The Pound: A Biography: The Story of the Currency That Ruled the World

Published by Random House UK, 2001, index, 298 pages, condition: as new.

David Sinclair's compelling story of the pound is at once a biography, a history, and a celebration of the world's most enduring currency. Packed with detail and color, it charts the pound's development from its origins in the Dark Ages to its role today in Cyberspace when--single European currency or not--it may be coming to the end of its life. Yet "The Pound" is not only the story of money: it is also the story of Britain and her people on the world stage. Britain's currency was the first great international exchange currency, laying the foundations for world trade. It helped to discover continents and sent great armies across the globe. This lively and informative tome illuminates the kings and queens, merchants and bankers, politicians and fraudsters who have all played their parts in the rise and decline of the British nation.