Kissi Penny
date: label: date made
content: 20th century
notes: label: Description
content: Kissi pennies are made from iron and take their name from the Kissi people of modern-day Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea. It is believed that the shape was intended to display the quality of the iron. The shape shows that the iron can be twisted, hammered, sharpened into a blade, and fashioned into points. Kissi pennies were primarily used in West Africa in the first half of the twentieth century. They could be exchanged for coins and notes circulating in the region. Individual Kissi pennies could be used to make small purchases, but were typically arranged in bundles of 20 for larger payments. In the early twentieth century, a cow could be purchased for 30-40 bundles.
place: label: place used
content: Liberia
label: place used
content: Sierra Leone
label: place used
content: Guinea
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: National Numismatic Collection
label: See more items in
content: West African Currency
label: Exhibition
content: Value of Money
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Benjamin Stack, Harvey G. Stack, and Norman Stack
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: NU.77.38.026
label: accession number
content: 1977.1211
label: catalog number
content: 77.38.026
objectType: label: Object Name
content: alternative currency
label: Object Name
content: Kissi Penny
label: Other Terms
content: Kissi Penny; Africa; Liberia, Sierra Leone
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: iron (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: black (overall color)
label: Physical Description
content: wrought, hammered, twisted (overall production method/technique)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 2 1/2 in x 18 21/32 in; 6.35 cm x 47.3964 cm