By Honorary Reporter Iran Tavera from Mexico

Illustrations = Iran Tavera

The Korean won (KRW) is the national currency of Korea. It was the currency before 1910, but after Japan forcibly annexed the Korean Peninsula, the Korean yen served as the currency. After national liberation after World War II, the KRW was initially pegged at 15 per 1 USD and suffered numerous devaluations after the Korean War.

The 10 and 50 hwan coins were used until 1966, when they were revalued as KRW 1 and 5 coins, respectively; the hwan was the national currency from 1953 to 1962. Both coins were thus the country's first to display the date in the common era instead of that according to the Korean calendar.

The material of the coins has changed several times over decades, from brass in the beginning to aluminum to bronze.

When the KRW 1, 5, 10, 50 and 100 coins were introduced, they were made of copper with an aluminum core.

In 2006, a redesigned KRW 5,000 bill was introduced, followed in 2007 by new editions of the KRW 1,000 and 10,000 bills. 

2009 saw the debut of the KRW 50,000 bill, the nation's highest denomination, that included security features such as a watermark with a portrait and a 3D hologram that changes color.

enny0611@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.