People use money to buy food, books and hundreds of other things they need. When they work, they usually get paid in money. Most of the money used today is made of metal or paper. But in the time long ago, people used to use all kinds of things as money. One of the first kinds of money was shells. In China, cloth and knives were used as money. Elephant tusks , monkey tail and salt were used in some parts of the world. Rice was also a kind of money used by the people in some islands. Some animals were used as money, too. The first copper coins were made in China. They were round and had a square hole in the center. Different countries have used different metals for their money. Later, some countries began to make coins of gold and silver . But gold and silver were heavy to carry when people needed a lot of coins to buy something expensive. The Chinese were the first to use paper money. The first paper money looked more like a note from one person to another than the paper money used today. Money has had an interesting story from the days of shell money till today. _  was also a kind of money used by the people in some islands.
Gold Animals Rice Knives