Write and enact a skit to show how people may have persuaded each other to use cowrie shells (or other such items) as the medium of exchange.
A skit on the adoption of cowrie shells as medium of exchange would demonstrate the transition from direct barter to commodity money.
Characters would include a farmer with grain, a potter with pots, and a trader introducing cowrie shells.
The farmer struggles to exchange grain directly for pots because the potter needs cloth, not grain.
The trader then suggests using cowrie shells as a common medium—everyone accepts them because they are durable, portable, and valued for decoration.
The farmer sells grain for shells, then uses shells to buy pots. The potter uses shells to buy cloth.
The skit concludes with villagers realising that cowrie shells solve the problem of double coincidence of wants and make trade easier for everyone.
Explanation
The chapter explains that cowrie shells were among the commodities used in the barter system. The activity encourages students to creatively demonstrate how a community might transition from direct barter to using a common medium of exchange. The skit should show the problems of barter (double coincidence of wants) and how a standardised medium like cowrie shells could solve these problems.
Solution Steps
The skit demonstrates the transition from direct barter to commodity money using cowrie shells
Characters include a farmer with grain, a potter with pots, and a trader introducing cowrie shells
The barter problem is shown: the farmer cannot exchange grain for pots because the potter needs cloth
The trader introduces cowrie shells as a common medium of exchange
Cowrie shells are accepted because they are durable, portable, and valued for decoration
The farmer sells grain for shells, uses shells to buy pots; the potter uses shells to buy cloth
The skit concludes by showing how cowrie shells solve the problem of double coincidence of wants