The glass display cases belonging to the Athens currency and coin museum now stand where the discoverer of Troy, Heinrich Schliemann, once ate his breakfast. The city has carefully restored the archeologist's palace, complete with the Trojan swastika ornamentation on the floor.
"The current exhibition unfortunately had to be closed because of a shortage of personnel," says the attendant tiredly and points to object 15, a coin which these days has become the focus of all manner of hopes, delusions and fears. "There it is; the first real drachma."
On the front, the goddess Athena, on the back, an owl -- wisdom and cunning -- pressed into a piece of silver. Once its standing was even better than that of the euro, a model of stability and in circulation around the world. And before we can even ask, we have our answer: "The drachma is in the museum. And we hope that it stays there."
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