Pre-historic Europeans used bronze objects as currency

Central Europeans of the Bronze Age used bronze rings, ribs and axe blades that were roughly standardized in their shape and weight as an early form of “euros,” according to a new study. The paper by researchers at Leiden University in the Netherlands appeared in the journal PLOS ONE on Wednesday. Money is a defining aspect of modern life, and standardization of currency is one of its key features. But since ancient people lacked precise forms of measurement, archaeologists had disagreed about whether bronze items discovered in “hoards” in modern day Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic and other places were really currency, or just metal blocks for melting into other products. These objects date back to around 4,000 years ago, when Central Europeans lived in farming societies characterized by the use of bronze tools, weapons, armor, building materials and more. Lead author Maikel Kuijpers, an assistant professor in European Prehistory, said the research was based on a new methodology he had developed “that is more attuned to how people would weigh items in the Bronze Age.” —AFP