News Earth

Mexican silver made it into English coins

Chemical tests of currency help reveal where New World riches flowed

By Alexandra Witze

- More than 2 years ago

Chemical studies of old English coins are helping unravel a centuries-old mystery: What happened to all the silver that Spaniards dug out of the New World?

MINING MONEY A coin struck during the reign of England’s Elizabeth I (1558–1603) contains surprisingly little metal from the rich Bolivian mine that was flooding Europe with silver at the time, a new chemical analysis suggests.