雅浦石錢與當地人 Stone Money and a Yapese Man

Stone money is an important traditional currency in Yap (Federated States of Micronesia). Yapese people mine for calcite by sailing over 300 nautical miles to Palau. They then carve the stones into the required shape before transporting them back to Yap. Stone money serves many purposes, as gifts to celebrate a newborn, as a gift for adopting child, as dowry for marriage, as a gift at the inauguration of a leader, or as payment for ship building. During the German colonial period, fines can be paid using stone money.