Wallets
A wallet, or billfold, is a small, flat case used to carry personal items such as cash, credit cards and identification documents, such as a driver's license. Wallets are generally made of leather or fabrics, and they are usually pocket-sized. more...
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History
The word \"wallet\" has been in use since the first century A.D. to refer to a bag or a knapsack for carrying articles. The word may derive from Proto-Germanic. The ancient Greek word kibisis, used to describe the sack carried by the god Hermes and the sack in which the mythical hero Perseus carried the decapitated head of the monster Medusa, has been typically translated as \"wallet\". Usage of the term \"wallet\" in its modern meaning of \"billfold\" in American English dates to 1834.
Billfolds were developed after the introduction of paper currency to the West in the 1600s. (The first paper currency was introduced in the New World by the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1690.) Prior to the introduction of paper currency, purses (usually simple drawstring leather pouches) were used for storing coins. Early wallets were made primarily of cow or horse leather and included a small pouch for printed calling cards.
The modern bi-fold wallet with multiple \"card slots\" became standardized in the early 1950s with the introduction of the first credit cards. Some innovations include the introduction of the velcro-closure wallet in the 1970s.
Varieties
Wallets are usually designed to hold banknotes and credit cards and fit into a pocket (or handbag). Small cases for securing banknotes which do not have space for credit cards or identification cards may be classified as money clips.
Breast wallet (also called a \"secretary wallet\" or \"passage wallet\") are wallets in which the banknotes are not folded. They are intended for men's breast pocket in a jacket, or for a handbag. They are too large for storage in a pant (trouser) pocket.;
Bi-fold wallet: a type of wallet in which the banknotes are folded over once. This has become the \"standard\" wallet. Credit cards and identification cards may be stored horizontally or vertically.;
Tri-fold wallet: a wallet with three folds, in which credit cards are generally stored vertically.;
Front pocket wallet (or money clip): a case with no currency compartment and very few pockets for cards. Usually banknotes are folded and held to the wallet with a metal clip.;
Some wallets, particularly in Europe (where larger denominated coins are more prevalent) contain a coin purse compartment. Some wallets have built-in clasps or bands to keep them closed. As European banknotes(pounds, euros) are larger than American banknotes in one dimension, they don't fit in some smaller American wallets.
Read more at Wikipedia.org
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