Their high population density and cohesion made them very resilient to interference from foreign powers. When European traders and explorers first arrived on the region, they immediately homed in on the abundant supply of gold. European powers have fought many wars for dominance over the region before brutally engaging in wanton slavery and exploitation of its indigenous peoples.
It is from these region and the mining and trading of gold that the gold guinea received its name. When the first guinea coins were minted in , they contained a small portion of pure gold, as was the standard practice of the time. A troy pound of the finest gold was supposed to have enough metal to make just slightly over 44 golden guineas.
This meant that even combined with lesser metals, each guinea contained slightly over 8. In terms of monetary value, the starting worth of a guinea was the equivalent of one pound or twenty shillings. However, its value depended on the gold trade which fluctuated greatly just in the reign of the Merry Monarch.
In s, the price of guinea coin was marked at 22 shillings. However, several accounts from people living in the period said that sometimes the value of a guinea could soar to 25 shillings.
Today, the value of a guinea is almost priceless. A golden guinea is worth thousands of pounds, outstripping the value of even a rare Churchill crown. This is because of the combined of the precious metal and the historical worth of the coin makes the value of a guinea much more than monetary.
Photo by Jimmy Chan Pexels. The guinea coin remained as a unit of currency for two hundred years before it was replaced by the sovereign in the s. In , the guinea was officially replaced by the pound as the standard of currency in the British empire. Although the golden guinea had long gone out of circulation a full century before the Edwardian era , the term lingered for years until the advent of decimalization. The nobility and the upper strata of society kept using guinea coin for its posher sound.
The value of this purely accounting guinea was at approximately 21 shillings. It would be logged into accounting books and bills as such to make for a more respectable account.
Jille Heyman April 19, What is a Guinea Coin? Why is it Called a Guinea? What is the Value of a Guinea Coin? What Happened to the Guinea Coin? Photo by Jimmy Chan Pexels The guinea coin remained as a unit of currency for two hundred years before it was replaced by the sovereign in the s.
The guinea coin may be long gone, but its complex history remains for students to appreciate. Share on facebook Facebook. For example, gold coins first struck in, say, , were valued at 22 shillings by, say In , the new 'sovereign' pound coin was introduced. These contained 7. Pound coins struck before retained their premium, but now standardised as 21 shillings.
And yes, the odd shilling was often paid to underlings, such as solictors' clerks - as their part of overall fees. Why guinea? Because the Guinea coast was fabled for its gold, and its name became attached to other things like guinea fowl, and New Guinea. Shillings were made of silver.
Differences in the relative value of silver and gold soon meant that the gold guinea became worth more than twenty shillings. By it was worth twenty-one shillings and sixpence and it reached even thirty shillings at one time. In the mint issued sovereigns, worth twenty shillings and which contained less gold than the guinea, which itself had then levelled to twenty-one shillings. Thereafter no guineas were issued. The professions continued to charge in 'guineas' of twenty-one shillings.
However, the clerks had by then devised an almost incomprehensible scale for various fees , still based on that principle, which always seemed to work slightly more in their favour. Christopher Nutt, Cambridge Because gold coins manufactured before the amount of gold in pound coins was standardised contained more gold, and therefore were worth more money. Thus 21 shillings for pre coins. Why Guinea? Association with the fabled riches of the gold coast.
Its value fluctuated between 20 and 30 shillings because of changes in the value of gold. It was declared to be worth 21 shillings in
0コメント