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Mint |
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mint, in financemint, place where legal coinage is manufactured. The name is derived from the temple of Juno Moneta, Rome, where silver coins were made as early as 269 B.C. Mints existed earlier elsewhere, as in Lydia and in Greece; from there coinage was introduced into Italy. The first U.S. mint was established in Philadelphia in 1792. In 1991, U.S. mints operated in West Point, N.Y., Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco. See also numismatics numismatics , collection and study of coins, medals, and related objects as works of art and as sources of information. The coin and the medal preserve old forms of writing, portraits of eminent persons, and reproductions of lost works of art; they also assist in the..... Click the link for more information. ; coin coin, piece of metal, usually a disk of gold, silver, nickel, bronze, copper, aluminum, or a combination of such metals, stamped by authority of a government as a guarantee of its real or exchange value and used as money. ..... Click the link for more information. ; medal medal, a piece of metal, cast or struck, often coin-shaped. The obverse and reverse bear bas-relief and inscription. Commemorative medals are issued in memory of a notable person or event. ..... Click the link for more information. . mint, in botanymint, in botany, common name for members of the Labiatae, a large family of chiefly annual or perennial herbs. Several species are shrubby or climbing forms or, rarely, small trees. Members of the family are found throughout the world, but the chief center of distribution is the Mediterranean region, where these plants form a dominant part of the vegetation. The Labiatae typically have square stems, paired opposite leaves, and tubular flowers with two lips, the upper divided into two lobes and the lower into three. The leaves sometimes grow in whorls; the flowers may be white or shades of red, blue, or purple.The family is well known for the aromatic volatile or essential oils in the foliage, which are used in perfumes, flavorings, and medicines. Among the more important essential oils are those derived from sage sage, any species of the large genus Salvia, aromatic herbs or shrubs of the family Labiatae (mint family). The common sage of herb gardens is S. officinalis, a strongly scented shrubby perennial, native from S Europe to Asia Minor. The true mints belong to the genus Mentha. Commercially the most important species is peppermint (M. piperita). The leaves and tops are sometimes dried and utilized for flavoring and in medicine but are chiefly in demand for the oil, distilled out for use as a carminative and stimulant, for its derivative menthol menthol, white crystalline substance with a characteristic pungent odor. It is derived from the oil of the peppermint plant, Mentha piperita (see mint), or prepared synthetically from coal tar. Also useful medicinally and as a source of an essential oil is the pennyroyal. True, or European, pennyroyal (M. pulegium) is a prostrate perennial. The species name [Lat.,=fleabane] is an herbalist's name given for the plant's supposed property of driving away fleas. The related American pennyroyal (Hedeoma pulegioides) is a branching annual; pennyroyal tea was a traditional domestic remedy. Other American species of Hedeoma and similar genera are also called pennyroyal. The mint family is classified in the division Magnoliophyta Magnoliophyta , division of the plant kingdom consisting of those organisms commonly called the flowering plants, or angiosperms. The angiosperms have leaves, stems, and roots, and vascular, or conducting, tissue (xylem and phloem). mintIn botany, any strong-scented herb of the genus Mentha, composed of about 25 species of perennial herbs, and certain related genera of the mint family (Lamiaceae, or Labiatae), which contains about 3,500 species of flowering plants in about 160 genera. Mints are important to humans as herb plants useful for flavour, fragrance, and medicinal properties. True mints have square stems, oppositely arranged aromatic leaves. Small flowers usually pale purple, pink, or white, are arranged in clusters, either forming separate whorls or crowded together in a terminal spike. All Mentha species contain volatile oil in resinous dots in the leaves and stems. Included in this genus are peppermint, spearmint, marjoram, rosemary, and thyme; other members of the mint family include lavender, hyssop, and catnip. mintIn economics, a place where coins are made according to exact compositions, weights, and dimensions, usually specified by law. The first state mint was probably established by the Lydians in the 7th century BC. The art spread through the Aegean Islands into Italy and other Mediterranean countries, as well as to Persia and India. The Romans laid the foundations of modern minting standards. Coining originated independently in China in the 7th century BC and spread to Japan and Korea. In medieval Europe, mints proliferated as every feudal authority—kings, counts, bishops, and free cities—exercised the mint privilege; the wide variation in coinage that resulted often handicapped commerce. Most countries now operate only one mint, though the U.S. has two active mints, in Philadelphia and Denver. Proof sets of coins for coin collectors are minted in San Francisco. Countries not large or prosperous enough to establish a national mint have their coins struck in foreign mints. Many mints perform functions other than minting, notably refining precious metals and manufacturing medals and seals. See also currency, money. mint 1. a place where money is coined by governmental authority 2. (of coins, postage stamps, etc.) in perfect condition as issued mint 1. any N temperate plant of the genus Mentha, having aromatic leaves and spikes of small typically mauve flowers: family Lamiaceae (labiates). The leaves of some species are used for seasoning and flavouring 2. stone mint another name for dittany
Mint a state enterprise which mints coins and manufactures orders, medals, and other state insignia of distinction made of metal, as well as various minted and stamped articles made of metal using gold and silver plating and jeweler’s enamel. Mints originate with the formation of national states, when the minting of coins becomes a state monopoly. The first mint in Russia appeared in Moscow in 1534. In 1724 the mint in St. Petersburg was established and in 1876 became the only one in the country. In England a mint was established in London in the late 12th century, while in the United States the first mint was organized in Philadelphia in 1792. In the first years after the Great October Socialist Revolution coins were not minted. The mint in Leningrad (formerly Petrograd) produced orders and anniversary medals until 1921. In August 1921 it began to mint silver coins, and in 1924 copper coins, followed later by bronze and nickel coins. In 1961 brass and nickel silver coins were first minted there. The Leningrad mint produces coins for circulation on a 1961 design. The mint in Moscow, which was set up in 1942, makes orders and medals of the USSR, insignia of distinction, and other articles from precious metals. Want to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit the webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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