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"Piloncitos" is a collectors' term for the bead-like gold masa coins[1][2] used during the aristocratic era of the Philippines and in the early years of Spanish foreign rule,[1] called bulawan ("gold piece") in many Philippine languages or salapi ("coin") or ginto ("gold piece") in Tagalog. These are pieces that formed part of various degrees of Southeast Asian gold weight such as amás (emas in Malay) or táhil. Gold coinage was used along with silver coinage in maritime Southeast Asian currency.
Such monetary gold pieces have been found throughout the Philippines, from places such as: Mandaluyong, Bataan, the banks of the Pasig River, Batangas, and Marinduque in Luzon; Samar and Leyte in the Visayas; and in some areas in Mindanao.[1]
These gold coins are derivations of Southeast Asian silver coinage and may have evolved into the bullet or pod duang coinage of Sukhothai in Thailand.[3]
The term "piloncitos" is commonly used by antique collectors[1] who thought that the cone-shaped pieces looked like sugarloaves (pilón in Castilian). Spanish records described the gold coins as "grains of gold" ("granitas de oro").[4]
- ^ a b c d "'Piloncitos' and the 'Philippine golden age'". August 30, 2011.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
MetARCHIVEDwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Philippine Coin Information: PILONCITOS: The treasure of Philippine numismatic". Archived from the original on February 19, 2020. Retrieved March 22, 2017.
- ^ "HISTORY OF DAVAO – Currencies of the Lumads". November 11, 2015.