Precious metal values in Middle Ages...

[Agemegos]

Originally Posted by sjard

So while 453 grams = 1 US standard pound (16 ounces), 1 troy pound (12 troy ounces) weighs in at only about 369-370 grams.

To be precise, the Avoirdupoids pound is 454 grammes (by definition), and the Troy pound is 373 grammes.

[sjard]

Originally Posted by Agemegos

To be precise, the Avoirdupoids pound is 454 grammes (by definition), and the Troy pound is 373 grammes.

That's what I get for trying to do the math myself.

[malloyd]

Originally Posted by Agemegos

To be precise, the Avoirdupoids pound is 454 grammes (by definition), and the Troy pound is 373 grammes.

Well no. To be *precise* an international avoirdupois pound is .45359237 kilograms, since the US and Commonwealth compromise definition in 1958. Previously they had differed by a fraction of a part per million. I confess I had to look that up, the number I had to memorize mumblety years ago is 453.6 grams, which is pretty close.

A troy pound is 5760 grains by definition, and since this agreement also redefined the grain it redefined the troy weights too, the troy pound is .373241721 kilograms.

[Agemegos]

Originally Posted by whswhs

historically precious metals were scarce in the Middle Ages;

Precious metals got steadily more plentiful, as rich silver-mines in Germany put metal into circulation faster than the economy grew. In terms of silver, prices and wages in general rose by about a factor of four from about 1100 to about 1400.

[vitruvian]

I would probably go with a middle-of-the road valuation, to reflect that there's a glut of dungeon-recovered and dwarf-mined gold and silver on the market, but that a pouch of purely gold coins should still represent a smallish fortune.

So, perhaps:

Gold pieces (GP) aka crowns or eagles - $20, 50 ~ 9g coins to the GURPS (avoirdupois) pound ($1,000 per lb), may be frequently hacked into quarter bits worth $5.

Silver pieces (SP) aka dollars or thalers or silver pennies - $1, 50 ~9g coins to the GURPS (avoirdupois) pound ($50 per lb), may be frequently hacked into quarter bits or farthings worth $0.25.

Copper pieces (CP) aka coppers or copper pennies - $0.05, 50 ~9g coins to the GURPS (avoirdupois) pound ($2.50 per lb). May

So, starting wealth for somebody of Average or Comfortable Wealth can easily be carried in a belt pouch if it's purely gold, a backpack if silver. On the other hand, a dragon's hoard that weighs a literal ton and needs a wagon or multiple pack animals to get back to town is worth a cool $2 million, which is really quite a high level of Filthy Rich and buys quite a bit of stuff at TL3 prices. It might be difficult to get back to the closest town, but once there it might represent greater wealth than the total worth of said town.

And improvising good wagons or other apparatus for transporting treasure troves back to civilization might be one of the niche roles for a hypothetical Artificer template.

[Christian]

vitruvian, there is a VERY big difference between silverpennies and silverdollar/taler.

A silverpenny is a very small coin of approx 2g silver value, and was important during the middle age (TL 3). Weight 1 -2 g, diameter ~15 mm (0.6 inch), thickness ~0.5 mm (0.2 inch). A very small and thin coin.

A german/austrian taler, was a real large coin of 23.3 g silver value. Its main time came in the age of sail (TL 4), and later the spanish dolaro as well as the american silver dollar was minted with a similar weight (24 g).
Weight: 23 -30 gramm, so almost an ounce, diameter 40 mm (1.6 inch), thickness 2,5 mm (0.1 inch). So a big and heavy coin.

[vitruvian]

vitruvian, there is a VERY big difference between silverpennies and silverdollar/taler.

Historically, absolutely. I was going for a gross simplification for DF purposes (where it would probably be too much of a pain to keep track of two kinds of 'silver pieces'), and mixed up the threads.

[Agemegos]

Originally Posted by Johnny1a

In the real Middle Ages, what sort of monetary value did the precious metals have (as opposed to various RPG and fantasy conventions)?

That is, suppose I had an ounce (in today's American standard measure) of gold, silver, copper, etc in, say, 1250? What sort of buying power did that ounce of metal have?

Well, a modern US ounce (ounce Avoirdupoids) is 28.375 grammes, which would have minted as almost 21 English pennies in 1250. (Coins in other countries were already debased by 1250.) That would hire a labourer for about 16 days, or buy 420 eggs, or seven gallons of Gascon wine in London, or 42 gallons of beer in Somerset, four or five cheap swords, . . . . According to whether the harvest were good or bad, the price of wheat in the middle of the 13th century might be 28 to 60 pence per quarter (eight bushels), and your 21 pence might buy six bushels of wheat or it might only buy three.

How did it vary across Europe?

I don't know. Though presumably the value of silver must have been lowest in southern Germany, where the richest mines were.