Currency Today : Switzerland 01

Switzerland is located in the heart of the European continent.

S for stability
W for watches
I for independency
T for Toblerone chocolate
Z for being Zen in the Alps
E for expensive
R for reliability
L for languages
A for Alps
N for neutrality
D for democracy

The most spectacular thing I remember, was the change of the colour of the 5 rappen (cent) from silver to gold in 1981.I have been visiting Switzerland since I was a kid, and I remeber that although the banknotes changed a couple of times though the years, the coins remained the same all the time.

The fact that the design hasn't changed in a century, can sound boring, but it isn't at all, if you dig a bit deeper in the coins that you can find in your swiss wallet...

Swiss coins in circulation

At first, all coins look the same, except for the 5 rappen and the 5 francs.
The other coins look pretty similar, but they are not the same.

5 rappen

The current design of the 5 rappen-coin dates from 1879. Older coins contained 5 to 15% of silver, and had a different reverse image.

1879 to 1980 5 rapppen coin

From 1879 to 1980 a silver coloured coin (Cupronickel) was in use, in 1981 it was replaced by a gold coloured version (Aluminium Bronze).

5 rappen since 1981

The 5 rappen coin shows a wreach of grapes.

In the many years the coin is in use, the alloy did change in between too.
To be fully specific :1918: brass (Cu-Zn), 1919–1931: Cu-Ni, 1932–1939: Ni, 1940: Cu-Ni, 1941: Ni, 1942–1980: Cu-Ni, from 1981: Cu-Al. The pre-1981 versions were taken out of circulation in 1984.
Those pre-1981 will not be found in your change when buying something, but for those who haven't been in Switzerland since 1981, it is worth taking a closer look at the small coins that might have have slipped your attention.

Should you have a 1902 coin in your collection, then you can search for a nice variation too:

5 rappen coin of 1902 - 2 variations

Beneath the knot under the 5, we see a little "B" - this refers to Bern.
However, from 1970 till 1985 there is no 'B' on the coins.

to be continued ...