I originally wrote this review for Cointalk.com, and posted it on Nov. 13, 2016. The below update was made April 13, 2025.
Spufford, Peter.u. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988.
ISBN 0521375908
Cost: $63.99
Grade: A-
While Spufford's book is not necessarily about Medieval Coins, Money and its use in Medieval Europe is essential for placing medieval coins within the context of history and their use. Spufford uses a wide variety of sources to explain the ebb and flow of coinage and economy, starting from Rome's money drain to the east (which would essentially continue throughout the Middle Ages), and the revival of coinage with the founding and opening of new silver mines. The book continues with the reintroduction of African gold, and then the bullion famine and revival of the fifteenth century. I was a little upset there was not more to be said on the twelfth century (my specialty and area of interest), but the reasons for that are addressed in the book.
There are some minor drawbacks (mis-numbered footnotes, and constantly referring to other parts of the book in a repetitive nature), but overall this is a masterful overview of the medieval economy. It is now becoming a little dated (originally written in the 1970s, but due to circumstances in the author's life, not published until the 1980s), but as far as I'm aware, there is no other single volume work that addresses the usage of coin and other money in all parts of Medieval Europe. Incredibly insightful and interesting, and the appendixes are extremely useful for keeping all of the denominations and their values in order.