In most countries commodity monies were abandoned many years ago. At one point, sea shells and other artifacts from nature were commonly used. One of the more interesting examples of a commodity money is described by David Houston, an ethno-ornithologist.1 In the nineteenth century, elaborate rolls of red feathers harvested from the Scarlet Honeyeater bird were used as currency between the island of Santa Cruz and nearby Pacific Islands. Feathers were made into rolls of more than 10 meters in length and were never worn, displayed, or used. Their sole role was to serve as currency in a complex valuation system. Houston tells us that more than 20,000 of these birds were killed each year to create this “money,” adding considerably to bird mortality. Running the printing presses is much easier. Today, one of the few remaining uses of commodity monies is the use of dolphin teeth in the Solomon Islands.

Apparently, there is even a problem with counterfeiting as people try to pass off fruit bat teeth as dolphin teeth!

Question

Why do red feather rolls and dolphin teeth make good commodity monies, whereas coconut shells would not?

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