Scrap Metal: The Small Change Revolution Before Coins
Researchers including Göttingen University show Bronze Age witnessed revolution in small change across Europe
How did people living in the Bronze Age manage their finances before money became widespread? Researchers from the Universities of Göttingen and Rome have discovered that bronze scrap found in hoards in Europe circulated as a currency. These pieces of scrap – which might include swords, axes, and jewellery broken into pieces – were used as cash in the late Bronze Age (1350-800 BC), and in fact complied with a weight system used across Europe. This research suggests that something very similar to our ‘global market’ evolved across Western Eurasia from the everyday use of scrap for cash by ordinary people some 1000 years before the beginning of classical civilizations. The results were published in Journal of Archaeological Science.
This study analysed around 2,500 metal objects and fragments from among the thousands of hoards of fragments from the late Bronze Age that, over time, have been unearthed in Central Europe and Italy. The researchers used a statistical technique that can determine if a sample of measurements is due to an underlying system. This technique can detect, for instance, if the analysed objects are multiples of a weight unit.
Bronze Age money across Europe: Metal scraps from the ‘soldier’s pouch’ of the Late Bronze Age battlefield of Tollensee Valley, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
Photo: Volker Minkus, copyright Thomas Terberger
The spread of the use of metallic scraps for cash happened against the background of the formation of a global market in Western Eurasia. “There was nothing ‘primitive’ about pre-coinage money, as money before coins performed exactly the same functions that modern money does now,” explains Dr Nicola Ialongo at the University of Göttingen’s Institute for Prehistory and Early History.
The study is the result of an international collaboration between the project ‘Weight and Value’ at the University of Göttingen and directed by Professor Lorenz Rahmstorf, and Sapienza University of Rome.
Original publication:
Contacts and sources:
Melissa Sollich
Göttingen University
Publication: A small change revolution. Weight systems and the emergence of the first Pan-European money. Ialongo, N., Lago, G. 2021. Journal of Archaeological Science, 2021. DOI: 10.1016/j.jas.2021.105379 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2021.105379
Source: http://www.ineffableisland.com/2021/05/scrap-metal-small-change-revolution.html
Anyone can join.
Anyone can contribute.
Anyone can become informed about their world.
"United We Stand" Click Here To Create Your Personal Citizen Journalist Account Today, Be Sure To Invite Your Friends.
Please Help Support BeforeitsNews by trying our Natural Health Products below!
Order by Phone at 888-809-8385 or online at https://mitocopper.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST
Order by Phone at 866-388-7003 or online at https://www.herbanomic.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST
Order by Phone at 866-388-7003 or online at https://www.herbanomics.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST
Humic & Fulvic Trace Minerals Complex - Nature's most important supplement! Vivid Dreams again!
HNEX HydroNano EXtracellular Water - Improve immune system health and reduce inflammation.
Ultimate Clinical Potency Curcumin - Natural pain relief, reduce inflammation and so much more.
MitoCopper - Bioavailable Copper destroys pathogens and gives you more energy. (See Blood Video)
Oxy Powder - Natural Colon Cleanser! Cleans out toxic buildup with oxygen!
Nascent Iodine - Promotes detoxification, mental focus and thyroid health.
Smart Meter Cover - Reduces Smart Meter radiation by 96%! (See Video).