They’ve been held a thousand times by you.
They were slipped into parking meters.
On counters, they were stacked.
flipped them to make choices.

But have you ever really looked at a quarter?
Run your thumb along its edge?

Those tiny ridges — they’re not just for grip.
They’re not decoration.
They’re not an accident.

These anti-theft measures date back 300 years, to a time when silver hoards, powdered wigs, and cunning crooks believed they could outsmart the king.

Let’s explore the wild, true story behind coin ridges — and why they still matter today.

The Crime That Created Coin Ridges: “Coin Clipping”

Enter the coin clipper — a clever (and illegal) thief who would:

• Shave tiny slivers of metal from the edges of coins
• Gather the shavings to melt down into bullion
• Spend the clipped coin as full value — because it still seemed whole
• Just a little off each coin.
• Hard to notice.

But do it hundreds of times?

CONTINUE READING ON THE NEXT PAGE 🥰💕