The first national coinage was begun in 1822, and the decimal system was adopted in 1863.
At last that final expedient of weak governments, the debasing of the coinage, led to a crisis.
In the election of 1896 all the parties in the state declared in favour of the free and unlimited coinage of silver at the ratio of 16 to 1.
Besides the ordinary shell money, there is a sort of stone coinage, consisting of huge calcite or limestone discs or wheels from 6 in.
It was among the towns that had the right of coinage, and it manufactured carts, baskets, &c. Cicero speaks of it as a place of some importance.