ABSTRACT
The date of the invention of coining can be assigned with some degree of probability. Coined money was clearly unknown in the Homeric times, and it was known in the time of Lycurgus. The earliest coins struck, both in Lydia and in the Peloponnesus, were stamped on one side only. From time to time coins have been manufactured in very many forms, although circular coins vastly predominate in number. Among the innumerable issues of the German states may be found octagonal and hexagonal coins. Among Oriental nations the shapes of coins are still more curious. The smaller silver coins have a similar form. Among the minor Japanese coins are found large, oval, moulded pieces of copper or mixed metal, each with a square hole in the centre. The coins of Formosa are similar, except that they are much larger and thicker.
