Money: A History

The book begins by tracing the growth and development of monetary systems, from the ancient civilisations of Mesopotamia and Egypt to the establishment of coinage in the Greek and Roman world. The following chapters develop a broader world view, exploring the monetary systems of Europe during the Middle Ages, the Islamic world, India and China. In the final part of the book the focus is on the processes by which money has become a global phenomenon, with chapters looking at the expanding role of money in early modern Europe and the Americas and the introduction of paper money and banking, the effect of European contacts on the local payment systems of Africa and Oceania, and concluding with an examination of the increasing impact of economic thought on monetary affairs.