List the ten most important coins of all time

Here's my list in chronological order. My emphasis was on the actual function of money and I realize some are not specific as to a particular date. What would your list contain and why?

1. Lydian coinage c. 600 BC. After a brief period of blank "nugget" coinage, Lydia issued the first true coins with an identifiable government symbol, the lion. Pictured is a Lydian electrum trite.


2. Athens Tetradrachm c 430 BC. The first coin widely accepted outside of the issuing city. Athenian "Owls" were the trade coinage of the day and were the standard by which all other Greek coins were measured.


3. The Roman Denarius. Introduced in 211 BC, the denarius was the standard coin of the Roman Empire and widely copied by other cultures. The denomination didn't die with Rome however, during the medieval perion c 775 AD, Pepin of France issued a silver Deniar based on the denarius and all of Europe followed suit issuing the Denaro, Pfenning, etc., and the English Penny which became the standard medieval Europen silver coin. Pictured is a denarius from the Roman Republic era.


4. The Roman "brass" sestertius. Previously a silver coin worth 1/4 a denarius, it was transformed into a 25-30 gram brass coin during Octavian's coinage reform. The sestertius was a large heavy coin and was used as the propoganda machine of the Roman Empire with hundreds of reverse varieties depecting Rome's civil and military accomplishments, the newspapers of the day. Pictured is a sestertius of Trajan c115 AD depicting the Circus Maximus.


5. Byzantine Gold Solidus. While most of Europe languished in the dark ages, the Byzantine Empire, which was the remnent of the Eastern Roman Empire, kept western culture alive. The solidus was widely accepted and copied throughout the world during a time when most countries only issued silver. Pictured is a Solidus of Justinian c 530 AD.


6. Joachmisthaler of Tyrol (modern Hungary). Introduced in 1484, the Joachmisthaler quickly established itself as the standard coin of Europe, evolving into the thaler, tallero, rigsdaler, and dollar. Known today as "silver crowns", they set the standard for Europen coinage to this day. Picture is a Gothic Crown of Queen Victoria, considered by many to be the most beautiful coin of all time.


7. Spanish colonial 8 reales. One of the heirs of the joachmisthaler, the Spanish colonial 8 reals (silver dollar) was minted at many new world mints in North and South America. It was the standard trade coinage of the day and the standard coin of Colonial America. When the newly independent United States first minted its own silver dollar, it was based on the Spanish 8 reales.


8. 1797 copper English Penny and Two Pence. Made by Matthew Boulton at the Soho mint, the 1797 copper coins represent a revolutionary change in coinage manufacture. They are the first coins made with steam power and are a uniform diameter and weight with an overall "clean" apparence compared to earlier coins. They represent the first modern coins.


9. The 1854-s $20 Double Eagle. The California gold rush of 1849 was one of the most pivotal events in history. Gold flooded the world market in an unpresedented volume and the United States became the richest nation in the world. California became s state one year later in 1850 and the San Francisco mint was established in 1854 to mint the huge volume of gold into the newly created $20 denomination. Containing nearly an ounce of pure gold each, the 1854-s $20 represents the inaugural issue from the mint.


10. The Lincoln Cent. First minted in 1909 to commemorate the 100th annaversary of Lincoln's birth, and still being minted today almost 100 years later, the Lincoln cent is the most widely produced coin in history. Literally hundreds of billions of them have been produced and represent the single most common coin ever made.