Canoe money tin ingot currency

Canoe money — named for the distinctive boat-shaped form produced by pouring molten tin into simple open molds — circulated across parts of mainland Southeast Asia and the Indonesian archipelago as a recognized medium of exchange for at least three centuries. Tin was the region's dominant coinage metal precisely because it was locally abundant; the Malay Peninsula and Bangka island held some of the world's richest alluvial tin deposits, making the metal far more accessible than copper or silver in long-distance trade networks dominated by Chinese merchants and local sultanates.

Exact attribution to a specific polity remains difficult — production was decentralized, mold quality varied, and no issuing authority marked these pieces.