Septem
| Septem | |
|---|---|
| Denominations | |
| Subunit | |
| 1/64 | Yiseptem |
| Plural | Septems |
| Yiseptem | Yiseptems |
| Symbol | $ |
| Yiseptem | ¥ |
| Demographics | |
| Date of introduction | 28th of October, 2020 |
| User(s) |  Mount September |
| Issuance | |
| Central bank | Private Bank of Mount September |
| Valuation | |
| Pegged with | Diamonds (seven per Septem) |
| Historical Data | |
| Founder | AllenY |
The Septem is the basic unit of a currency, primarily used in Mount September, especially the Mount September Mall. It was first minted on the 28th of October, 2020 by AllenY under the auspices of the Private Bank of Mount September, who continues to govern it solely. It is so called because a Septem is pegged to the value of seven diamonds ("seven" in Latin is septem), though this may change in future. One Septem (denoted by a preceding $) is subdivided into sixty-four Yiseptems (denoted by a preceding ¥); one Yiseptem is worth approximately a ninth of a diamond.
Etymology
The Septem is named for a number of reasons; for one, it denotes its face value in diamonds, as septem in Latin means "seven". It is also a reference to the name of Mount September, the place of the currency's origin, although ironically, though the month's name also originates from the number seven, September has shifted to become the ninth month in modern calendar systems. The "$" symbol is used to abbreviate the word "Septem", being its first letter with a line through it indicating its status as currency.
The Yiseptem is abbreviated as ¥, similarly. It is a sixty-fourth subdivision of the Septem, and circulates in much greater numbers; the name comes from the base currency with "yi" appended to the start, from the Mandarin Chinese Pinyin yì, from the character 易. This Chinese character means to exchange or to modify; the Yiseptem is a changed form of the Septem. Other significances to the character include but are not limited to its presence in the name of the I Ching, an ancient Chinese text with relevant associations with such ideas as fortune, prediction, morality, knowledge and change.
History
The currency was minted and put into circulation on the 28th of October, 2020, with the currency exchange taking up its current space in the Mount September Mall at that time, a few days after the mall's opening. This was early in the history of Mount September, which was founded around August of that year, and which first passed laws in October. The initial run consisted of 60 Septems and 448 Yiseptems (7 stacks). As currency became scarce through circulation over time, more was minted and announced in the #commerce channel of the Mount September Discord. The earliest shops which accepted the currency belonged to AllenY, but the currency gained wider usage over time, including in private transactions. AllenY's first priority in the functionality of the currency was stated to be "roleplay".
The 6th-7th of April 2021 saw a particularly large increase in the amount of currency, when 68 Septems were minted to bring the total to 128, with the intent that only multiples of 64 would be minted from that time onwards.
As of the currency having existed six months, on the 28th of April 2021, there were 128 Septems and 1536 Yiseptems (24 stacks) minted, most of which was in circulation (representing around a thousand diamonds' worth), and ten shops in the Mount September Mall (not including the exchange itself) accepted Septimary currency of some sort. Septimary currency is thus one of oldest and largest non-intrinsically valuable systems of currency on CivClassics.
Usage
Septems and Yiseptems are printed as secure notes, and thus cannot be forged unless the original printing plate is obtained. One can purchase a Septem for seven diamonds at the Mount September Currency Exchange in the Mount September Mall, or nine Yiseptems for a diamond, as well as exchange a Septem for sixty-four Yiseptems or vice versa there. Using the secure note items, one can then exchange for goods and services, either in the shops of the mall using ItemExchange, or elsewhere.
Convertibility is limited by stock, but generally speaking diamonds can freely be converted into septimary currency at this time, as more is minted when the supply runs low, while the reverse is not possible through a shop chest, but via appointment with AllenY.
Taking Septems as worth seven diamonds, a Yiseptem is worth around a ninth of a diamond; this allows exchanges of smaller amounts which are still tied to the diamond standard, which may be stabler and is generally more recognised than the iron standard. A greater density of value, meanwhile, can be stored in Septems than in diamonds.
AllenY has expressed the desire to make the supply of currency less elastic to demand in the future, to effectively float the Septem against the diamond within certain bounds, perhaps through the auction of batches of currency rather than their exchange at a fixed rate. However, this scheme depends on economic complexity which allows multiple financial institutions or speculators in the market, and thus is slated for the far future.