In the Revised Version of 1 Chronicles 29:7; Ezra 2:69; 8:27; Nehemiah 7:70-72, where the Authorized Version has "dram." It is the rendering of the Hebrew darkemon and the Greek dareikos. It was a gold coin, bearing the figure of a Persian King with his crown and armed with bow and arrow. It was current among the Jews after their return from Babylon, i.e., while under the Persian domination. It weighed about 128 grains troy, and was of the value of about one guinea or rather more of our money. It is the first coin mentioned in Scripture, and is the oldest that history makes known to us.

Noah Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language

1. (n.) A gold coin of ancient Persia, weighing usually a little more than 128 grains, and bearing on one side the figure of an archer.

2. (n.) A silver coin of about 86 grains, having the figure of an archer, and hence, in modern times, called a daric.

3. (n.) Any very pure gold coin.