Just to show how misleading comparisons are; In the years 1626-39 a Building Craftsman earned 12 to 16 pence a DAY. http://privatewww.essex.ac.uk/~alan/family/N-Money.html At the end of 2006 the mean HOURLY pay for all employees was £11.18 http://www.statistics.gov.uk/STATBASE/ssdataset.asp?vlnk=7938 Based on an 8 hour day this would give £161 in 1637 as being approx. £90,000 now! Regards Stan Mapstone