Ancient Egyptian Coins History
The Ancient Egyptian coins were always in a constant state of transformation throughout its history, the system of barter was the official currency, grain, beer, and oil served as a kind of coinage through most of its history even after the introduction of coined money in the second half of the first millennium BC during the Ptolemaic kingdom (323 BC-30 BC), the ancient Egyptians understood the importance of metal as it was used as a means of exchange, in Egypt old kingdom (2570-2150 BC) but there is no evidence that proves they used coined metal.
In the final days of Egypt's new kingdom (1570-1070 BC) non-coin forms of silver shaped like rings and gold pieces shaped like sheep centuries were exchanged before the minting coins out different metals. Silver was much more scarce than gold in ancient Egypt, the ancient Egyptian society had many currencies and coins but after the foundation of the Ptolemaic kingdom, an enforced policy of a single currency was established.
At the time of Cleopatra, VII silver suffered a very large degree of debasement. Due to the demise of the Ptolemaic empire, the silver coinage totally disappeared and was replaced by the roman tetradrachms the official currency of the Roman Empire. Egypt became a moderate region as a closed system similar to the Ptolemaic system rot h point that the roman currencies denarii and aurei didn’t circulate in provincial Egypt at all.
Ancient Egyptian Coins Facts
The ancient Egyptians first introduced coined money in the fifth century, when they imported bits of silver and gold to be used as a standardized weight rather than real money. The Mediterranean merchants began to rely more and more on coined money as a medium of exchange around the middle of the 4th century BC, and later, Greek mercenaries requested payment in coins. Bronze was commonly used to pay for everyday products. The coined money had a significant effect on the domestic economy and trade, which grew rapidly during the Roman era.
Ancient Egyptian Coins Design & Symbolism
The Egyptians used a system of value based on the weights of different metals such as silver and copper before adopting coins as their official currency in 500 BC. The value of other materials was determined using these metals. Since it was produced using Phoenician weight (14.2 g), the Ptolemaic kingdom coinage was struck by various standards. The Ptolemaic coinage was modeled after modern Greek currencies. The eagle was perched atop a thunderbolt, which was a popular emblem of the Ptolemaic dynasty. The kings and queens played an important role, like Ptolemy, I, and his wife Berenice I were portrayed on a medal-like coin.
Ancient Egyptian Coin Mints
The method of coin production is very close to those of Seleucid coinage, and the silver was imported in large amounts from abroad. Memphis housed the first Ptolemaic mint, which was later relocated to Alexandria.
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