How long has pawn broking been around?
Pawn broking can be traced back as far as 3,000 years to ancient China, and can be traced in historic Greek and Roman financial records. With reference to England it was in the mid-18th Century when bills were passed through Parliament regulating pawnbrokers i.e. proposing licensing and a levy of 1/5th of all interest charged going to hospitals and workhouses. At about this time three balls, either golden or blue became the sign of the pawnbroker – Blue was in fact a more fitting color than gold, since the sign probably came from the coat of arms of the Medicis, from whose territory the Lombard Goldsmiths (the first registered money lenders) originally came. Between the mid-18th and 19th Century pawnbrokers had expanded all over the country and further acts were introduced to regulate this expansion. By 1851, there were about 4500 pawn broking establishments mainly based in industrial working class areas. At the turn of the century most pawnbrokers were open until mid-night on Saturday
