Tag: history

Salt, the white gold?

Today, we use salt to season food, for instance on French fries. But do you know that throughout history salt was used on a far more larger scale than nowadays? And that it was a common means of payment?

Saturday August 11th, 2007 – 01:29 PM | Posted in Object of the month | Also tagged | Comments Off

The Stone of Yap

It may surprise you but stone discs, as the one shown beneath, are still used as currency on Yap, an island in Micronesia (South-West Pacific). Tourists who visit the island are often astonished that the people of Yap just leave their money lying in the streets. And it is not ‘small change’ we are speaking of. The largest stones can be 4 metres in diameter and weigh about 15 tonnes. Where lies the origin of this special kind of money?

Wednesday April 11th, 2007 – 01:51 PM | Posted in Object of the month | Also tagged | Comments Off

Cowry Shells, a trade currency

The Museum of the National Bank is probably not the first thing that crosses your mind when you are talking about shells. And yet, apart from a large number of coins and banknotes it also possesses a nice collection of primitive means of payments. Within this category of traditional money the cowry shell is one the [...]

Thursday January 11th, 2007 – 02:02 PM | Posted in Object of the month | Also tagged | Comments Off

Islam and the Carolingian penny

We take a closer look at the silver Carolingian penny. The central question here: how is it possible that the empire of Charlemagne, which extended over much of western Europe, had only a monometallic silver coinage. The answer is that this was due not only to the continued influence of the Roman denarius, but also to the political and religious developments taking place from the 7th century onwards.

Saturday November 11th, 2006 – 02:07 PM | Posted in Object of the month | Also tagged , | Comments Off

An Antwerp double ducaton issued by Albrecht and Isabella (1618)

The 17th century got off to an auspicious start for the Antwerp mint. Following the death of Philip II, the Southern Netherlands came into the hands of Philip’s daughter Isabella and her fiancé and later husband, the Austrian Archduke Albrecht.

Monday September 11th, 2006 – 02:15 PM | Posted in Object of the month | Also tagged , | Comments Off

A fleur-de-Lys in Brabant?

We take a closer look at a coin issued by Henry I, Duke of Brabant (1190-1235). The obverse depicts the head and shoulders of the Duke of Brabant bearing arms, with his helmet, double-edged sword and lion shield. The lion, a symbol of power displayed on the weapons of the dukes of Brabant from the reign of Henry I, also appears on the reverse. An unusual feature of this silver coin weighing 0.81 grams is the fleur-de-lys adorning the duke’s helmet.

Sunday June 11th, 2006 – 02:23 PM | Posted in Object of the month | Also tagged , | Comments Off

Offering to the gods of the underworld

More than four thousand years ago, ore was already being extracted from the ground in Central Europe and processed into metal, and some of it was given back to the earth. During the 19th and 20th centuries, this metal resurfaced, but as prehistoric treasure in the form of rings and flat bars. The unusually numerous finds are not only a sign of the growing importance of metal, they also indicate the transition from the stone age to the bronze age in Europe.

Tuesday April 11th, 2006 – 02:30 PM | Posted in Object of the month | Comments Off