Debasement is a historical monetary practice involving the reduction of the intrinsic value of coins. This process occurs when the actual metallic content—such as gold, silver, copper, or nickel—is decreased while the coin continues to circulate at its original face value.
This technique was frequently employed in systems utilizing commodity money. By lowering the precious metal content, authorities could effectively increase the number of coins in circulation, though this often led to inflationary pressures and a loss of public confidence in the currency's underlying worth.