Antiquity, the Orient and early Christendom are united in Byzantine art. In the 15th century the Renaissance was stimulated by the preservation of the Greek-Roman cultural heritage in Byzantium.

The Byzantine currency, the solidus, became the link between the coinage system of antiquity and that of the Middle Ages, as this gold coin, under various names and standards, was minted up into the 14th century. Originally the barbarians copied the gold solidus, later the third of a solidus or tremissis.

Because of the Arab conquest of most of the Mediterranean basin the supplies of gold gradually dried up, and silver became the prevalent metal in coins. Although gold came back again in larger quantities in the 13th century (Arab gold coins in Spain, gold coins in Lower Italy, later in Upper Italy), the great treasures from the New World finally changed the coinage landscape in Europe for ever.