nineteenth centuries to justify the dangerous labor of clipping.
Because
nobody bothered to steal cheap base metals, the mints never incurred the expense of cutting reeded edges onto pennies or nickels. Today, that deliberate historic difference remains an accessibility feature. A quarter has ridges; a nickel of similar thickness is completely smooth. You will never mix them up in a dark movie theater or while reaching into your coat pocket.
Rubbing pencil lead over coin borders makes a fun weekend kitchen table experiment to explore edge patterns with kids.
3.
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