The People of Zurich and their Money 15: Migros causes revolution in food retail sector

Our series takes you along for the ride as we explore the Zurich of times past. In this episode you will listen to a Migros seller and a modern housewife talking back in 1925.

How much for a castle?

What do you think, how much did it cost to build a castle in the Middle Ages? What would it cost to build the exact same castle today? And how much of a small town’s income would the costs have taken up? This article gives you the answers to these questions.

Human faces, part 46: “When you call, my Fatherland”

Why was the human head the motif on coins for centuries, no, for millennia? And why did that change in the last 200 years? Get to know more about the story of Helvetia, the personification of Switzerland, in this episode.

Human faces, part 35: A girl gets herself a husband

Why was the human head the motif on coins for centuries, no, for millennia? And why did that change in the last 200 years? In this episode, we will witness how a confident Isabella of Castile takes her rightful place on the throne next to her husband.

Human faces, part 47: The frivolous Vreneli

Why was the human head the motif on coins for centuries, no, for millennia? Discussions about the precise nature of these heads could be highly entertaining as the example of the Swiss Vreneli demonstrates.

Human faces, part 42: The Duke of Friedland

Why was the human head the motif on coins for centuries, no, for millennia? And why did that change in the last 200 years? In this episode we talk about Albrecht von Wallenstein and his business model.

Human faces, part 36: Charles V – Territories as far as the eye can see

For centuries, no, for millennia, human faces were the most popular choice for the decoration of a coin obverse. That the coin’s reverse can be just as fascinating will be shown in this episode of our series.

How Malta Came under the British Flag

On March 12, 2015, the auction house Künker auctions off an unusually rare testimony of the Maltese history. The small silver ingot in the weight of 30 tari from 1800 is the last currency produced on Malta.

A coin is being made – the Swiss commemorative coins celebrating the opening of the Gotthard Base Tunnel

It takes much effort and planning until a collector can purchase his commemorative coin that will serve as a memento of an event which – like the opening of the Gotthard Base Tunnel – will become part of the national myth.

Human faces, part 38: Henry VIII and the second of his six wives

That Henry VIII had an entire collection of wives in his lifetime is not news. But can you remember all of them? In this episode of “Human faces”, we will tell the story of his second wife, Anne Boleyn.