Spain
Rich deposits of silver in the Spanish colonies of the New World allowed Spain to mint great quantities of silver coins. The Spanish dollar was a Spanish coin, the "real de a ocho" and later peso, worth eight reals (hence the nickname "pieces of eight"), which was widely circulated during the 18th century.
By the American Revolution in 1775, Spanish dollars backed paper money authorized by the individual colonies and the Continental Congress. In addition to the American dollar, the 8-real coin became the basis for the Chinese yuan.
Read more about this topic: Silver Standard
Famous quotes containing the word spain:
“England and France, Spain and Portugal, Gold Coast and Slave Coast, all front on this private sea; but no bark from them has ventured out of sight of land, though it is without doubt the direct way to India.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Heroic ages are not and never were sentimental and those daring conquistadores who conquered entire worlds for their Spain or Portugal received lamentably little thanks from their kings.”
—Stefan Zweig (18811942)