Cartridge money was in use from about 1800 to the 1930s. Both loaded and spent cartridges were regarded as money. The currency circulated in Ethiopia as well as in Yemen on the other side of the Gulf of Aden. Around 1900, empty cartridges were valued at 28 to 32 to one Maria Theresa taler. Cartridges that were new with the paper band intact cost 10 to the taler. When the European powers declared an embargo of arms against Ethiopia in 1919, the value of cartridges jumped: in the 1920s used cartridges were worth six to the taler. They could always be refilled and used again.