I've always liked old paper currency. While my bank account doesn't allow for me to have any Confederate banknotes in my small collection, I find them fascinating. They say so much about the era. This $4 Missouri Defense Bond was issued by the state's Confederate government in exile to pay the Missouri State Guard. It isn't signed so it was probably never issued. Note the steamboat. Missouri provided access to the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers, vital trading routes that both sides wanted.
This $10 bill from Virginia has always been one of my favorites because the first time I saw one was at a coin and stamp fair in Tehran. How a Confederate banknote ended up in Iran is anyone's guess.
Here's a closeup of the artillery rushing to the front to blast those Yankees back to Washington.
This detail from a $100 bill would remind wealthy plantation owners what they were fighting for. Honorable warriors, dishonorable cause.
You don't hear much about Confederate coinage. Banknotes were more common because most metal went to the war effort. This half dollar was struck in 1861 in New Orleans, shortly before the city fell to the Union.
For more on Confederate currency, check out the
Rebel States Currency webpage. It has lots of information and pictures!
Photos courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
Some of those bills are really cool. Someone brought in some bills to Pawn Stars recently.
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