Plate Money 1 Daler

These copper plates, some weighing over 19 kilograms, were essentially portable ingots used to pay for bulk goods like ships or timber.

That heft made them a headache for anyone trying to handle one. Swedish authorities issued them from 1644 to 1776 because the country had copper to spare from its mines, and silver was scarce.

Each plate was stamped with the king's image, a value, and anti-counterfeiting marks, like a serial number or edge inscriptions. The 1 Daler version, while not the largest, still required a cart for transport in transactions.

We don't know the exact mintage figures; records from that era are spotty. What is clear is that they circulated mainly in Sweden and its colonies, fading out as more practical coins emerged.

Proving their worth was literal: you'd need to verify the copper's purity, which involved weighing and measuring on the spot. A dry remark: In a world of pocket change, these were the currency equivalent of carrying a grand piano.