Money pot

Surrey/Hampshire border ware money pot with knop finial, vertical slot and globular body. The upper part of the vessel is covered in a green glaze. This would have been used to store coins in and then was broken open to get the coins out, just like a modern piggy bank. Most money boxes are found broken. Archaeologists found a lot of money box tops during the excavations of the Rose Theatre in Southwark, indicating that money boxes were used to collect entrance fees from the audience. The money boxes were so cheap that they would have been smashed to get the collected money after the performances. Some of the money boxes may also have been used by people selling food and drink to the audience.