Currency not only differs in value place to place, but it also differs in size, color, and shape. The United States Dollar is a well known currency worldwide, not only for its nearly universal value but also for its green color and composition. I used to be under the impression that only art was art, and nothing else could even be mentioned in the conversation. However, after much education and experience, I have finally begun to realize that the loose definition of art is “something that expresses an image or a message, a point that the artist is trying to get across without using words”. The use of money is so commonplace that people would be foolish to consider this art, but if you look closer, it really is a sort of expression. Each country prints its currency to portray the amount of value it wants to the way that it wants to. The shape and design of the bill itself has little to do with the success and value of the money but it speaks volumes on the country as a whole. The strong United States dollar has looked nearly the same over the last 2 centuries, signifying the strength and stability that is the United States of America. Other places have seen their currency change size and shape, value, or even disappear altogether with however their country was doing and changes and leadership at the time.
The Ithaca dollar is an especially curious concept to me. If people are willing to trade products for the equivalent of labor, in the end what is the real difference between that and using real money. It is weird how groupthink can affect an area but it seems to have done just that when the Ithaca dollar was instituted.
