History of Money in Ancient Countries from the Earliest Times to the Present
Publisher: Ayer Co Pub
Published: November 1911
Format: Hardcover
ISBN-13: 9780833708267
Subjects: History: American
First sentence: WITHOUT entering upon the Doctrine of Money, and confining ourselves strictly to its History, it may be said that what is commonly understood as Money has always consisted, tangibly, of a number of pieces of some material, marked by public authority and named or understood in the laws or customs : that its palpable characteristic was its mark of authority ; its essential characteristic, the possession of value, defined by law ; and its function, the legal power to pay debts and taxes and the mechanical power to facilitate the exchange of other objects possessing value.