| To satisfy my curiosity I did some piggy bank | | | | was often used to hold coins. Eventually, the |
| research and have learned some interesting | | | | pygg jar or pygg bank used for coins, surely |
| things and thought I'd share them with you. | | | | accidentally, became known as a pig bank or |
| | | | piggy bank! The general consensus is that |
| As you well know, many, particularly ceramic, | | | | this evolution transpired a few hundred years |
| piggy banks do not have an opening to remove | | | | ago in England when crafters were hired to |
| the money. Now why is that? The theory goes | | | | make pygg banks and not being familiar with |
| that this is to serve as a lesson in finances | | | | pygg they made pig shaped banks. |
| for children. The piggy bank enables a child | | | | |
| to save his money but forces him to justify | | | | The oldest recorded piggy bank in the shape |
| its spending as in order to access the money | | | | of a pig is claimed to be 1500 years old from |
| he needs to break his piggy bank. This lesson | | | | Indonesia. If this is so, it precedes the |
| seems to have been forgotten by many adults! | | | | pygg theory by around 1000 years! Perhaps |
| Maybe we should keep a piggy bank in our | | | | there was some connection between the pig and |
| front foyer and deposit our loose change as | | | | saving money in that culture but it seems to |
| we come home each day! I digress... | | | | have not influenced Western culture, where |
| | | | the modern piggy bank only evolved from pygg |
| The question still remains, why is it called | | | | clay just a few hundred years ago. |
| a piggy bank and why is it in the shape of a | | | | |
| pig? | | | | Understandably, the piggy bank is not popular |
| | | | in all cultures. The pig is considered an |
| One theory is that just as it was common to | | | | impure animal according to the Old Testament |
| purchase a piglet and feed it with scraps | | | | and hence is not owned, eaten nor benefited |
| until it was finally ready for slaughter, so | | | | by Jews. Similarly, Islam forbids the eating |
| too we feed our piggy bank with small change | | | | of pork due to being impure. Hence, one would |
| ("scraps") until it is full and then break it | | | | not expect to find too many piggy banks in |
| to reap the rewards of our investment. | | | | Muslim countries and in homes of those of the |
| According to this, the piggy bank would also | | | | Jewish and Islam faiths. |
| be appropriate for adults. | | | | |
| | | | The modern piggy bank, whether made from |
| A more popular theory is that, in fact, the | | | | ceramics, plastic, beads or metal, has been a |
| original piggy bank had absolutely nothing to | | | | very popular collector's item and gift for |
| do with a pig! In the Middle Ages, when metal | | | | children due to its appealing and humorous |
| was expensive, an inexpensive, orange colored | | | | appearance. In addition to the smile or |
| clay, called pygg, was the common media for | | | | chuckle we experience each time we drop some |
| making pots and jars, and was referred to as | | | | change into our piggy bank let us be reminded |
| a pygg jar, for example. One of these jars | | | | by the lesson it teaches us! |