this exhibition. cheques may of course, become obsolete even sooner. this exhibition tells a story through the most significant numismatic items that have circulated in the region. they represent part of a picture that reveals the progress of mankind in the use of money. given the 21st century will likely mark the end of physical money as we have known it for most of our history, the importance of looking at the past has never been greater. by looking beyond the physical appearance of money and examining its role instead, it is apparent how long the world has been globalised and how insular thinking would not in fact contribute to economic development. indeed, this exhibition demonstrates that global and economic integration has existed in times of antiquity. we would like to thank everyone who have kept collecting and researching the currency of nusantara. by doing this, they have highlighted the evolution and continuity of history and the importance and significance of the region in which we live. bis central bankers ’ speeches

the coin money tree that had coins which could be detached from its branches or used as an entire “ money tree ”. in other cases it is the name of a coin that became adopted by different societies. the “ leeuwendaler ” ( “ lion dollar ” ), which circulated in the dutch colonies such as new york, ended up as the official us currency after the war of independence from britain. the same dutch coins were also common in the malay archipelago, but only in brunei has the dollar survived as an official term for the currency. in malaysia, the old british unit of the “ shilling ” lived on long after it ceased to exist in the united kingdom. there is no end to the links that can be found between the different countries and their coinage. nusantara was at the centre of this international network, leaving us with a diverse inheritance of numismatic material. much of the physical evidence of this global trade has, however, been lost. evolution is an intrinsic part of the nature of money ; coins have been melted down, misplaced or sometimes incorporated into other items such as jewellery ; banknotes have been destroyed. we are left with shipwrecks as some of the most useful sources information on the money that was in circulation in our history. what remains is a faint reflection of the millions – literally – of coins that once circulated in the archipelago. some are of the highest rarity while others may not be. bank negara malaysia has for many decades been a custodian of local numismatic heritage, resulting in an unrivalled collection of malaysian coins and banknotes. this is a natural role for a central bank to adopt. bis central bankers ’ speeches we would like to thank the input of private collectors such as mr. william barrett, whose passion for nusantara numismatic material has produced the core of the present exhibition. “ knowing nusantara ” is the first numismatic exhibition of this nature to be held at bank negara malaysia. it looks back over a very long time period, and encourages us to look into the future as well. the changes that have taken place during two millennia have been substantial, including the introduction of paper money and the end of precious - metal coins in circulation. these are insignificant in comparison with the developments of the recent decade. the future is cashless. some time in the future, the present contents of our purses and pockets will seem as quaint as some of the contents of