The Origin of
the Piggy Bank
While the exact origin is a little uncertain, historians speculate
that the concept of a piggy bank started in England during the
Middle Ages, probably in the mid-1500s.
At this point in history, metal was still seldom used and very
expensive. So expensive, in fact, that common people did not own
any metal cooking pots or utensils. Instead, dishes, jars and
cookware were made from an affordable and easily available orange
clay that was called "pygg."
Families often kept any spare household coins in one of their clay
pygg jars, and these containers became commonly known in England as
a pygg jar and later a pygg bank.
Several centuries later -- probably around the eighteenth century
-- the name had evolved into piggy bank. Around this same time, a
handful of potters began making clay banks in the shape and
likeness of the animal namesake, and the first piggy banks were
born.
Children and adults were captivated by these new piggy banks and
the trend quickly spread throughout England. These early models
were usually ceramic and had no hole in the bottom. Sadly, in order
to retrieve the money, the pig had to be broken open! As the years
went by, someone thought to add a method of emptying the container
so the piggy was spared for another round of saving.
