Tiny Island to Mint Star Wars Currency

Move over, Queen Elizabeth: Luke Skywalker and friends will soon be sharing a spot on the currency of a tiny Pacific island. Yoda, Leia, and Darth Vader also will appear on the flip side of the soon-to-be-minted coins for the island of Niue. It’s the first time Star Wars characters will show up on legal tender, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. Though the country uses New Zealand currency, the coins will be usable only in Niue.

And don’t expect them to see much use even on the island: They're geared toward collectors, and some of the two-dollar coins will have an actual value of about $100 because they're made with silver. Others will be made of less expensive silver-plated metal. Still, "no one is going to go buy an ice cream with them,” says a rep for the New Zealand mint. The coins will be displayed next week at a coin show in Chicago, and new ones will be added until 2014. (More Star Wars stories.)