We imagine Americans and Chinese are similarly optimistic about their respective futures. But 20th century numismatics tells the story of war, revolution and economic upheaval. Our base metal coins today stand in stark contrast to the gold and silver ones of 100 years ago. These lessons should not go unheeded. Well, that's the beauty and variety of collecting.
Every hobbyist sees things a bit differently and every coin promotes varying individual thoughts.
Emphasis also varies. The Victorian Age stretched from 1837 to 1901. The historical factors at work at the beginning are barely familiar to modern minds. The conditions prevailing at the end and the ensuing world catastrophe are still very familiar and still very much a puzzle. How otherwise sensible people ended up fighting in 1914 is one of the great tragedies of world history.