uplifters" of Los Angeles. The Lofty and Exalted Order of Uplifters, a select subgroup of the elite Los Angeles Athletic Club, was a social and fraternal organization of prominent southern California businessmen and public figures. Baum had been active in the group since he first moved to Los Angeles in 1909 and served among the Excelsiors, the group's governing board. He also wrote and acted in their shows and he played the bass drum in their band.

A small group of Uplifters were the key investors in The Oz Film Manufacturing Company, organized to make movies of Baum books and stories. The investors put up $100,000; Baum was named president, and received a block of stock in the company in payment for the cinema rights to his works. The company's first project was a film of The Patchwork Girl of Oz; and its second, released in October 1914, was His Majesty, the Scarecrow of Oz, produced at a cost of $23,500, and with a cast (according to the not-always factually reliable Baum) of 130.

Baum hoped that the movie would be a success, and provide a big publicity boost to the Scarecrow novel to follow in 1915. Things did not quite work out as the optimistic author hoped; the film did not earn enough to cover its costs. The first edition of the novel sold around 14,300 copies, only a couple hundred more than its predecessor, Tik-Tok of Oz—though in the long run The Scarecrow of Oz would be one of the more popular installments in the Oz series.

Like Tik-Tok, Scarecrow contains a significant romantic element—the Rose Princess and Private Files in the former, and Gloria and Pon in the latter—that was not typical of the earlier Oz books.

Although the journey of an American child to Oz had long been a favorite plot for Baum, this work represented its last appearance: no more children would be inducted into Oz for the duration of his work on the series.

The Ork, voiced by Peter MacNicol, appeared in an episode of The Oz Kids.

title: The Scarecrow of Oz