UNUSUAL THINGS USED AS CURRENCY
Added on: 28th Jul 2015
LOBI SNAKES
The Lobi people were ancient inhabitants of Ghana. In order to
protect themselves from snakes they forged iron snakes that they
would use as a type of mystical “repellent”. These fake snakes were
so valuable that they were eventually adopted as a medium of trade.
KISSI PENNIES
Until recently these long iron poles were used as currency in many
parts of western Africa. If one of the poles broke, the currency was
worthless and only an elaborate ceremony performed by a witch
doctor could bring the value back.
WHALES TEETH
Perhaps not surprisingly, Fijian islands used sperm whale teeth as
currency until recently when they adopted paper notes. In order to
convince the people that the notes were worth anything, the authorities
had whale teeth inscribed on all of them.
KNIVES
As the story goes, about 2500 years ago a Chinese prince let his
Soldiers exchange their knives for goods when money was scarce.
Since then, using knives as money has had somewhat of a
history in China.
MANCHUKO YUAN
The Manchukuo yuan currency was used by Japanese forces during
their occupation of China. It was actually made of red or brown
cardboard between 1944 and 1945 due to the lack of metal.
TIDE DETERGENT
Known as “liquid gold”, for a myriad of reasons the criminal
Underworld has resorted to using Tide as an alternative currency.
THE WORLD'S SMALLEST COIN
Historically speaking the world’s smallest coin was the
Tara of Vijayanagar from India. It was only 4 mm across.
THE WORLD'S LARGEST COIN
Canada has released the largest piece of legal tender in the world.
The $1 million Canadian dollar is made of 99.999% gold
bullion and weighs 220 pounds.
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