The merk is a long-obsolete
Scottish
Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including:
*Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland
*Scottish English
*Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
silver
Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...
coin
A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in orde ...
. Originally the same word as a
money mark of silver, the merk was in circulation at the end of the 16th century and in the 17th century. It was originally valued at 13
shillings 4
pence (exactly of a
pound Scots, or about one
shilling sterling
Sterling may refer to:
Common meanings
* Sterling silver, a grade of silver
* Sterling (currency), the currency of the United Kingdom
** Pound sterling, the primary unit of that currency
Places United Kingdom
* Stirling, a Scottish city w ...
), later raised to 14''s.'' Scots.
In addition to the merks, coins issued include the four merk worth 56s or £2/16/- (£2.8); the half merk (or
noble), 6 shillings and 8 pence or 80d; the quarter merk, 3s and 4d or 40d; the eighth-thistle merk, worth 20d.
The first issue weighed and was 50% silver and 50% base metals,
[.] thus it contained of pure silver.
"Markland", or "Merkland", was used to describe an amount of land in Scottish deeds and legal papers. It was based upon a common valuation of the land.
During the "Lang Siege" of
Edinburgh Castle
Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age, although the nature of the early settlement is unclear. ...
in 1572, the last phase of the
Marian civil war, the goldsmith
James Cockie minted half merks in the castle, while the supporters of
James VI set up their mint at
Dalkeith.
[Harry Potter, ''Edinburgh Under Siege: 1571-1573'' (Stroud, 2003), p. 97.]
References
Coins of Scotland
{{Scotland-hist-stub