Chocolate Money

An article about the use of cacao pods (chocolate) as a form of money (currency).

Money of the Gods

Theobroma cacao

The seeds of Theobroma cacao (food of the gods chocolate tree) were once used extensively by the Maya, Aztec, various tribes, and Spanish explorers as a form of currency. In 1535, Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés reported that the Nicarao tribe (who lived in the area that is now Nicaragua) would pay 10 beans for a rabbit; about 100 beans for a slave; and 8 to 10 beans for the services of a prostitute. In 1556, Friar Diego de Landa wrote that in the region that is now Yucatán:

"In their bartering they used cacao and stone counters which they had for money, and with which they bought slaves and other fine and beautiful stones, such as chiefs wore as jewels on festive occasions." — Friar Diego de Landa, 1556

A year earlier (1555), the Spanish had set the exchange rate at 140 beans to 1 real (a Spanish coin). Cacao beans remained a monetary unit until the beginning of the 19th century. Today, cacao seeds are the source of commercial cocoa, chocolate, and cocoa butter.

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"Chocolate Money." Mintmark.com [Web site]. Jacksonville, FL: Mintmark Numismatics, Inc., 1997. http://www.mintmark.com/chocolatemoney.html