Currency (Rai)
ClassificationsCurrency and Exchange Objects
Culture
Yap
Date18th to early 19th Century
Made AtYap, Federated States of Micronesia
MediumCrystalline limestone
Dimensions20 1/2 × 18 3/4 × 2 in. (52.1 × 47.6 × 5.1 cm)
Credit LineDonated in Honor of Robert W. Bowne and Justine Bowne Lewis
Object number2014.13.1
DescriptionYap stone currency has entranced westerners for hundreds of years. The earliest accounts from Western explorers, particularly German sailors and political officials, present a sense of awe of the size of rai, but also confusion in regards to their use. This led to a fascination with the currency and an interest to assimilate its use into a more western understanding of economics. The Yapese economic system is quite complex and is based on both a detailed traditional caste system as well as a notion of reciprocity. Currency such as this was not assigned a fixed value. Rather, its value depended entirely on the social position of the buyer and the receiver as well as the occasion for use. Rai, both small and large, were used for the exchange of goods, but also ceremonially for rituals associated with birth, death and marriage.On View
On viewCollections
19th Century to early 20th Century
early to mid 20th Century
20th Century
mid 20th Century
mid 20th Century
19th Century
19th Century
19th Century
1871-1879
