Chronological History of Money Since Babylon

Chronological History of Money Since Babylon by Wickliffe B. Vennard presents a sweeping monetary narrative that traces the evolution of money from ancient Mesopotamian systems of weight and bullion to modern central banking and fiat currency. Organized as a historical progression rather than a theoretical treatise, the book argues that monetary change has never been neutral: each transformation—from metal coinage to paper promises to credit expansion—reshaped political power and personal liberty. Vennard frames the abandonment of hard money as a decisive turning point, contending that inflation, debt finance, and centralized control are not accidents of modernity but outcomes of deliberate policy choices. Written from a hard-money perspective, the work treats monetary history as a record of recurring struggle between sound currency anchored in tangible value and financial systems built on managed credit and state authority.