FROM THE SOLIDUS TO THE EURO / THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ( RECOMMENDED READING )

From the Solidus to the Euro

A guide to currencies through the ages.

Solidus

Art Resource, NY


A gold coin introduced around A.D. 310, early in the reign of Emperor Constantine I. In the Byzantine currency system, it was the prime coin against which other coins could be exchanged and was used in international trade and major payrolls. Its use continued into the 11th century, when Constantine IX began debasing it.

Pound sterling

Getty Images


The U.K. currency is the oldest currency still in use. Its paper form was introduced when the Bank of England was formed in 1694.

Dollar

American Numismatic Society

The Coinage Act of 1792 affirmed the dollar as the U.S. currency unit and specified that each was to equal the value of the Spanish milled dollar and was to contain 371 4/16 grains of pure, or 416 grains of standard, silver.

Euro


Deutsche Bundesbank/Getty Images

This common currency for 16 European Union countries launched on Jan. 1, 1999, replacing, among others, Italy's lira, Germany's Deutsche mark and France's franc. The euro erased most of Western Europe's monetary borders.