Moneta: The History of Money
The word money comes from the Latin word
moneo, which means ‘to warn’ and named after the Roman goddess, Juno
Moneta. Juno, in Roman mythology, was the wife of Jupiter and as such was
considered the queen of gods and the most powerful goddess. She was originally
the goddess of marriage and childbirth, the protectress of women, the patroness
of matronly virtues and the patron goddess of Rome.
In 390 BC, a flock of geese
kept in Juno’s sanctuary on Capitoline Hill, saved Rome by warning of an
impending invasion by the Gauls. The Roman general, Marcus Furius Camillus,
built a temple on the hill in gratitude for the goddess’s warning.
Approximately one hundred years later,
the first Roman mint was built adjacent to the temple and the coins, struck with
the head of Juno Moneta on the face, were called ‘moneta’. She has since been
considered the protector of money and guardian of finances.
Money is simply a medium for exchange.
Prior to 700 BC, bartering was the customary means for exchange and trade. If
you were a baker, you exchanged your bread for meat or shoes. But what happened
if the shoemaker had too much bread? The solution was to find a commodity with
an agreed value that could be exchanged equally in trade. And so the first
coins were minted. Money could then serve three purposes: first, it could be
used as a medium for exchange; secondly, it provided a standard of value by
which goods and services could be measured; and, thirdly, it could be saved and
used in the future.
I believe it is important to remind
ourselves of these three purposes because within them lies the key to accepting
money into our lives.
Imagine this. It is a quiet Saturday
morning; you rise and take a long, hot shower. After breakfast, you make a
large pot of coffee before tackling the household chores. You wash the dishes,
clean the car and water the garden. All morning, probably with very little
thought, you have used a very important and useful commodity. What is it?
Water.
I am sure we all agree that water is a
useful and essential commodity in our lives. We turn on the tap – and take a
shower. We turn on the tap – and fill the urn. We wash and clean with it. We
cannot live without it. It is essential to our survival. Very few of us have
any problems with the usage and value of water. We do not run around the shower
saying, “Oh! I don’t deserve water”. So why should money be any different? It
is an important and essential commodity in our lives; we use it as an exchange
system to ensure that our needs are met and we can lead happy and enriched
lives. We cannot live without it. It is essential to our survival.
Let us consider other parallels between
money and water. I live in Adelaide, the capital city of the driest state in
the driest continent in the world, Australia. However, I can always rely on
water from the tap when I need it. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could do the
same with money? A trip to Paris next spring? Yes. Just turn on the tap.
Well, it can be done. But first, let us return to the concept of water.
How can we, even in the driest city in
the driest continent in the world, still rely on water whenever we need it?
Reservoirs! Yes, we have a system. (Thanks to the Romans, again.) What would
happen if we only waited until it rained? Well, here in Adelaide at least, we
would probably die of thirst. But instead, we have an excellent system in
developed countries that collects rain and stores it in reservoirs.
Could that be a hint? Yes. Many of us
live from payday to payday with our money but would not contemplate living in a
town or city without dams, tanks or reservoirs. In order to have money on tap,
and take that trip to Paris if we want to, we simply need a system that allows
us to manage our money in the same way we manage water. And, yes, we can all
have money on tap!
Let us think of money as a useful
commodity and know that if it is well managed the supply will be plentiful. Let
us put aside our judgements of the wealthy as greedy or miserly because if we
judge others so, we will not allow ourselves to be the same. Let us believe
that, as a useful, essential commodity, we all deserve to have our lives
enriched by money. Let us know that, as a measure of value, money is an
important gauge of the usefulness of the work and services we provide to our
employers, clients and the community. Let us be patient knowing that it takes
time to build the dams and reservoirs of our savings and investments, but it is
important to start now.
Copyright
© Ann
Marosy, 2002
(Extract
from The Money Program: How to Manage the 6
Stages of Wealth)
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of The Money Program
