More About Money
By Alice Henry
@IreneVincent (15960)
United States
February 26, 2017 11:06am CST
In ancient China, most coins had holes in the center so that they could be strung together on a string, making them easier to carry. The U.S. mint once considered doing the same thing. It WAS a good idea, they thought.
Over the centuries, many things have been used as money besides gold, silver and copper and some other metals. Here are just few things that have been used as money: beads, elephant tusks, playing cards, bullets, bat hair, cheese, tobacco leaves, shells, beetle legs, salt, velvet and even huge stone wheels.
Most of these sound reasonable to me except for the bat hairs and beetle legs. Really? How in the world? And WHY? Can you imagine counting out bat hairs or beetle legs? It seems to me they would easily fall apart for one thing.
What do you think?
6 people like this
7 responses
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
27 Feb 17
Thanks for adding to the information about money. I didn't know about chakram. Do you have any of it?
1 person likes this
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
2 Mar 17
@shshiju What exactly is chakram?
1 person likes this
@shshiju (10342)
• Cochin, India
1 Mar 17
@IreneVincent No But it kept on many museums in our land and it belonged to kings period before freedom.
1 person likes this
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
27 Feb 17
"Money" is all really bartering. "I'll give you this, if you give me that." But, its different in that you have to EARN the money, that's accepted for trade, whereas a person could find other items for trade.
Here's a link about ochre
The natural yellow-red-brown pigment known as ochre was humankind's first paint pot, used by our hominid ancestors nearly 300,000 years ago.
1 person likes this
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
28 Feb 17
@JudyEv It's a very beautiful pigment. So, I'm sure it was thought to be valuable to those who used it as money.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381815)
• Rockingham, Australia
27 Feb 17
@IreneVincent Thanks for the link. That's really interesting. We saw ochre pits up near Uluru.
1 person likes this
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
28 Feb 17
Bat hairs and beetle legs are the strangest things I've ever heard of, to use as money. I must say.
@allknowing (153544)
• India
27 Feb 17
We had what we called pice. The pice had a hole and I remember dealing with it. We could buy some candy with it. Wish I had preserved it. Would have fetched me quite a sum if I sold it to coin collectors. (lol)
I do not recall dealing with any of those items that you have listed.
2 people like this
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
27 Feb 17
Thanks for adding to the information about money. I didn't know about "pice" Yes, I would think that would be very valuable if you had any of it.
1 person likes this
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
2 Mar 17
What really makes something valuable? Supply and demand, I guess.
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
2 Mar 17
Yeah, a beetle or bat invasion would have been awesome, producing millionaires everywhere.
1 person likes this
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
27 Feb 17
I know. It sounds really crazy, doesn't it? Bat hairs? Who thought that one up? And why would they be valuable enough for trade?
1 person likes this
