# P2PK (Pay-to-Public-Key)

The original Bitcoin output script that pays directly to a public key; most of it dates from 2009-2010 and has never moved.

Source: https://bykaranteli.com/glossary/p2pk · attribute to ByKaranteli and quote the timestamp.

## Definition

Pay-to-public-key was the first output type in Bitcoin: the locking script contains the full public key followed by OP_CHECKSIG. Early mining rewards, including the blocks attributed to Satoshi, were paid this way. Because the key is in the script, a P2PK output is key-exposed from the moment it is created, and because most of these coins have been dormant for over a decade, they are the set the quantum debate keeps returning to. ByKaranteli keeps a watch set of dormant P2PK outpoints and diffs it against every new UTXO snapshot; a spend from that set triggers an alert, not a conclusion. Dormant coins moving is the one event worth checking first, and it is also the kind of event that has ordinary explanations.

## Related

- https://bykaranteli.com/quantum
- https://bykaranteli.com/glossary/quantum-exposed-supply
- https://bykaranteli.com/glossary/q-day
- https://bykaranteli.com/glossary

Everything in one fetch: https://bykaranteli.com/llms-full.txt