Maybe you could earn a day's amount by collecting those. That is just the tip of an iceberg; I estimate with over 15000+ coins with most of them being 1 Yen, 5 Yen and 10 Yen.
I changed the topic to 'tossing coins' due to the subject change and I'd like to hear the discussions about where coins are tossed to for what purpose. For example, some people toss coins into fountains in order to receive blessings.
if the coin was used to make a wish, and if you picked up that coin intentionally, those little souls which wish was not accomplished, will play revenge on your fate. Stay away...
Kind of similar to when I visited Russia with my parents a few years ago (Moscow), there were literally coins scattered everywhere on the ground. Mostly 1, 5, 10, 50 kopecks and sometimes 1 Ruble coins.... worth so little you might as well leave it on the parking lot floor.
@CassTaylor: Why would there be so many kopecks on the floor? I can understand the situation of the Great Torii but not that. Please explain, thanks :)
@JustForFun: Unfortunately, no coin shops but only coin dealers. Anyways, it was a great trip. Thanks for the wishes.
@Muenzenhamster: The drink (I think you might be referring to Calpis Peach Drink) is in Okayama. I would like to try it too if I could! The KitKat®™ is in the flavour of maple leaves (red bean paste) and it was delicious. Each place has its own speciality.
Citeer: "SquareRootLolly"
@CassTaylor: Why would there be so many kopecks on the floor? I can understand the situation of the Great Torii but not that. Please explain, thanks :)
Sorry to jump in, hope you forgive me Cass. I think the reason is that the kopeks are pretty much useless and you can't buy anything with them now. They are worthless that people don't even bother to pick them up. I actually asked my mom today what you could buy with them back during the ussr time and she said 1 kopeck could get you a box of matches.
Citeer: "SquareRootLolly"
@CassTaylor: Why would there be so many kopecks on the floor? I can understand the situation of the Great Torii but not that. Please explain, thanks :)
Sorry to jump in, hope you forgive me Cass. I think the reason is that the kopeks are pretty much useless and you can't buy anything with them now. They are worthless that people don't even bother to pick them up. I actually asked my mom today what you could buy with them back during the ussr time and she said 1 kopeck could get you a box of matches.
No problem, you said it better than I could've- I spent a day picking up as many kopecks and roubles as I could (though I can see why Russians don't even bother), and I had almost 10 roubles by the end of my trip (still worth barely anything). In fact, most of the coins I picked up then are still in my possession and listed in my Numista collection.
I read a while back that Russians abandon their low-value kopecks on the street for either convenience or some kind of "good luck" tithe thing.
The same can't be said about Italian fountains....
Coins inside are considered.... basically fair game?
Stuuuuuuuuuupiiiiid tourists who toss coins inside.
They'll be cleaned out around nightfall.
And the poor NGO's that thought the coins would be part of their revenue stream.. well.
Good luck to them.
I collect anything: If it's Italian or Italian states i collect it even more!
@loruca: Yeah. Trevi fountain... I did toss a 1 euro cent.
Whenever there are statues with symbols of wealth, fortune and longevity in Hong Kong, if there is a hole of some sort, we toss a coin into it. For example, a fish's mouth (年年有餘, prosperity every year, where 餘, yu (prosper), is pronounced the same 魚, yu (fish).
I visited the Martin Luther King historic district in Atlanta last week. The pools surrounding his tomb were full of pennies and quarters. I’m quite sure fishing for them is a strict no-no; both legally and morally :)
Citeer: "SquareRootLolly"
@CassTaylor: Why would there be so many kopecks on the floor? I can understand the situation of the Great Torii but not that. Please explain, thanks :)
Sorry to jump in, hope you forgive me Cass. I think the reason is that the kopeks are pretty much useless and you can't buy anything with them now. They are worthless that people don't even bother to pick them up. I actually asked my mom today what you could buy with them back during the ussr time and she said 1 kopeck could get you a box of matches.
No problem, you said it better than I could've- I spent a day picking up as many kopecks and roubles as I could (though I can see why Russians don't even bother), and I had almost 10 roubles by the end of my trip (still worth barely anything). In fact, most of the coins I picked up then are still in my possession and listed in my Numista collection.
I read a while back that Russians abandon their low-value kopecks on the street for either convenience or some kind of "good luck" tithe thing.
I can confirm this. I've spoken about it with several Russians and the general consensus is that nobody has a bag big enough to carry enough of the small change coins to actually buy anything. They're not even worth collecting for the melt value.
Double posting because I had two completely separate responses. I hope that's ok.
The practice of throwing offerings into a water source goes back to ancient times. There's evidence of cultures all over the globe doing this.
In some places we've found offerings of armour or weaponry, a little more often we've seen buttons, pins, beads and keepsakes, but for the most part the offerings have been coins. Interestingly, the coins offered have almost always been small denominations, which implies that the value of the offering didn't matter as much as the intention. It's also a part of the tradition that's never changed, as we also throw our small change into fountains today rather than larger amounts.
In terms of wishing, or requesting blessings, many cultures also referred to "heads" and "tails". If you made your wish and the coin landed heads up your request would be granted. I actually grew up on that fact, and so I always tossed my coins too far away for me to see where it landed. I thought that knowing the outcome might cause me to effect it, that was just my own kid-logic. I didn't hear that part from anyone else.
To me the most interesting part behind this tradition is the science. Ancient people knew, like we all do, that water is important for life, and that it's important for good health and fast healing. What a lot of people do not know is that copper and silver can make water more pure, less harmful to drink. Although ancient peoples believed that these offerings were resulting in blessings from whichever higher power they put their faith in, scientifically they were themselves purifying the water as they made offerings, as if by some sort of natural instinct. Truly the magic of the universe at work.
