Departamento de Estudos da Linguagem

Língua Inglesa VI – Written Discourse

Profa Joana Pupo

Extra READING – Supply & Demand

The history of money: from

barter to bitcoin

Money has been a part of human history for almost

3,000 years. From the origins of bartering to modern
money, this is how the system has evolved

By Rebecca Burn-Callander, Enterprise Editor

11:35AM BST 20 Oct 2014

At the dawn of humanity, bartering was used

in lieu of money to buy goods. As early man
began to rear domestic livestock, one of the
earliest forms of barter included cattle,
sheep, as well as vegetables and grain.

The first known currency was created by

King Alyattes in Lydia, now part of Turkey,
in 600BC. The first coin ever minted
features a roaring lion.
Coins then evolved into bank notes around
1661 AD. The first credit card was
introduced in 1946.
The infographic below shows how money
has developed from these early roots through
to Apple's instant iPhone payments and
bitcoin - the world's first decentralised
crytocurrency.
Wearable technology is set to disrupt the
world of money once more, as Barclaycard
trials a contactless payments wristband.
The advent of modern bartering has brought
the system full circle.