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Message:: [QUOTE="robinjojo, post: 4572800, member: 110226"]I would like to share with you an area of numismatics that has been my concentration for nearly 40 years, trade coinage.  It is hard to say when this interest started, but I think it is rooted in my fascination with ancient and modern history and economics (especially Fernand Braudel's two books, The Structures of Everyday Life and The Wheels of Commerce), and the romance of the Spanish Main acquired from childhood (lots of matinee movies back then). For the purpose of this tread, I am defining a trade coin two ways: First, as a coin specifically issued by a sovereign authority for the expressed use in international or regional trade; orSecond, the coinage of any empire, kingdom or nation whose political, economic and military dominance of a region or regions makes that coinage the accepted medium of exchange within that empire. Until the advent of modern banks, letters of credit, currency, other paper financial instruments and ultimately digital technology now used in international trade, merchants, nations, cities, kingdoms and empires were dependent on the use of specie for transactions, both locally and internationally, for over two thousand years.  Because of the need for a stable medium of exchange, one that maintains its reliability in precious metal content and appearance, throughout history certain coins stand out, both in terms of their widespread acceptance, and longevity:  Aegina and her stater, Athens and her tetradrachm, the tetradrachms of Alexander III and his successors, the Byzantine Empire and her gold solidus, Spain and her 8 reales, the Dutch Republic and her lion daalder, gold ducat and ducatons produced for the Dutch East India Company (VOC), and Austria and her Maria Theresa dollar, to name some the major examples.  There were also other attempts at creating an international trade coin, with limited success, notably the United States, Japanese and British trade dollar, and the portcullis dollar of Queen Elizabeth I.  Even Denmark produced a trade coin, the “Greenland” dollar, patterned after the popular pillar dollar of the Spanish Empire.  “Greenland” was something of a misnomer – the coin was actually intended for trade in the orient. The Roman Empire also used her coinage to promote her influence. The Roman monetary system was diversified.  There was, over the course of time: the denarius, the aureus, and the antoninianus, sestertii and other bronze denominations, in addition to tetradrachms, drachms and bronze coinage from provincial mints. One of the outstanding features of many trade coins is their relatively consistent design and consistent silver and gold content.  In a world where literacy was limited, a trade coin’s appearance was extremely important; hence Athena’s uniform gaze, with little change, on the obverse and the seemingly unvarying owl peering from the reverse.  Spain’s 8 reales varied little over its over 300-year history as a trade coin, with only a handful of design revisions, as was also true for Mexico’s cap and ray 8 reales and peso, which had a nearly static design for almost 100 years. [ATTACH=full]1132171[/ATTACH] Weight, as an indicator of precious metal content was equally important and a key aspect of coinage used in trade.  Because of this relative stability over centuries, commerce could be conducted across wide regions in a uniform manner – corn imported from Egypt to Athens with a constant underpinning of value through the tetradrachm, and goods from the Philippines be imported to Mexico and Spain with a constant underpinning of value through the 8 reales.  The trade coin was the glue that bound together world commerce for centuries. [ATTACH=full]1132172[/ATTACH] It was through trade that helped Athens, with the aid of her tetradrachms, to develop into an empire and the center of culture and learning during the 5th century BC.  Rome’s aureus and denarius fueled her trade and power throughout her vast empire.  The Byzantine Empire owed as much to her power through trade with her gold coinage as through her military might.  The Spanish Empire’s power existed in large part through her vast silver deposits in Peru (notably Potosi) and Mexico.  Potosi alone produced enough silver, it was said, as an analogy, to build a bridge of solid silver from Peru to Spain.  That silver helped to finance Hapsburg and Bourbon Spain’s numerous wars and pay their spiraling debt payable to the Europe’s banking houses. Trade was fundamental to the growth of the merchant and middle class, and it helped to foster the growth of the nation state over the centuries.  It was the instrument of empires that has led us to our interconnected and interdependent world today. I would like to share some examples from my collection.  Given the scope of this subject this is a limited group, and I am sure that there are many more coins that were used in commerce over the ages out there, so please post them if you wish. You'll see I am missing examples of other gold, silver and bronze coins, and trade coins from the Empire of Alexander, Corinth, the Roman Empire, Carthage and the Islamic Dynasties, as well as modern trade coins from the United Kingdom, United States, Japan, Mexico, Peru (19th century forward) and Maria Theresa dollars.  There are many gaps. Aegina Stater, Early 5th century BC [ATTACH=full]1132183[/ATTACH] Attica, Tetradrachm, After 449 BC [ATTACH=full]1132192[/ATTACH] Byzantine Empire AV Histamenon Nomisma, Isaac I, 1057-1059 [ATTACH=full]1132193[/ATTACH] Dutch Republic, Holland, lion daalder, 1589 [ATTACH=full]1132203[/ATTACH] Spanish Empire, Potosi, El Peru, 8 reales "cob", Shield Type, Assayer B, Philip II [ATTACH=full]1132195[/ATTACH] Spanish Empire, Potosi, El Peru, 8 reales "cob",  Pillars and Waves Type Assayer E, 1652, Philip IV [ATTACH=full]1132201[/ATTACH] Spanish Empire, Peru, 8 escudos, 1750, Assayer R, Ferdinand VI [ATTACH=full]1132209[/ATTACH] Spanish Empire, Guatemala, 8 reales, 1770, Assayer P, Charles III [ATTACH=full]1132211[/ATTACH] [/QUOTE]

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