A closer look
You know that panic when your card declines? Now apply that to an entire continent. During the 15th century, Europe suffered the Great Bullion Famine, a period where silver production cratered and gold vanished eastward to pay for luxury goods. Commerce ground to an agonizing halt. People resorted to barter, cutting coins into fractions, or issuing credit on blind trust. It was an absolute liquidity nightmare that didn't end until they stumbled into the Americas and started plundering silver on an industrial scale.
