We all are familiar with the stories where kings reward artisans, craftsmen and good subjects with gold coins.
Gold was used as currency in many kingdoms. But where was it used as currency for the first time? Lydia, an ancient kingdom in western Turkey is believed to be the pioneer of gold currency. Lydia was a fertile kingdom, but its greatest asset was the river Pactolus; it carried gold deposits.
Around 643 to 630 BC, the Lydians began producing the first coins. They were quite crude, and were made of electrum, a naturally occurring pale yellow mixture of gold and silver. By about 560 BC, the Lydians had learned to separate the gold from the silver following which, King Croesus issued the world’s first gold coins. Shortly afterwards, in 546 BC, King Croesus was captured by the Persians, who came to adopt gold as the main metal for their coins.
Soon, gold coins were being used in many other ancient countries. But the credit of introducing gold currency lies with the Lydians.
Picture Credit : Google