In Bronze Age Britain (2,500 to 800 BC), gold was frequently mined and used to manufacture a range of decorative and ceremonial objects. But in contrast to other areas, it seems that people of that era were not exchanging pieces of gold as currency—at least not on a widespread or organized basis.
This is the conclusion of a new study that has just been published in the journal Antiquity. The author of that study, Dr. Raphael Hermann from Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, found that gold objects made in Bronze Age Britain did not demonstrate any measurable uniformity in weight. This was a characteristic of gold pieces that were used for money in mainland Europe and Mesopotamia during the same time period, and would have been an essential element in any ancient gold-based monetary system .
“We now know that weighing as a method to quantify things did exist in Bronze Age Britain, as evidenced by balance weights and scale beams found in England at Potterne and Cliff End Farm,” Dr. Hermann said. But his evaluation showed that gold objects that came from this time didn’t exhibit any patterns that would suggest they were carefully weighed to meet any particular type of standard. This was contrary to expectations as previous research had seemed to show the opposite.
