Money provides a unique and illuminating perspective on the Middle Ages. In much of medieval Europe the central meaning of money was a prescribed unit of precious metal but in practice precious metal did not necessarily change hands and indeed coinage was very often in short supply.
Money had economic, institutional, social, and cultural dimensions which developed the legacy of antiquity and set the scene for modern developments including the rise of capitalism and finance as well as a moralized discourse on the proper and improper uses of money. In its many forms - coin, metal, commodity, and concept - money played a central role in shaping the character of medieval society and, in turn, offers a vivid reflection of the distinctive features of medieval civilization.
Drawing upon a wealth of visual and textual sources, A Cultural History of Money in the Medieval Age presents essays that examine key cultural case studies of the period on
the themes of technologies, ideas, ritual and religion, the everyday,
art and representation, interpretation, and the issues of the age.
List of Illustrations Notes on Contributors Series Preface, Bill Maurer, University of California Irvine, USA Introduction: Approaching Medieval Money, Rory Naismith, University of Cambridge, UK 1. Money and its Technologies: The “Principles of Minting” in the Middle Ages, Oliver Volckart, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK 2. Money and its Ideas: Payment Methods in the Middle Ages, Laurent Feller, University of Paris 1 - Panthéon-Sorbonne, France 3. Money, Ritual, and Religion: Economic Value between Theology and Administration, Giacomo Todeschini, Italy 4. Money and the Everyday: Whose Currency? Richard Kelleher, Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, UK 5. Money, Art, and Representation: The Powerful and Pragmatic Faces of Medieval Coinage, Rebecca R. Darley, Birkbeck, University of London, UK 6. Money and its Interpretation: Attitudes to Money in the Societas Christiana, Svein H. Gullbekk, Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo, Norway 7. Money and the Issues of the Age: The Plurality of Money, Rory Naismith, University of Cambridge, UK Notes Bibliography Index
Rory Naismith is Lecturer in the History of England Before the Norman Conquest, University of Cambridge, UK.
