The Monetary Aspect of Gold from Prehistoric to Modern Times

Gold was in all times and by everybody very high priced. It was used therefore very early in the history of humanity as an exchange medium and as money to pay for goods and services. The present paper gives a condensed history of gold as coinage metal as well as selected prices and wages from Roman to modern times. A critical evaluation of the data shows that a consistent picture of the purchasing power of gold over the centuries is very difficult if not impossible.