Native Americans used the seeds of the plant Canna Indica, common name Indian shot or African arrowroot, for the exact same purpose due to a uniform weight/size as well.
In addition to it being a staple starch source!
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canna_indica
monkeytoes90 t1_iufhka0 wrote
Reply to TIL that in ancient times, the carob seed was used to measure the worth of gems and gold since the seeds have a general uniform weight. This is where the word "karat" comes from. by kkoolook
Native Americans used the seeds of the plant Canna Indica, common name Indian shot or African arrowroot, for the exact same purpose due to a uniform weight/size as well. In addition to it being a staple starch source! https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canna_indica