Currency History - Bank Of Jamaica

In the 17th and 18th centuries, Jamaica was the bullion centre of the British possessions in the New World. The island served as the headquarters of the naval military forces and the home base of the buccaneers, and as such it received a constant supply of coins.

The coins which circulated consisted of a mixture of many denominations struck in widespread areas of the globe by the more important commercial powers and their minting dependencies in the New World. The main coins in circulation were those minted in Spain and the Spanish-American mints in countries such as Mexico and Peru. Because these coins were generally of consistent good quality, readily available and universally acceptable, they became the most important circulating coins in Jamaica.

The basic Spanish silver monetary unit was the real. Eight reales made a dollar or ‘piece of eight’ as it was commonly known. The denominations which circulated were:

Spanish gold currency was based on the escudo. Its multiples were the pistole (double escudo), double pistole (half doubloon) and the quadruple pistole or doubloon. However, the principal gold coins in circulation were the doubloon and pistole, as the other denominations were seldom seen. In addition to these Spanish coins, gold and silver coins from other countries also circulated in Jamaica. From France there was the gold pistole and silver ecu, and from Portugal there was a gold moidore, half johannes and the johannes. The local colonial authorities set the exchange rates of these coins in terms of pounds, shillings and pence but the rates were different from those used in England.

In 1681, the House of Assembly passed an act to ascertain the value of the foreign coins in circulation. The value of the pieces of eight minted in Spain and Mexico were valued at 5/- while the Peruvian dollar was rated at 4/-. Between 1707 and 1722, the value of the 8 reales was increased to 6/3.

In 1758, the Jamaican Assembly passed an act to make 100 000 pounds worth of Spanish coins legal tender and to have a fixed value. In order to distinguish these coins, they were to be counter-stamped with a special design – a floreate GR in a round indent. (GR represented the reigning English monarch, Georgius Rex, George II). By this act the value of the dollar was increased to 6/8 and by common consent, all coins, whether stamped or not, passed at this new rate. However, the project was abandoned in 1759 as the act was repealed by the United Kingdom authorities and the Governor of Jamaica censured for exceeding his powers in approving the act.