Discussion 3

The early Greeks were seen as expanding coin money to a degree far beyond anyone before
them. Identify at least two the critical factors that contributed to this great expansion of
coin money, and why the expansion was important in the history of civilization.

The Greeks' use of coins can be dated back to the mid-6th century BC. They started using coins
as a means of trade and exchange to gauge commerce and economic activity.
The Drachma (the silver coin of the earlier times) was one of the first coins of these old
civilizations, but they were not as efficient or successful in growing commerce and trade in an
empire. Coins such as the Drachma were not able to bring about the kind of expansion that the
Greeks saw in the 6th and 7th century AD. Therefore, it is fair to say that the real expansion of
coinage began in Greece. It is believed that the introduction of this coinage system had an
immensely positive impact on the kind of expansion that happened in Greece or any other empire
in those times.
The main reason which paved the way for such an expansion in the coinage system and the
introduction of new forms of coinage was the existing backwardness of the Greek civilization.
The introduction of such a system was thought to be a way to evolve and move forward to
expand the trade relations with many nations which were inaccessible due to the primitiveness of
the coinage system that existed around those times. The other reason that contributed to the
system was the easiness of the administration process that was expected to be brought in with the
introduction of new forms of currency and coinage.
Employing the coinage system led to the expansion of trade by the Greeks with many foreign
nations that resulted in the accumulation of great wealth during those times and a more evolved
way of monetizing the wealth. The result was that the administrative capability of the
government in power improved vastly and therefore made Greece one of the better-expanding
nations during that time with a flourishing economy with great prospects. All members of the
economy (from farmers, merchants to artisans) grew wealthier which resulted in increased
contributions of those sectors of the economy which made the economic expansion grow faster.
Another major advantage was the types of coins that were created in that time period. The coins
had many emblems which helped later to identify the civilization that existed during those times.
From a historic standpoint, this characteristic made it easier for the later civilizations to follow
the trends in expansion and economic mobility during later periods in Greece.
Therefore, the introduction of the coinage system resulted in a better, more productive, and long-
lasting expansion of the economy and the physical characteristics of the coins helped in the
identification of the civilization that made it easier for the later civilizations to expand and build
on historic knowledge.