Money pouch (Chazza), late medieval/early 16th-century purse, black

Product description

In the Middle Ages you carried your money – exclusively coins – in a leather pouch worn on a belt. Pickpockets were adept at cutting such a well-filled pouch loose unnoticed in the crush of the market. At the beginning of the 16th century, the money pouch therefore came into use: a purse that offered more security because it was often worn under the outer garment. There is disagreement about the origin of the name. Some point to the Old High German chazza, which means 'pouch' or 'storage place'; others think that cat skins were actually used for them initially.

The principle is simple: a long tube of soft sheep leather with widened ends and a slot in the middle through which exactly one coin fits. Two brass rings, smaller than the coins, you slide toward the ends to lock the money. If you want to pay, you slide them toward the slot. You carry the money pouch hung over a belt or attached to it lengthwise. Whoever felt the coins in the purse while trading counted them, they were about to buy.

An authentic detail for late medieval and early 16th-century re-enactment, executed in black leather.