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Numismatics (Lat. numisma, nomisma, a coin; from the Greek, derived from voµi eiv, to use according to law), is the scientific study of currency and its history in all its varied forms. While numismatists are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, the discipline also includes a much larger study of payment media used to resolve debts and the exchange of goods. Lacking a structured monetary system, people in the past as well as some today lived in a barter society and used locally found items of inherent or implied value. Early money used by primitive people is referred to as “Odd and Curious”, but the use of other goods in barter exchange is excluded, even where used as a circulating currency (e.g., prison cigarettes). The Kyrgyz people used horses as the principal currency unit and gave small change in lambskins.[1] The lambskins may be suitable for numismatic study, but the horse is not. Many objects have been used for centuries, such as conch shells, precious metals and gems.

See also exonumia.