vault

金庫　—　Institutions

The stout container in which precious metal or cash is kept.

Écu d'orLate 16th to early 17th century Banque de France note, 20 francs1871 400 troy ounce 995.5 gold bar (National Bank of Poland Money Centre)Photographed in 2016

⚠ There was a time when the amount of gold in a central bank's vault determined the amount of banknotes that could be issued. The upper limit of a nation's economy was decided by the contents of a physical room.