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There are two main ways of manufacturing coinage: striking coins (Western tradition) and casting them (Oriental tradition). These two techniques evolved along with technological progress, particularly in the sixteenth century in Europe and in the nineteenth century in Asia. One might think that this progress was greeted with interest but that is not the case. The powers, monetary in one case, political in the second, introduced impediments, delaying considerably the adoption of the novelties. Several reasons explain these phenomena: sociological, economic and political.