People in Asia Minor developed the first coin-based currency, but long before that humans would exchange precious objects for the things necessary for their daily life. Currency is a fact of human life, and this book explores its genesis, beginning with those early coins and precious objects and tracing their legacy to the banknotes and fraud-detecting devices of the twenty-first century. Photographs and illustrations explore the remarkable diversity and detail of contemporary currency, while engaging text explores money’s utility and places it within a social context.