When we think of money, we think of coins and paper money. That is what
money is today. But in the past people used many things instead of money. Some countries used cows. Other countries used salt, sheep, tea or stones(石块). Today there are still some places in the world that don’t often use paper. One places is the island of Yap in the Pacific Ocean.
On the island of Yap, people use the heaviest money in the world-Yap
stones. These are round, white stones with a hole in the middle. The Yap stones are not produced on the island. The Yap men have to go to islands four hundred kilometers away to get them. Big stones can be twelve feet high—as big as two tall man. Small stones are as big as a dinner plate.
Rich people do not carry the Yap stone. Servants follow the rich. Each servant
carries a stone on a pole(竿子) over his shoulder(肩). Today the people on the island use paper money for everyday shopping. But for other things they still prefer Yap stones.