The Stone Cash Of Yap

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The Pacific Island of Yap, a spot recognized for its curious artifacts which have puzzled archaeologists for hundreds of years. One such artifact is the rai stone – a singular type of forex that tells an interesting story concerning the island’s historical past and tradition.

The Ngariy Men's Meetinghouse known as a faluw on Yap island, Micronesia
Rai stones (Stone cash) scattered across the Ngariy Males’s Meetinghouse often called a faluw on Yap island, Micronesia. Picture Credit score: Adobestock

The rai stone is just not your typical forex. It’s an enormous limestone disk, some even bigger than an individual. Simply think about the sheer weight and cumbersome nature of those stones.

But, these stones had been used as forex by the Yapese individuals. They had been exchanged as marriage ceremony items, used for political causes, paid as ransoms, and even stored as inheritances.

Stone money bank in the island of Yap, Micronesia
Stone cash financial institution within the island of Yap, Micronesia. Picture Credit score: iStock

However there was one main problem with this type of forex – their dimension and fragility made it tough for a brand new proprietor to bodily transfer the stone nearer to their residence.

To beat this problem, the Yapese group developed an ingenious oral system. Each member of the group knew the names of stone homeowners and the small print of any trades. This ensured transparency and managed the movement of data.

House of the natives in the Yap Caroline islands
Home of the natives within the Yap Caroline islands. Picture Credit score: iStock

Quick ahead to the current day, the place we discover ourselves within the period of cryptocurrencies. And though rai stones and cryptocurrencies could seem worlds aside, there’s a stunning resemblance between the 2.

Enter the blockchain, an open ledger of cryptocurrency possession that gives transparency and safety. It’s just like the Yapese oral custom, the place everybody knew who owned which stone.

Archaeologists had been amazed to find that this historical “oral ledger” and as we speak’s blockchain carried out the identical obligation for his or her respective currencies – sustaining group management over info and safety.

So, as we delve deeper into the mysteries of the rai stones and the blockchain, we start to understand that even throughout huge distances of time and tradition, sure rules of forex stay unchanged.

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