I know that China moved to paper money extremely early. Like, classical period in Europe. They were able to do this because of a uniquely strong central state t

I know that China moved to paper money extremely early. Like, classical period in Europe. They were able to do this because of a uniquely strong central state that was able to dictate terms to not just the peasantry but the aristocracy as well. I think silver tarnishes a lot more than gold but I'll need to go and check my chemistry homework for that one. Plus, yeah, silver mines. I'm now reaching back to a couple of books I read a long while ago, but Gold was especially important in Europe because no European state ever really managed to monopolise gold mining. If lots of nations are using Silver, but you can't access silver and its use enriched your rivals then you can switch off its use.