Publications and Research

Autumn 2005

Exports, Imports, and the Appreciation of the Canadian Dollar by Richard Dion, Michel Laurence, and Yi Zheng How the Appreciation of the Canadian Dollar Has Affected Canadian Firms: Evidence from the Bank of Canada Business Outlook Survey by Jean Mair What Drives Movements in Exchange Rates? by Jeannine Bailliu and Michael R. King The Exchange Rate and Canadian Inflation Targeting by Christopher Ragan See also: Tables A1, A2, and Notes to the Tables Full Review (PDF, 483 kb)

Cover: Ready References

Paul Berry, Chief Curator, Currency Museum

In fifteenth-century Europe, there were no bank notes, and even simple everyday transactions could involve a wide array of gold and silver coins. It was a challenge for merchants to know the intended value of these coins. Not only did design differ from one country to the next, but the fineness and weight of the pieces often differed as well. The invention of the printing press changed all this. Ready references—simple catalogues of coins accompanied by written descriptions of their ideal weights and fineness—began to be published as useful guides. These works gradually became more sophisticated, including tables where the values of pieces from one nation were compared with those of another. Ready references were used by merchants until the middle of the nineteenth century, when other payment instruments became available, and nations endeavoured to set common standards of fineness and weight for their precious-metal coinage.

The reference illustrated here is a collection of ordinances and edicts issued in the Netherlands during the mid-sixteenth century. Throughout that century and the next, Amsterdam was a major financial centre of Europe. Precious metals in all forms were shipped from across Europe through this area to pay for goods from the Far East. The Netherlands’ prominent role in the commercial activity of the period and the vast array of coinage that passed through its borders made it an obvious centre for the production of such books.

Images of gold and silver coins from Europe and Asia are presented in the guide, along with identifying information. It is printed on laid paper and measures about four inches by six inches. The title page of the section illustrated features a woodcut of King Philip II, "King of Spain and England and Duke of Brabant," written in Latin, as well as his coat of arms. The title reads "Ordonance and posted by-law of His Royal Majesty regarding gold and silver coins. Published in the year of our Lord fifteen-hundred and fifty-nine." The book is part of the National Currency Collection, Bank of Canada.

Photography by Gord Carter, Ottawa