Mike Jones Poet Fibonacci

No Currency

A
pound
Sterling –
two forty
Saxon hammered coins;
silver pennies or “little stars1”.

It
was
Offa
of Mercia,
eighth century king2,
first issued the silver penny,
and two hundred and forty weighed one pound or libra.

He
copied
the Roman
denarius coin
so one penny became “1d.”
and twelve of these equalled one solidus, or “1s.”

And
thus
became
L.s.d. –
Pounds, shillings and pence.

Sad
day
annus horribilis
nineteen sev’nty one
when decimalisation came
and Great Britain lost her monetary heritage.

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Jerry T Curtis April 22, 2015 at 6:06 AM I can't give a sou, I haven't had one in years----Nice write Mike, I always like learning, especially about the origin of things Mike Jones April 22, 2015 at 6:10 AM Thanks for taking the time to comment Jerry.