A silver thread through history [video]

With a history spanning back over 2,000 years, coins are much more than just money. They are also a means of storing and communicating information, resembling tiny discs of information technology that convey images and text across vast swatches of time and territory. Coins are the first world wide web linking us together. While they can be made from many materials including gold, plastic, copper, and even cardboard, the most common material throughout history has been silver; looking carefully you can see this silver thread running through history linking the past and the present.