Coins and Currecy in Colonial America

“Coins and Currency in Colonial America,” http://www.history.org/history/museums/coinExhibit/, is a flash-based exhibit linked through the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation website which features digital representations of dozens of objects from the Joseph R. and Ruth Lasser Collection including early American coins, medals, and paper money.

1) Selection Decisions
The physical Lasser collection consists of thousands of pieces of early American coins and currency, so the online exhibit is considerably smaller. The exhibit creator has chosen about 50 representational samples showing the evolution of coins and currency by period (eg. The Age of Discovery and Spanish Settlement, Revolutionary Money). For the most part, each period demonstrates a new media of currency.

2) Metadata
In addition to the digital images of each object is rather extensive metadata describing the physical appearance and historical context for the object. Under “Coin Summary” is each object’s value relative to exhibit coins, place of origin, date, dimensions, and material. In addition, the author has provided a brief, but fascinating overview of the history surrounding the creation and circulation of the object.

3) Object Characteristics
Digital scans of the recto and verso of each object are located to the left of the screen and the metadata on the right. Although they are sized to fit the page, there is a clearly-marked zoom tool beneath them. This tool opens up a page with an easy-to-use and high-quality zoom function. In addition, some allow the reader to view the object in relation to modern currency.

4) Audience
This exhibit appears to be geared toward the general public as it attempts to educate the audience and build appreciation rather than provide useful research material. The exhibit can be viewed according to the interests of the viewer – by the timeline or in sequence. In addition, there are links throughout the collection to more information about historical figures, locations, and events. The quality and depth of information is impressive and undoubtedly draws interest in the larger collection.