OF THE

REAL AND IMAGINARY MONIES OF THE WORLD.

MONEY is either real or imaginary. Real money includes all coins, whether of gold, silver, copper, or the like; such as guineas, pistoles, or ducats, &c. &c. Imaginary money, or money of account, is that which never existed, or at least which does not exist in real specie, but is a denomination invented or retained to facilitate the stating of accounts, by keeping them still on a permanent basis, not to be changed like currency, which the authority of the sovereign sometimes raises or depresses according to the exigencies of the state; of this kind are pounds, livres, marks, &c.

With regard to the imaginary or nominal monies hereafter quoted, their actual value in British sterling is placed opposite to them, uninfluenced by the fluctuations, which are the result of a favourable or unfavourable state of commercial exchange between one country and another; and it is therefore to be remembered, in perusing the following tables, that, in bill transactions, where, for example, a sum of money is to be remitted to, or received from, a foreign country, the said sum must not be calculated according to the actual value of the currency, but by the course of exchange of the day.

We think it necessary to observe, that, formerly in Scotland, there was a currency peculiar to that country, which, of late years, being entirely done away, we have not noticed; the same may be said of Holland, &c.

Quarter Dollar

to the value in

Six Liard do.

Two Liard

Liard

Thirty Sol do.

Twenty four Sol do. 0 1
Fifteen Sol. do.
Twelve Sol do.

proportionable Six Sol do.

which the dollar Double Sol Piece
is held.

Dime, equal to the tenth part of Sol

a dollar's value.

Half Dime, do. twentieth do.

COPPER.

Cent, equal to the hundredth part
of a dollar.
A complete description of the
coins of the American States,
with tables of the currencies,
and of the value and weight of
various coins, as they pass in
the respective states of the
union, are annexed to the Ta-
bles of American Duties, given
heretofore.

Livre

FRANCE.
Imaginary Money.

0 0 10

0

0

0 0 6

0

0

3

Denier
Do. at Geneva
Dardene

THE NEW MONIES OF

FRANCE.

The Franc may be considered as the unity of the new French coins; it is nearly the same with the livre tournois, and worth about ten pence English. Francs and livres were formerly similar; but, in one coinage, the five livre pieces were, by accident, made too heavy, being worth 1014 sols instead

* The word tournois is used by the French as we employ sterling.

0 1

of 100; the new franc has been therefore adopted in conformity with this value, and the franc or new livre is equal to 213 deniers, being 14 per cent. better than the old livre tournois, equal 210 deniers.

By a decree, which passed the
French legislative body on the Louis d'Or
30th of March, 1803, for a new Pistole
coinage, the silver pieces were
appointed to be quarter francs, Ecu
half francs, three quarter francs, Dollar
two franc pieces, and five franc Scalin
pieces. The gold coinage to be Half Scalin
twenty and forty franc pieces.
The copper pieces to be those
of two hundredths, three hun-
dreths, and five hundredths of
a franc. The gold and silver
coins are of nine tenths pure
and one tenth alloy.

Sol

540

0 4 101/ 046 0 0 53

0 0 0117

NETHERLANDS.

Imaginary Money.

Pound, Flemish

09

0

0 1 6

Florin

GOLD COINS.

English value.

1.

S.

d.