Arte-facts: The Museum of Australian Currency
Do you know Sydney has a whole museum devoted to moolah?
By Sarah Norris
What's the skinny? This really is Sydney's bank of knowledge.
Sporting perhaps the least sexy name of all of Sydney's institutes, the
Museum of Australian Currency Notes is located - you guessed it - in
the Reserve Bank of Australia, smack-bang in corporate Sydney.
Why should I go? You'll learn something. Revealing the
history of Australia's currency, you'll walk away knowing how
counterfeiters are kept at bay and just who all those people on our
bank notes actually are. (Trust us: these questions will come up in
your next trivia night at the pub.) But as the Governor of the RBA, Ian
Macfarlane, said at the time of opening in 2005, the museum is more
than the history of money. "Australia's notes are an everyday symbol of
our nation, mirroring who we are and how we have seen ourselves over
the years. [The museum] tells the story of how Australia's currency
have reflected the country's economic and political development."
Where is it? The Museum of Australian Currency Notes can be found in the Reserve Bank of Australia, Ground Floor, 65 Martin Pl, Sydney 2000. (02 9551 9743)