Soccers stars and football fans aren’t the only people that will be pouring into the country for the soccer world cup. The Huffington Post reports that some 40,000 sex workers are also making their way here to score quick money off the visiting punters. That number seems to be greatly exaggerated and ssome say it’s a complete fabrication.
We’re not too concerned about the numbers, we’re more interested in the lost-in-translation moments that could possibly happen between the prostitute and their client, and whether there is something that would help to alleviate any sticky situations. It turns out the Romans found a simple solution ages ago around the 1st century AD when foreign nationals visited ancient Rome and required certain “services” during their time there. To get past any language barriers and streamline the transaction, the Romans used coins that depicted an X-rated scene on one side, and the price of said act on the other. These sex tokens were no bigger than a U.S. quarter and were called spintriae.
Have a look at some examples after the jump (possibly NSFW).