The history of coins can be traced back to its beginning in the 7th century B.C. when the first coins were made in Lydia and Ionia, now western Turkey. This set is a unique collection of 20 genuine historical and ancient coins, each from one of the 20 centuries A.D. The collection was hard to assemble. Coins that make up this set were accumulated over a period of 25 years, purchased individually and in small groups from scores of dealers and collectors over that period. As a result, only a small number of these collections were able to be made, and no two are exactly alike. The coins included in this collection are: 1st Century - China Hsin Wang Mang Bronze Cash, 2nd Century - India Western Satraps Silver Dramma, 3rd Century - Elymais Bronze Drachm, 4th Century - Roman Constantinopolis Bronze Commemorative, 5th Century - India Gupta Silver Dramma, 6th Century - Hepthalites (White Huns) Bronze, 7th Century - China T’ang Bronze Cash, 8thCentury - India Shahi Silver Jitals, 9th Century - Abbasid Silver Dirham, 10th Century - Kashmir Bronze Stater, 11th Century - Ghaznavid Fractional Silver Dirham, 12th Century - Ceylon Kandy Kings Bronze Massa,13th Century - Byzantine Bronze Trachy, 14th Century - Venice Bronze Tornesello, 15th Century - Timurid Silver Dirham, 16th Century - Safavid Silver Abbasi, 17th Century - China Q’ing Kang Xi Bronze Cash, 18th Century - V. O. C. (Dutch) Copper Duit, 19th Century - British East India Co. Bronze ¼ Anna, 20th Century - Russia Czar Nicholas II Silver 20 Kopek. All have all been inspected for quality and authenticity, expertly conserved and attributed to their respective civilizations and nations, then encapsulated in custom made archival materials and presented in a specially designed, hand-made, hardwood and brass display case with a Certificate of Authenticity. This stunning set would make a truly extraordinary gift for any student of world history or collector of world coins.