Gold bars are probably the ultimate form of money, and the forerunners of coins. Ancient coins were lumps of metal, usually precious, with a design impressed upon them, often with a weight, purity, issuer, or other guarantee of value. This Rothschild gold bar has a backstamp which says RMR (the Royal Mint Refinery, which Rotshchild took over from the RM in 1852, selling in to Engelhard in 1952.