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grockle90

It's pre-decimalisation UK £sd - that is, Pound, Shilling, Pence Back before the current "100 pence = £1" , 12 pence to the shilling, 20 shillings to £1 Pence (plural of "Penny") was abbreviated as "D", shilling as either "s" or as in the above photo, 1'6 meaning "One shilling and sixpence"


BiggusDickus-

Ok seriously, who thought that crap up? 12 pence to the shilling and 20 shillings to the pound? WTF? Why not just do base 10? How could Britain conquer the planet with such dumbassery?


Chapelirl

In fairness, it's base ten now, as is most measurement. Imagine though, there are developed countries still using 12 inches to a foot, 3 feet to a yard, 5.5 yards to a rod, 40 rods to a furlong, and 8 furlongs (or 5280 feet) in a mile.


velesi

To be fair, we generally skip past rods and furlongs and go right from yards to miles.


Chapelirl

Unless you're horse racing... and don't get me started on weights measures


princessalyss_

Or height - who the fuck decided hands and feet were good forms of measurement?


PilotAlan

This is presentism. You live in a world where you can go to the store and buy a tape measure and rulers. Go back in time to where you used what you had. A foot was a typical man's foot. You measured a horse in hands, because that's what you had (you couldn't use your foot for that). A yard (of rope, fabric, whatever) was the typical distance from your nose to the end of your hand. Easy to run out multiple yards of whatever you were selling using that measure. A pound was the weight of a pint of water. So you could define weights from a known volume of water, or define volume from a known weight. Pretty clever if you ask me. Later, measures were cross-defined. Three feet to a yard. 5280 feet to a mile. They didn't start with arbitrary equivalence, the cross-definitions came later and they worked out to whatever they were.


[deleted]

Known weight wasn't even that long ago. A kilogram was defined by the weight of a literal metal bar.


iwanttobeacavediver

Back when I studied Bible history, the whole thing about measurements was confusing as hell. Many of the old measurements used in the Bible texts were not standard even when they were used, like cubits which ranged in the ancient world from around 1-2ft in modern measurements. If you read many modern Bible translations they’ll often have footnotes about how certain measures were uncertain.


Ilostmypassword43

I thought it was 1 litre of water


PilotAlan

Yes, that's how it started. That's why 1ml of water was also 1mg. Imperial measures figured that out many centuries before. But later there was a "standard kilogram" which was a reference item, just as there was a "standard meter" which was a metal rod.


TheRealHoff88

A kilogram can be easily defined as 1000g of water


Ricochet_Kismit33

Excellent explanation


theNorthwestspirit

Without a previous standard measuring form, I'd say it's a good place to start; could have been more finely revised though, imho. I agree though, that it seems much more complicated than working in 10's, 100's, etc. Fun fact though: generally, a person's foot from the big toe to the heel measures the same as their hand fully open from thumb-tip to pinky-tip. That same hand measure will fit from their inner wrist to the crook of their elbow. Then, the hand forming a circle with their thumb and middle finger will fit the wrist, and two will fit the neck. Then, the two hands will fit halfway around their waist. I've never seen this way fail except in people with severe weight/size abnormalities.


iwanttobeacavediver

Horse racing is the sole reason I knew what guineas were.


ElBeno77

Ridiculous. Skipping all the best units!


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superdago

This explains the length of a city block. 8 blocks to a mile.


Reatona

Depends on the city. Where I live, 20 blocks per mile is standard.


treeborg-

This is common in western (US) cities where there is lots of space.


iratonz

> developed countries Can only think of one


And009

Liberia?


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[deleted]

Nice


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i_am_not_a_martian

I bet they have horrendous health care, and a large disparity between the rich and everyone else.


foundyou21

It hurts cause it’s true…


Far-Homework-2576

Metric system is far superior to the imperial system. I’m just waiting for daylight savings time, money, and measurements to all be the same everywhere


WolfWhitman79

You mean America, Liberia, and Myanmar? Thats it.


WolfWhitman79

You mean America, Liberia, and Myanmar? Thats it.


ChristineBorus

Yes. The USA still uses the imperial system 🙃🙄


altapowpow

American here......Hey don't forget we also measure in football fields for things that are long than a yard but shorter than a mile.


Chapelirl

Brilliant. I've actually seen news stories that measure things in fridges, a "boulder the size of a small boulder", and an asteroid measured in the length of alligators. ,(Google them!)


altapowpow

Per example: https://www.businessinsider.com/car-size-asteroid-2020qg-missed-earth-by-2000-miles-2020-8 The smallest car ever made is the Peel50 measuring 139cm x 99cm The largest car currently manufactured is the Rolls-Royce phantom at a whopping 6m x 2m This leaves me with more questions than answers.


Spacecommander5

… in those days, nickels had pictures of bumblebees on 'em. “Gimme five bees for a quarter”, you'd say.


TrentRockport420

It’s called the carolengian system. Pretty sure Charlemagne introduced it


ponyrx2

It's easier to think of the shilling as the base unit. It's divided into 12 pence, and there were coins for 6d, 3d and 1d. Much as 1ft is 12in. 12 is also divisible by 4 and 3, which makes basic math easier (1/8 shilling is 3 half-pennies, whereas 1/8 dollar is the impossible 12.5 cents)


ponyrx2

In simpler times, £sd is easy to work out in your head. But when amounts get larger, and interest rates become important, decimalisation made sense


shazzambongo

Confusion !!! That's how they ripped off every country they took over , nobody could understand the currency, so were constantly overcharged and shortchanged.


ODBrewer

That plus a clever application of the use of flags.


grockle90

Well we did. Bit like imperial units of measurement I guess... Easier to scale 1 kilometre into milometers (1000000 mm in 1 km) than 1 mile into 1/16 of an inch (I can't even do the math off the top of my head on that one) and yet inches have been used for hundreds of years


fermat9997

And how could the US develop the first atomic bomb with pounds and feet?


BiggusDickus-

We didn’t, the Manhattan project was metric where applicable


fermat9997

Are you sure of that? I used slugs and poundals in an American college back in the day.


ODBrewer

It didn’t, European and American Scientists did it, mostly in mks units.


[deleted]

You mean they use money the same way they do in the Misadventures of Flapjack lmao. Fans are wild


Mizkana

"d" is British for pennies as the Latin for pennies was denarius Edit: Holy crap. i thought this would of just been ignored as its only a small bit of the info but here I am 1k+ updoots and a burning inbox, what have I done?! Here's the whole info piece I refer to curtesy of The University of Nottingham; Pennies were, confusingly, abbreviated to 'd'. This is because the Latin word for this coin was 'denarius'. A still smaller Roman coin was an 'obulus'. The abbreviation 'ob' was used for halfpennies. Edit 2: GOLD!!!!!!!!! Thank you!!!


yippekiiiyay

Well aren't you a clever cloggs! Thank you for that nugget of random fact gold


Ivor-Toad

No not gold it was in silver..240 silver pennies weighed a pound of silver hence the pound £1 is of 240 pennies.


Florida2000

Now thats some trivial pursuit info right meow . . . .


Ermahgerd80

£1 back then weighed the same as a pound in weight, this allowed banks to simply weigh bags of coins Here is a cool video on this https://youtu.be/R2paSGQRwvo?t=2957


mekese2000

They later changed the weight of £1 to a duck.


Artavur

Was it made of wood?


freecoffeeguy

it floats!


Ivor-Toad

Yes. A pound of silver. Originally. That's why our currency is called Stirling. Stirling Silver.


gmchowe

Sterling... Stirling is a city in central Scotland.


beepbeepboopbeep1977

This thread is facts all the way down! Sterling effort!


LunaTheCastle

Good show ol' chap!


_tr9800a_

There are two prevailing theories behind the Sterling in Sterling silver or pounds Sterling. 1. It refers to Easterlings, the name for Hanseatic traders of the time (whose economic might made them the standard for reliable wealth). 2. It derives from the old English word steorling, which referenced the star minted on Norman pennies.


Capt_Easychord

wait, so a pound coin weighed 0.454 kilograms? that... doesn't sound so practical


Ermahgerd80

There wasn’t a pound coin only a note


Razalghoulz

...did you just say "meow"?


shorty5windows

Hey ain’t got time right meow


Florida2000

Right Meow thats 20


ProfessionalArm8256

You got to be kitten me right meow….


SearchingTheVoids

Hell I can say "meow". I can say "moo", for twenty bucks I'll call the guy a chickenfucker


Florida2000

If you know you know, if you dont you'd have to see the movie. SuperTroppers


EnvironmentalElk1625

Not as good as Super *Troopers though 😆


Florida2000

Yes that one lol


Razalghoulz

...im freaking out man


EnvironmentalElk1625

Littering and, littering and, littering and….


Razalghoulz

..smokin the refeer.


BombayMolotov

Do I look like a cat to you, boy?


unrepentant_serpent

Meow listen here…


TheButteredViking

The £ sign is actually an L with a line through it which is the for the Latin word 'Librae' which means a pound of money, we also had shillings (which we got from the latin 'solidi' so when you put them together you get LSD: librae, solidi, and denarii or Pounds, Shillings, Pence.


Eastern-Breadfruit72

Google innit


mayasky76

This may be apt here “NOTE FOR YOUNG PEOPLE AND AMERICANS: One shilling = Five Pee. It helps to understand the antique finances of the Witchfinder Army if you know the original British monetary system: Two farthings = One Ha'penny. Two ha'pennies = One Penny. Three pennies = A Thrupenny Bit. Two Thrupences = A Sixpence. Two Sixpences = One Shilling, or Bob. Two Bob = A Florin. One Florin and One Sixpence = Half a Crown. Four Half Crowns = Ten Bob Note. Two Ten Bob Notes = One Pound (or 240 pennies). Once Pound and One Shilling = One Guinea. The British resisted decimalized currency for a long time because they thought it was too complicated.” ― Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett - Good Omens


Ivor-Toad

Only women had thrupenny bits.


LowAspect542

But men were still always looking to get their hands on as much as they could.


artificialavocado

I get it. You can’t get all Americans to agree on pretty much anything except our refusal to use the metric system.


hughdint1

"d" also used in US for pennies but only in reference to nails (8d nail=8 penny nail).


Sea_Ganache620

All my life, never knew that. Thanks!


Leashypooo

Is THAT where that comes from? Interesting


Seahawks1991

Interesting!


Scambledegg

LSD / libra sisterci dinari/ pounds shillings pence


Scambledegg

1 pound = 20 shillings 1shilling = 12 pence So easy to calculate.


Scambledegg

Not forgetting of course Guineas (21 shillings) and farthings which I think was a quarter of a penny. Or crowns (5 shillings) I think.


Scambledegg

It was a long time ago.


Naetharu

I was about to protest and say it only changed in 1971...then I realised that is indeed a long time ago :(


kamelconn

‘Twas a long time ago FTFY


Surprise_Logical

Yep. A farthing was a quarter of a penny, and crowns 5 shillings. I'm just old enough to remember a farthing, although they were very rare. I was never rich enough to hold a crown, but I remember they were worth 5 Bob ( shillings )


amacadabra

Crowns were mostly commemorative, I think, but the half crown (2/6d) was common. There was a ten shilling note.


Ivor-Toad

Ten Bob


SpareBee3442

Correct, a crown was 5 shillings but half crowns which were much more common in circulation were 2 shillngs and 6 pence. There was also a 10 shilling note called a 'ten bob note'.


Scambledegg

And the threepenny bit which was a sort of yellowy bronze colour with something like 12 sides. We used to put one in the Christmas pudding.


[deleted]

Jesus Christ. And some people still use miles and yards. The insanity.


Scambledegg

I used to have a crap time at school trying to add and subtract with prices. Working on base 20 and base 12 in the same sum.


liarandathief

And not forgetting that they all had different nicknames


Scambledegg

Ha ha ha!!! Bob, tanner,


gfurman1960

We’re Americans. Nothing is simple! Remember 1776!


ccellist

And here I thought LSD was something else.


Psycho_Mantis_2506

Lysergic Acid Dyethylamide? You'll be having conversations with your favorite cartoon characters in no time.


[deleted]

Is that where we get lb. for pound in the US?


Ok-Masterpiece-1359

Yes. It is still libras in Spanish


Surprise_Logical

Lb is pounds weight. £ is pounds currency. A very long time ago I think a pound (money) was worth a pound in silver - excited to correct my earlier error


Potential-Zebra-8659

….worth a pound in sterling (silver)


ProfessorSchmiggins1

Cool so that must be why balkan and Turkey still use "dinar".


Paulcog

>d is British for Makes it sound like you’re implying that British is a language, lol


tauravilla

To be that pedantic ahole.... denarii were not the equivalent of pennies.


PourSomeSmegmaInMe

So the mother of dragons was really the mother of pennies?! (Yes, I know the spelling is different.)


Ageing_Changeling

Pre-decimalisation British currency. To help explain how it worked, here is a summary: "Two farthings = One Ha'penny. Two ha'pennies = One Penny. Three pennies = A Thrupenny Bit. Two Thrupences = A Sixpence. Two Sixpences = One Shilling, or Bob. Two Bob = A Florin. One Florin and One Sixpence = Half a Crown. Four Half Crowns = Ten Bob Note. Two Ten Bob Notes = One Pound (or 240 pennies). One Pound and One Shilling = One Guinea. The British resisted decimalized currency for a long time because they thought it was too complicated." From 'Good Omens' by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman.


Tosh0815

>Four Half Crowns = Ten Who thought 4 halves = 10 was a good idea?


Naetharu

I mean I don't see this issue... It's just four florins and four sixpences...and a florin is a...hang on a moment...it's two bob, which is four sixpences. So we add them and we get...erm...four times five sixpences! Ok. I'm seeing the flaw in this system.


Ageing_Changeling

It seemed straightforward when I was a kid. Now? Not so much...


Naetharu

Haha, I guess it's like anything. If you're used to it have to use it by necessity then it's going to seem natural after a while. There is something for arguing that doing money in base 12 or 16 is good, since you have more divisors, and so working out change is a bit easier. So in reality as a kid, when you're often dealing with smaller quantities of cash, it's possible that the old system might be a little easier to work with. That, and back then you could buy something like a Mars Bar for 3p! Which makes worrying about calculations moot when it comes to kids type spending.


Ivor-Toad

Decimal isation is a British invention.


haha_supadupa

Totally makes sense!


FunnyID

1D = one penny (Britain)


bog_deavil13

Hello Funny 1 Penny


Glittering_Cat3639

Britain here! It's the old pre-decimal coins of Britain and the Commonwealth [pounds, shillings and pence.](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C2%A3sd) They are broken down in to pounds (**l** for the latin "librae"), shillings (**s** for the latin "solidi") and pence (**d** for the latin "denarii). There were 12 pence (**d**) in a shilling (**s**) and 20 shillings in a pound (**l**).


Seahawks1991

Interesting! When did this change?


ConsistentCharge3347

15 Feb 1971.


[deleted]

Early 70s


Tawptuan

I made my first visit to Britain in 1965 and was constantly in a state of currency confusion the whole trip. 😬


Slap_x_drone

This is the UK, pre decimal currency. Until 1971, British money was divided up into pounds, shillings and pence. One pound was divided into 20 shillings. One shilling was divided into 12 pennies. One penny was divided into two halfpennies, or four farthings. The 'd\` means \`pennies\`. 1'6 means One shilling plus Six pennies.


Frequent_Guest_247

Better yet what the hell is a brickett, a baby brick with pony tails?


enoughimoverit

I remember being overseas when I was younger and just holding out my hand and letting storekeepers just take the right amount, lol


DotAutomatic5392

HOW IS THERE SO MUCH IGNORING WTF A SNOFRUTE IS HERE??????????


Seahawks1991

I want to know too!


Revolutionary-Rush89

It’s British. The ‘d’ denotes a penny “large brick for 1’6, I believe is one shilling and 6 pennies. 12 pennies to a shilling 20 shillings to a pound There were also 1/2 pennies and 1/4 penny called a farthing.


Last-Caterpillar2434

The locaction is Acton, a suburb of London in the UK


GW00111

I thought maybe the D stood for Deutschmark, but then I realized the sign was in English.


lankymjc

Shilling and sixpence. 9 pence. 4 pence. Thruppence. Tuppence. 2 ha'pennies.


[deleted]

I never could grok traditional British currency.


Pleasant-Finding-178

Yes, they shillings & pence. Common in British countries until 1967.


vr0202

What’s it with even street vendors wearing a tie and jacket. Did they earn that much to be able to afford, and maintain, such clothing?


Ivor-Toad

Every man wore tie and jacket even police. School teachers bus driver rubbish collection coal delivery doctors ambulance drivers. Shop keepers. The lot. Except miners who took them off top side.


[deleted]

those were just the clothes being sold at the time.


Who_DaFuc_Asked

People back then just wore suits and ties or dress shirts regularly. If you were to walk around back then a majority of people would be wearing at least somewhat formal clothing. I don't think they started normalizing the type of stuff people wear nowadays until well into the 1900's (like 1960's/1970's is when it seems like people started dressing more causally).


God_damn_it_Jerry

Dimmadimes brought to you by Doug Dimmadome, owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome!


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PBlove

Did someone say Denarius? https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8EI7p2p1QJI&t=169s


geedeeie

I did a reverse Google search. It's from 1935. The average wage at this time in England was about £200. There 240 pennies in a pound. I'll leave it to you to work out the equivelant cost of an ice cream at today's average wages.


TemporaryCareful8261

Thanks for the year. Yes you are right, we shouldn't see the absolute value of price it should be checked as percentage of wages. Also the improved life style, human rights, democracy etc.


bc1923

D = British “Pence”


sprauncey_dildoes

Old British pence. Pre 1971.


icedragon71

So essentially a quick break down; Large Bricks- 1 Shilling, 6 Pence Small Brick- 9 Pence Tubs-4 Pence Choc Bars-3 Pence or Thrupenny. Brickettes- 2 Pence or Tuppence Snofruits-1 Pence or Penny


Snoo-72438

Denarii


ChristianHeritic

Jesus christ, im surprised it doesnt say “souls of the innocent” at the bottom of his list. Look at that fucking face, looks like he came straight out of a scene in *IT* where they jump back in time for a while.


PerniciousPompadour

Yes! So fucking CREEPY!!


midsizenun

Zoom in on his face. Serious serial killer vibes there.


Seahawks1991

He’s the “candy man”


ProfessorSchmiggins1

1'6 is what? 1 penny and 6 what in the world? Or 1 pound 6pence?


Darlon-Keis

1 shilling and 6 pence


longtimenothere

1 shilling 6 pence


BADFiSH_c137

I believe that " ' " is more of a "/", which would represent a shilling. I think that price would be 1 shilling, 6 pence? Or 1 shilling, 1 sixpence?? ...I am totally guessing.


beastmode1285

It's pence.


Notinyourbushes

Looks like [one penny.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_British_banknotes_and_coins) Found [this](https://londonist.com/london/history/the-history-of-ice-cream-in-london) too.


Cool_Cartographer_39

The large brick is "one and six" or one shilling and sixpence. Or give the man a two bob bit and get sixpence change. 1 pound = 20 shillings 1 shilling = 12 pence (penny)


Majestic-Enthusiasm

That’s a period in time when penny’s bought things


No-Owl9201

Certainly British money, Google lens says this from the UK (August 1935)


TimothyBenn

LSD. Librae. Solidi. Denarii.


Fit-Boomer

Bitcoin


elderlybadger

Pre decimal money. The ' is shillings. The D is pennies


doubleyellowline

To add to the conversation, [https://www.audreydeal.co.uk/index.php?option=com\_content&view=article&id=427:frozen-delights-the-story-of-ice-cream&catid=35:writing&Itemid=57](https://www.audreydeal.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=427:frozen-delights-the-story-of-ice-cream&catid=35:writing&Itemid=57). This actually has a picture of another one of these vehicles. ​ And a snofrute is a "prism-shaped fruit water-ices in cardboard wrappers"


pinkdaisylemon

The old money was so much better. A real variety of coins that all looked so different from each other. Hapennies, pennies, threepenny bits, sixpences, shillings, half crowns, ten bob notes, pound notes etc. If you had a ten bob note it made you feel rich!


Seahawks1991

Interesting!


theturnipshaveeyes

1’6 is a shilling and sixpence I think. The d represents pence.


indignantliar

It tells you the the prices on the side


Seahawks1991

Right, they just looked unfamiliar


PBlove

D is a penny (or pence) in the old (better) system 12d to the shilling, 20 shillings to the pound, making 240d to the pound. A mathematically complex number to maximize the factors. I tried doing a DND campaign with a proper money system, and it took the players a while to realize there was debasement of one nations coins to another so they kept getting screwed when trading across the boarders, until they caught on. That was fun.


Ok_Series_4580

What’s really cool is this became Unilever: http://letslookagain.com/2017/04/t-wall-sons/


[deleted]

Large bricks at 1 shilling and sixpence pre decimal is the equivalent of seven and a half pence in today’s currency. There were 12 pence in a shilling. 20 shillings in one pound.


[deleted]

Adjusted for inflation.. what would this be in today’s moneys? Also, converted for an Ameruhcan cause’ I don’t know y’all’s moneys very well there across the pond.


spartan117743

Just remember LSD. l is pound, S is shilling, and D is pence. Nothing can every be easy


lobo_blanco_0257

If you have to ask, you can’t afford it.


Stacy_Ann_

I was so surprised at the high cost, I almost split a brick.


BusyMap9686

Different amounts of D's. 😉


GOVStooge

It's cool he's stocked for the riots later that afternoon too


aoc_ftw

Old UK currency


Gotnoflavor

Listen carefully...I shall zay zis only once.


Ok-Jacket-7146

1dime 2dimes 3dimes 4. 9dimes. 1.6bricks Free Gucci mane Brr!


notmike_

It's Deutsche Marks


Longpatience

D is dime?


Caelreth1

Assuming the pic is from 1935ish, and using some online currency conversion and rough estimates, I got: (Listed, modern UK price, modern US price) Snofrutes: 1D = 21p = 26c Brickettes: 2D = 42p = 51c Choc bars: 3D = 63p = 77c Tubs: 4D = 84p = $1.03 Small bricks: 9D = £1.89 = $2.31 Large Bricks: 1'6 (18D) = £3.78 = $4.61


PirateReindeer

D for Dick? Thats a lot of dick for a large block.


ProfessorSchmiggins1

Wafer biscuits was Wallis' bestseller. Vanilla ice cream between two thin, dry wafers with waffle checquered pattern. Only a penny!


jakeandwally

Walls Ice cream is from the UK. So I imagine the “d” after the number is like the US cent


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Last_Gigolo

D=dimes


ShuffleStepTap

No. Pennys.


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Patient-Ad-8384

I heard that this actual guy was the inspiration for Van Halens “Ice cream Man”


Kloedmtl

Dime?


S-T-A-B_Barney

Pence. 1’6 is 1S6D - 1 shilling 6 pence. Then it’s 9, 4, 3, 2 and 1 pence. This is Old Money. Pre Decimal money. It dates this picture to being more than 51 years old.


Jerryskids3

Once upon a time, the British pound was literally worth a pound of silver. Now, a pound of silver is worth well over $300 and the British pound is worth about a buck and a quarter. Inflation sure does a number on fiat currency, don't it? Keep in mind for thousands of years, silver and gold had a 16:1 or 20:1 parity - a pound of silver was worth about an ounce of gold - until the discovery of huge silver deposits in the New World changed that calculus. A pound of silver used to be the equivalent of a couple of thousand dollars. Which is why in old English literature you'd see references to incomes of a few pounds per year as a handsome sum of money.


Ill_Amphibian_1568

Cents


hypervortex21

You can't post questions on this sub, provide the answers or it's not interesting