LOOSE CHANGE: APRIL 12, 2026

 

On the first day of April this year, the Artemis II spaceflight mission launched from the Kennedy Space Center for a ten-day mission to fly by the Moon. This journey to space is just one of many conducted by NASA. On these flights, astronauts are fully prepared for a venture into the cosmos, taking with them gear, personal care items, and even snacks. On past missions, currency was often kept as personal items for astronauts or wrapped in parts of the ship with supportive messages from family and flight crew.

Currency flown into space is no longer allowed on NASA spaceflights, so the coins and bank notes that have flown into the cosmos are now prized treasures for collectors from a broad spectrum of fields, including numismatics, history, and aerospace.

One of the most prominent collectors in this genre is numismatist Richard Jurek, who has been researching and collecting numismatic space memorabilia for over 30 years. Alongside his collection, Jurek has written numerous articles about space-flown currency, authored books, such as The Ultimate Engineer: The Remarkable Life of NASA's Visionary Leader George M. Low and Marketing the Moon: The Selling of the Apollo Lunar Program, and created and runs the website, the Jefferson Space Museum, which is dedicated to $2 bills sent to space.

To read the complete article, see:
The Final Frontier of Collecting (https://www.numismaticnews.net/richard-jurek-space-coin-collection-final-frontier)

Cubans accustomed to shopping with wads of bills stuffed into bags because of skyrocketing inflation will get some relief Wednesday when two new high-denomination banknotes go into circulation.

Cuba's Central Bank was set to release 2,000 and 5,000 Cuban peso notes, equal to roughly $4 and $10, after they were previewed Tuesday on the government website Cubadebate.

It will be the first time the island's paper currency features women. The 2,000 Cuban peso note in violet and pink tones will feature a portrait of Mariana Grajales, a patriot of Cuban independence and mother of several of its heroes. The 5,000 peso note in blue will depict Celia Sánchez, a guerrilla fighter who became a close collaborator of former President Fidel Castro.

The new notes will "facilitate cash transactions, respond to the real needs of an economy that demands large amounts of cash… reduce the costs of cash logistics, and improve operational efficiency during the current period of inflation," Cubadebate said.

The highest denomination until now has been the 1,000 peso note, but rising inflation since 2001 has meant that many people are forced to carry around bills that don't fit in their wallets.

To read the complete article, see:
Cuba to introduce two new banknotes honoring women to ease inflation as crises persist (https://www.winknews.com/news/international/cuba-to-introduce-two-new-banknotes-honoring-women-to-ease-inflation-as-crises-persist/article_7851c4d0-b9cc-5f0f-958b-c5b61f0dcf81.html)

 

A hoard of 409 gold ruble coins dated to over a century ago was discovered underneath a home in Torzhok, Russia, the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences shared in early March.

Discovered during a joint expedition between the Institute and the All-Russian Historical and Ethnographic Museum in 2025, the hoard is one of the largest hoards of late Imperial Russian gold coins ever to be recovered.

Part of the property under excavation contained the foundations of a house believed to have been destroyed during World War II. After the war, the home's new owners rebuilt the wooden house on the surviving stone foundations.

Found hidden within a broken kandyushka (glazed clay vessel) in a pit under the house's foundation, the hoard consisted of 387 gold 10-ruble coins, 10 five ruble coins, 10 coins worth 15 rubles, and two seven-and-a-half ruble coins were found.

The earliest coin, a five ruble piece from the reign of Nicholas I, was minted in 1848, and a second five-ruble coin bears dates back to the reign of Alexander III.

To read the complete article, see:
Revolutionary find: Hoard of century old gold coins discovered under a house in western Russia (https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/archaeology-around-the-world/article-891182)

 

Police in Arizona arrested two Las Vegas residents as part of a multi-state "bill washing" scheme.

On Tuesday, March 24, special crimes and K9 units were conducting an investigation "after learning that a serious crime was afoot," according to the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office in Arizona.

During the department's investigation into two people, Las Vegas residents Leeclark Fallah, 40, and Kenneh Pisco, 46, deputies located their vehicle and, during a search, found a suitcase that contained a safe.

After gaining access to the safe, deputies found it was filled with specialized paper used for currency production, ink, gloves, and partially printed $100 bills.

To read the complete article, see:
Las Vegas residents arrested in Arizona for multi-state ‘bill washing' scheme (https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/las-vegas-residents-arrested-arizona-175134012.html)

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