Show DOLLAR TRACED TO PIECES OF EIGHT American Currency Since the Days of 1792 In the Fifteenth century the counts of ot In minted large silver coins from metal found 1 in the of Jon Joa In that country countr These coins were known as abbreviated to thaler In the low German lerman this became daler daler and to the English dollar Before Defore the Nineteenth century coins often circulated with little regard regard regard re re- re- re gard for national boundaries Some types of coins colas because of the quality of their manufacture came to be especially well known and to be accepted accepted ac ac- ac as an all International standard The florin form for Instance first minted d dIn In Florence In 1252 was later adopted adopt adopt- ed as ns an nn Austrian a n Dutch and an nn English coin It Is in this same manner man ner that a n little valley In the recesses recesses re ro- of the Bohemian mountains came carne to give Its name to the monetary monetary monetary mone mone- tary unit of Prussia before the establishment establishment establishment es es- of the German empire Other countries adopted dollars In 10 their currency and the name was wa next nest applied to other coins of weight and fineness similar to the dollar The Time famous Spanish piece of eight eight reals reals came came to be he called caned a dollar and this became the most widely circulated of ot all the early dollars It Is the Spanish pieces of eight which ga gave 0 us our standard coin In Inthe Inthe the time days s 's of the Spanish colonial empire empire empire em em- pire in America AmerIc the time Spanish milled dollar circulated as freely In the time English colonies as In n the Spanish and became the principal medium of exchange throughout the western hemisphere The Time United States adopted its dollar dol lar Jar currency un under er the time coinage act of 1702 The United States wanted to be Independent of Great Britain even en In Its currency and it turned to the Spanish example rather than the British nn and a decimal system was decided upon Instead of the Brit BritIsh BritIsh Ish Islet calculation of shilling and pence The Spanish dollar had 1 been heen een divided into eight but that of oC the United States was divided Into a n hundred fractions cent being from fron Latin and French words for hundred |