Tony Clayton’s Washington Square Coin Exchange Web site
(http://www.wscoin.com/Info/METALS.HTM#Glass and
http://www.tclayton.demon.co.uk/metal.html#Glass ) states “Small glass tesserae
of the 1st to 4th centuries AD have been found in Egypt, and were probably used
as coins. It is also believed that glass weights found in Arabia were used as
currency.”
The Glass Museum Web site (
http://www.moneymuseum.com/standard_english/raeume/geld_machen/werkstatt/materia
l/material.html ) also affirms that early Islamic coin weights were made of
glass, and are very rare.
Early Islamic cultures and Egyptians used glass coin weights to standardize
gold, silver and copper coins, which could be from worn down or otherwise
weighted differently. It is possible that these were also used as currency. The
latest dated Fatimid glass weights (or jetons) that have been found date to
either 1024-25 or possibly 1021-22, according to these sites:
Institute of Nautical Archaeology, Bodrum, Turkey
http://www.diveturkey.com/inaturkey/serce.htm
Czech Náprstek Museum's non-European numismatic collection
http://www.aconet.cz/npm/dept/dep2_num/eindex.html
The Egyptians most likely perfected glass techniques that they learned from
their numerous interactions with the Phoenicians. The latter are credited with
the invention of glass. Encarta (http://encarta.msn.com) notes “The ancient
Egyptians were masters of the arts of stoneworking and metalworking and the
production of faience and glass. […] Asian artisans may have established the
glass industry in Egypt, where the first vessels date from the reign (1479-1425
BC) of Thutmose III. Glass production flourished in Egypt and Mesopotamia until
about 1200 BC, then virtually ceased for several hundred years.”
Egyptians did not have a monetary system until long after coins were introduced
to other Mediterranean nations by King Croesus of Lydia in Asia Minor (560 to
546 BC). The belief was that everything belonged to the pharaoh, though a
barter system was also used. Egypt is also known for its currency credit
account system of stored barley (the “giro” system), established long before
the use of coins in Egypt.
Many other countries also bartered wit non-metal materials, such as beads,
porcelain, amber and quartz.
Read more about ancient Egyptian and Islamic currency on the following Web
sites:
Ralph Vaughan's Ancient Egypt Page
http://ralphv.www3.50megs.com/egypt/eco.html
The Use of Metal Coins by Weight, by Mr. Daud Abu Hilal
http://www.ju.edu.jo/campusnews/1febmar2001/coinage.html
The Coins of Roman Egypt
http://www.coinsofromanegypt.com/html/library/curtis/intro.htm
Bahrain Currency Museum
http://www.bma.gov.bh/mus_article.htm
The Artistry of African Currency, by Lydia Puccinelli
http://www.nmafa.si.edu/exhibits/site/
History of the Phoenicians
http://www.phoenicia.org/history.html
Read more about the history of money on these Web sites:
Origins of Money and of Banking – with a review and summary of Glyn Davies’
book on the history of money
http://www.ex.ac.uk/~RDavies/arian/origins.html
(you can also purchase the book "A history of money from ancient times to the
present day" by Glyn Davies, Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 1994. (ISBN 0
7083 1246 2))
History of Money
http://www.referaty.sk/index.php3?referat=3731
(history and summary of different types of currency and barter)
PBS - The History of Money
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/moolah/history.html
Mintmark's History of Money (abridged)
http://www.mintmark.com/moneyhistory.htm
"The Cradle of Cash" by Heather Pringle DISCOVER Vol. 19 No. 10 (October 1998)
http://www.discover.com/oct_issue/cradle.html |
