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From: "Patrick Kivlin" <>
Subject: RE: [CHS] : Ancient Inventory (1611) - Lesson 2 = Money
Date: Tue, 29 Nov 2005 14:49:49 -0000
In-Reply-To: <2b2.dcfebb.30bdaa3b@aol.com>


I would add to this that the "Mark" or 3s 4d is exactly one sixth of a Pound. As the pound was made up of 240 pennies it was possible to split it into lots of different fractions - for example one fiftheenth of a pound was 1s 4d and one sixteenth of a pound was 1s 3d. It is not possible to do that so well with the new pound as 100 has not got as many factors as 240.

When I was at school (pre 1971) we had to learn all of these factors and to quote the different fractions of £1. It did wonders for my mental arithmetic in a way that I have spent 27 years as a maths teacher trying to re-create for my pupils.

Incidentally - for those of you in UK I remember petrol at 3s 4d per gallon - so we got exactly 6 gallons for £1. That is approximately 3.7 pence per litre. How things have changed!

Added to all of what Ricky wrote there was also the Guinea, worth 21shillings or £1 1s. It was used in some occupations as well.

I hope this hasn't added too much confusion.
Patrick Kivlin

-----Original Message-----
From: [mailto:]
Sent: 29 November 2005 12:58
To:
Subject: [CHS] : Ancient Inventory (1611) - Lesson 2 = Money


Hi Listers,
Are you sitting comfortably? Then I will begin ::

Money
Forget “Metric” they were still using the old Libra, Solidi and Denarii
(L.s.d.) or Pounds, Shillings and Pence. Gear yourself up to using three
different number systems – base 10 for the Pounds, base 20 for the shillings, and
base 12 for the pence (we were still using this system up to 1971 and coped
with its’complexities quite well) . In the Courts of the time, I came across
fines of £2/3, £1/3 and £1/6 (13s. 4d., 6s.8d. and 3s.4d.), I believe that this
must have something to do with a “value amount” – the Mark – which was
13s. 4d. (Example : Lawrence Cowper who was awarded 3s. 4d. in 1612)
The Pound could be split into the Crown (5s.), the Half Crown (21/2s.) and
of course the Shilling coin. These coins were issued in both "Gold" and
"Silver" up to 1650.
The Shilling could be split up into the Tanner (6d.), the Groat (4d.), the
Joey (3d.) and of course the Penny coin (all of which "Silver" coins are now
only made for the Queen's "Maundy" ceremony ).
The Penny could be split up into the Ha'penny (1/2p.), and the Farthing
(1/4p.) Both "Silver" coins still in circulation in 1650.
The Mark coin (mentioned earlier) was not issued after Henry V!!!, but was
still used as a "monetary value" by the Legal system.
The English Government have always had problems with precious metal coinage,
particularly Gold. Nowadays there aren't any precious metal coins in
circulation.
Hope that you are still with me.........
Ricky Cooper.


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