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The word mark (from an apparently non- Teutonic word found in all Teutonic Languages and Romance Languages , and Latinized as ''marca'' or ''marcus'') originally expressed a measure of weight only for gold and silver, commonly used throughout Western Europe and equivalent to 8 oz (ounces). Considerable variations, however, occurred throughout the Middle Ages (see Du Cange , ''Gloss. med. et infim. Lat.'', s.v. ''Marca'' for a full list). In England the "mark" never appeared as a coin, but as a money of account only, and apparently came into use in the 10th century through the Danes . It first equalled 100 Pence , but after the Norman Conquest equalled 160 pence = 2/3 of the Pound Sterling , or 13s. 4d., and therefore in Scotland 31s. 2d. (due to the lower value of the Scottish Pound ) In Scotland , the Merk Scots comprised a silver coin of this value, issued first in 1570 and afterwards in 1663 . In northern Germany (especially Hamburg ) and Scandinavia , the mark was a unit of account and coin worth 16 Schilling or Skilling . Germany adopted the mark as its currency following unification in 1871. This first mark came to be known as the Papiermark during the Hyperinflation which it suffered up to 1923. The most valueable mark were printed in 1908, today they would be worth up $55 million U.S. a piece. A new mark was introduced, called the Rentenmark (worth 1,000,000,000,000 papiermark), swiftly replaced by the Reichsmark in 1924. The Deutsche Mark was introduced by the western allies in their zones of occupation in 1948, with the Soviets issuing their own Deutsche mark (often referred to as the East German Mark or Ostmark, later officially called the "Mark der DDR") later that same year. SEE ALSO REFERENCES |