About Money - Aga Anton

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The Origins of Money The word money derives from the Latin 'moneta' - the first Roman coinage was minted at the temple of Juno Moneta in 344BC. Before coinage, various objects such as cattle, pig's teeth and shells had been used as money.For most of its history money has taken the form of coins made of precious metal. The money, therefore, had intrinsic value. Many of the units of modern money recall their origin in amounts of precious metal; for example, the pound sterling was originally the Roman pound (twelves ounces) of silver. The Beginning of Banking in Britain In Britain, the modern age of banking began in 1640 when King Charles I, needing cash to pay the (English) army that he was raising against Scotland (of which he was also king!), seized the gold bullion that many merchants and nobles had placed in the Tower of London for safe-keeping.The 2nd Bishop's War (founded on a difference of religious opinion) soon petered out and, with Parliament and its powers of taxation recalled, the bullion was returned to its owners.in 1642, further warfare broke out with the English Civil War between the King and Parliament. London was the stronghold of Parliament and was the safest city in the Kingdom. So those who desired not to have their bullion seized by one side or the other placed their gold in the hands of goldsmiths in the city, who naturally had their own methods of safe-keeping.