1 Skilling – Norway

In 1779, Norway, then in a union with Denmark under the Danish Crown, operated within a complex and strained monetary system. The official currency was the Danish rigsdaler, divided into 96 skilling, but the reality was one of severe scarcity of official coinage. This shortage was a chronic issue, exacerbated by Norway's persistent trade deficit with Denmark, which caused silver and copper coins to continually flow out of the kingdom to settle debts. As a result, everyday commerce relied heavily on a confusing patchwork of substitutes, including fragmented coins, private promissory notes, and even commodity money like dried fish or butter in remote areas.

The situation was further complicated by the circulation of numerous foreign coins, particularly the speciedaler, a large silver coin that many considered more reliable than the official currency. This led to a de facto dual system where large transactions were conducted in speciedaler while small change remained desperately scarce. The Danish state attempted to manage the system by issuing paper money, the so-called kurantsedler, but these notes were not legal tender in Norway and often traded at a significant discount, adding another layer of instability and confusion to the economy.

This monetary disarray created significant economic friction, hindering trade and creating uncertainty for both merchants and the general population. The year 1779 fell within a period of growing Norwegian economic nationalism and calls for a separate national bank to address the currency problem. These pressures would eventually culminate in the founding of Norges Bank in 1816, shortly after the dissolution of the union with Denmark, marking the beginning of a modern, unified Norwegian currency.