The Origin of Metallic Currency and Weight StandardsRidgeway, William
History
The Origin of Metallic Currency and Weight Standards
Ridgeway, William
Money -- Origin; Weights and measures -- History
exported from it, also hides and slaves and good hunting dogs. But the
Kelts employ even for their wars these, and their own native dogs[140].”
There can therefore be no doubt that gold was found in Britain although
we are not told in what particular part. Gold is still found in Wales
and in several parts of Scotland, although not in sufficient quantity to
be worth working. Two observations remain to be made on the statements
of Caesar and Strabo. Caesar tells us definitely that whilst they used
copper as money, they had to import that metal. He omits all mention of
silver, whilst Strabo, writing half-a-century later, speaks of it as a
British product. I have remarked already that the silver coins of the
Britons are all late, and exhibit as a rule Roman influence. It would
therefore seem as if the working of silver had developed some time after
Caesar’s invasions. Thus once more we have an instance of gold in full
use long before silver. But what is still more important, though the
Britons are in the bronze period and are actually using copper money,
they have to import that metal, although copper is actually found native
in Cornwall. It still remained undiscovered in Strabo’s time to judge by
his silence, but as he is equally silent about tin, which was known long
before, we cannot press the argument _ex silentio_. However, it is of
great importance to find a people who possess gold and copper in a native
state, already working the gold long before they have even discovered
the copper. This is completely in harmony with what we have already seen
in the case of the Scythians and Arabs of the Red Sea coasts. At a later
stage we shall have to notice the rods or bars of iron used as currency
by the Britons in connection with a similar practice elsewhere.
The writers of the classical age have left us no information respecting
Ireland save that the people practised polyandry, and ate each
other[141]. Nevertheless there is abundant evidence to show that there
were large deposits of gold on the east side of Ireland, in the Wicklow
Mountains, and that the natives from a very early period wrought it into
ornaments of various kinds. The vast quantity of gold ornaments to be
seen in the Museum of the Royal Irish Academy is a proof of its abundance.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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