Native American Currency System

Humans have long since abandoned relying solely on a barter economy for the alternative of currency. As early as the Mesopotamians and Ancient Egyptians, currency had been created from golden rings and bars in order to accumulate wealth and trading power. Similar concepts and ideas of currency developed independently around the globe in order for society to overcome economic needs. The economic values of European settlers in North America had a profound impact on the ways that the indigenous peoples of the area lived by created a currency from what was once a traditional decoration piece or gift (Kelechava, 2016).
As European settlers traveled over to North America, they brought with them the customs of having a standardized currency system. They had been accustomed to currencies such as the Pound Sterling which allowed for easy trading among peoples in a large region. The British Pound consists of coins made up of silver and gold. These coins could be produced identically and have a constant value that is commonly known to whoever would be trading. However, the new settlers were not able to bring the capital to establish such a system as other goods were deemed more important.
The size and shape of the shells soon became standard and the use of the shells shifted to accomplish complex economic exchanges. Once wampum shells commonly began to be used, the Europeans not only saw shell trading with the natives but also within their own culture eventually becoming the center of currency for the Europeans of the area. This posed some problems as the Europeans were also trading with a world that did not recognize the wampum as a form of currency but rather gold and silver. They could not export it, pay off debts, or use it outside of their own society because it was not desired by anyone else (Becker,