Before the invention of coins, the role of money was played by objects of a certain value in the eyes of those who were ready to exchange the goods for them. Such items became an intermediary between manufacturers. Gradually, these pieces of metal became intermediaries, which became a universal means of accumulation and circulation.
The rational origin of money
Supporters of this theory are Paul Samuelson and John C. Gelbraith. They believe that money came about as a result of an agreement between people. That is, at a certain stage, human society decided to assign monetary functions to precious metals.
The evolutionary origin of money
This approach involves the transition to money for objective reasons, including: division of labor, property separation of producers, economic growth, the need to observe a fair exchange equivalent.
To understand why they came up with money, it is worth considering their main functions.
