In places or times where coins were not issued by a mint or their value was not guaranteed by a bank (such as Viking Scandinavia, where there was no domestic currency and all coins in circulation were "borrowed" from elsewhere) weight was all important. A coin's value was equivalent to its weight - and interchangeable with the same weight of precious metal in the form of jewellery. Hacksilver is the name given to the bits of metal that were cut off and used as currency.
In places or times where coins were not issued by a mint or their value was not guaranteed by a bank (such as Viking Scandinavia, where there was no domestic currency and all coins in circulation were "borrowed" from elsewhere) weight was all important. A coin's value was equivalent to its weight - and interchangeable with the same weight of precious metal in the form of jewellery. Hacksilver is the name given to the bits of metal that were cut off and used as currency.