Roman Money
- Rome: A Thousand Years of Monetary History From Republic to Empire Starting in the late 4th century B.C., the Roman Republic based a bronze (aes in Latin) coinage upon the weight standard of the Roman pound, which was about 323 metric grams.
- Roman coinage, as in other societies, represented a guaranteed and widely recognised value which permitted an easy exchange of value which in turn drove both commerce and technology development as all classes could work to own coins which could be spent on all manner of goods and services.
- Roman coins were minted from copper, bronze, silver, gold and electrum (a naturally occurring alloy of silver and gold). Ordinary merchants and citizens of the Roman Empire used silver and copper pieces. Administrators and wealthier individuals used the gold coins. Not surprisingly, the metal content of the coin impacts its value.
- Like coinage of today, Ancient Rome's coins represented portions of larger denominations. The As, the basic unit, functioned like our penny. And like our penny, through inflation it experienced a loss of buying power. During the time of the Roman Republic, you could buy a loaf of bread for ½ As or a liter of wine for one As.
It was a Roman quirk to reckon large sums of money in sestertii (four bronze sestertii equaled one silver denarius). It would be like Americans expressing large sums in quarters rather than.
Roman coins circulated in Britain from Celtic times, even before theconquest by the emperor Claudius in A.D.43. Following the occupation normalRoman coins were then used for some 250 years before Britain had its own mint.However, the Romans issued many coins with reference to Britain, including goldcoins of Claudius showing a triumphal arch inscribed DE BRITANN, commemoratingthe conquest.
The initial phase of the conquest established a frontier along what becameknown as the Fosse Way, from roughly the Severn Estuary to the Wash. TheBritons were mostly allowed to retain their rulers, serving as client-kings ofthe Romans. Unfortunately for the Britons, Roman ambitions did not stop thereand after a series of punitive raids beyond the frontier, the suppression ofthe Boudiccan rebellion and a period of consolidationwhich saw Roman rule extended into Wales, a decision was made to occupy thewhole of the country. Accordingly Cnaeus JuliusAgricola, governor of Britain, was given the task of subduing the nativetribes, which he did with typical Roman thoroughness in a bloody campaign thatlasted some seven years, from A.D.77-83.
Silver denarius of Hadrian
Following a visit by the emperor Hadrian in A.D. 122, the frontier was setfrom the Tyne to the Solway Firth, along the line of what we now call Hadrian'sWall, abandoning those lands in Caledonia (Scotland) that had been conquered byAgricola, which extended as far north as the glens. This proved only temporaryas Hadrian's successor, Antoninus Pius (A.D.138-161), moved the frontier back to Scotland, building a new wall in theisthmus between the Clyde and the Forth following attacks by the northerntribes in A.D. 140-144. This Antonine Wall remainedthe border until the reign of Commodus when, in A.D. 180, the northern tribesoverran the frontier and inflicted a heavy defeat on the Roman army. Thisrebellion was ruthlessly suppressed by a newly appointed governor,
Coins commemorating the visit of Hadrian included sestertiiwith reverse legend BRITANNIA, depicting a seated Britannia. This was theprototype of the figure used 1300 years later on British coins, although theactual model for Britannia was taken from a coin of AntoninusPius. Others referred to the garrison in Britain and were inscribed
Bronze sestertiusof Antoninus Pius AD 138-160 depicting Britannia
This
The Britannia coin was repeated by Antoninus Pius (illustrated),together with others struck in gold and bronze which had the reverse legendIMPERATOR II BRITAN and have either Britannia or a winged figure of Victory.These are thought to commemorate the victories of LolliusUrbicus against the tribes around the Wall. Commodusalso issued coins with either BRITANNIA or VICT(
Bronze medallion of Commodus commemoratingthe successful campaigns in Britain, dated TRP X (AD 185)
Illustratedby kind permission of ArsClassica
Copyright © ArsClassica2009
The respite proved only temporary, as civil war followed the death ofCommodus in A.D. 193. The garrison was withdrawn to fight the cause of thegovernor of Britain, Clodius Albinus, and perishedwith him at the Battle of Lugdunum (Lyon, France) inA.D. 197. Taking advantage of the Roman garrison's temporary weakness, thenorthern tribes again devastated the province. Hadrian's Wall was so badlydamaged during the attacks that in places it required completely rebuilding.Although order was restored with some difficulty, the new emperor
In A.D. 211, Severus died at York. His two sons, Caracalla (Marcus Aurelius
Above: Silver denarius of
Thereafter, Britain enjoyed nearly a century of peace and relativeprosperity before being subjected to the next series of attacks. These began inthe late 3rd Century A.D. when sea-going pirates from Ireland in the west andSaxons from Scandinavia in the east began raiding the coastal towns of Britain.To meet these attacks, two fleets of ships were set up, that in the east beingbased on Boulogne and called the 'Classis Britannica'. It wascommanded by a Menapian called Carausius,who rebelled and proclaimed himself up emperor of Britain and Gaul. Six yearslater he was assassinated by enemies within his own court and his financeminister Allectus became emperor in his place. Thereign of Allectus was brief because in A.D. 296 thenewly appointed ruler of the western provinces of Rome, ConstantiusChlorus (Constantius I),invaded Britain and recovered it for the Empire.
During the reigns of Carausius and
Above: Silver 'denarius' of
British Museum Collection
Four denominations were involved, in gold, silver and silvered-bronze for
Above: Silver-washed antoninianusof Allectus, 'C' mint
Reverse:PAX AVG
With the restoration of official Roman rule, a decision was made to continueminting coins in London. This was an extension of the decentralising policiesof Diocletian, which included splitting up the Empire into four administrativeareas and increasing the number of mints producing coins instead of justrelying on one mint in Rome. Coins in silvered-bronze were produced in Londonfrom A.D. 296 to A.D. 325. Initially these were a large denomination called a
This arrangement did not last for long. Constantiusdied at York after coming to Britain to repulse an invasion from the north by anew enemy called the Picts, and his troops acclaimedhis son Constantine (later known to history as Constantine the Great) asemperor without waiting for the agreement of the other Tetrarchs. A period ofconfusion followed, with others making their play for power, among them
During this period the London mint produced coins for all of the variousrulers. The cost of wars meant that the original folliswas gradually reduced in weight and size from circa 10 gm and a diameter of 27mm in A.D 296, to only 3 gm by A.D. 322. The later coins were struck on thinnerflans and maintained an average diameter of around 17mm to 19 mm. After A.D.317 and the final split with Licinius, Constantineonly issued coins for himself, his mother Helena, his wife Faustaand three of his sons, Crispus, Constantine II and
During the whole of its operations the London mint produced no less than 1000different combination of obverse and reverse types and mintmarks, half of themin the period A.D. 296-312, the rest up to A.D.325. Thereafter the mint wasclosed. During this time the system was that the two co-emperors had the rankof Augustus (abbreviated to AVG on coins) and the two junior emperors the rankof Most Noble Caesar (NOB CAES or just N C on the coins).
Constantine divided Britain into four administrative areas, First and SecondBritain, Maxima Caesariensis and FlaviaCaesariensis, partly to prevent any commander doingwhat Constantine himself had done. By this time Britain had become the granaryof the western provinces, as Egypt was to those of the east, and too importantto take risks with. The size of the legions was reduced but the number ofauxiliary and cavalry units was greatly increased. The fleet was similarlystrengthened. In the process the Roman army became much more mobile.
When the Picts again invaded the north in A.D.343, Constantine's son Constans, now emperor of theWest, crossed hurriedly to Britain and drove them off. In A.D. 360 when thesame tribes broke the treaty, the new emperor, Julian, had to sendreinforcements from Gaul. These were minor compared with the attack a few yearslater A.D. 369, when all the barbarians, Picts, Scotsand Saxons, together with a new enemy called the Attacotti,attacked in unison. The most able general of the Roman army, Count Theodosius,father of the later emperor with the same name, defeated them so effectively hewas able to annexe a new province to the empire, presumably from beyondHadrian's Wall, naming it Valentia after the reigningemperor.
Peace was short-lived. In A.D. 383 the commander of the Roman army inBritain, Magnus Maximus, was proclaimed emperor bydisgruntled troops and invaded Gaul, taking most of the army with him. Theemperor Gratian was defeated and killed and Maximusbecame ruler of Britain, Gaul, Spain and North Africa. Then in A.D. 388 hedecided to advance on Rome, was beaten at Poetovio bythe emperor Theodosius I and killed.
During the brief reign of Maximus a mint was setup in London (which had been renamed Augusta some years earlier), producing goldand silver coins with the mintmark AVG, all of which are extremely rare.
Above: Gold solidus of Magnus
Mintmark:AVGOB (Augusta Obryziacum)
That Britain did not fall victim to another barbarian invasion after beingdenuded of its garrison is a tribute to a system of foederati,which at first worked extremely well. This entailed settling barbarian tribesin frontier areas liable to attack, thus two Germanic tribes, the
Appendix1.
THE ROMAN COINAGE SYSTEM
From the time Augustus (27 B.C.-14 A.D.) until the middle of the 3rdCentury, the Roman monetary system consisted of a number of denominationsstruck in four different metals, gold, silver,
An important point to remember concerning Roman coins is that after AD 214we are mostly unaware of what the Romans called the various new denominationsintroduced. Most names in common use are those allocated to them by modernnumismatists.
Very often these coins are listed with a set of relative values ascribed tothem, for example the gold coin or aureus isquoted as being worth 25 silver denarii. Areading of Roman documents shows that this is a modern interpretation. Theactual system is more complicated.
What needs to be understood is that the medium of exchange was the basemetal coinage and that gold and silver were only for the convenience of storingor transporting large sums of money. Only when silver coins had themselvesbecome so debased they were virtually copper did they supplant the base metalcoins for transactions. All prices were therefore quoted in terms of the brass
What the table below shows therefore, is what is thought to be theapproximate relative value of the various denominations, but there is nocertainty of their correctness or for how long a period they applied.
Metal | Denomination | Value |
Gold | Aureus denarius | 25 silver denarii |
Gold | Aureusquinarius | 12½ silver denarii |
Silver | Denarius | 4 sestertii or 16 copper asses |
Silver | Quinarius | 2 sestertii or 8 copper asses |
Orichalcum | Sestertius | 4 copper asses |
Orichalcum | Dupondius | 2 copper asses |
Copper | As | 4 copper quadrantes |
Copper or orichalcum | Semis | Half an as or two quadrantes |
Copper | Quadrans | Quarter of an as |
The first 200 years of the Roman Empire saw little change in this system,except that the silver denarius was progressively debased from the timeof Nero onwards (A.D.54-68) and was accompanied by a series of downwardadjustments in the weight of the gold coins (which were always struck pure).
Silver antoninianusintroduced by Caracalla AD 214.
During the reign of Caracalla (A.D.211-217) a new denomination wasintroduced, a base silver coin which we call the antoninianusafter a passage in the ScriptoresHistoriaeAugustae, which refers to a gift of '
Denarius
After the financial collapse during the sole reign of Gallienus(A.D. 260-268) the antoninianus was reduced toa small coin of less than 4% silver with a silver wash to keep up itsappearance. All the orichalcum and copper coinsceased production because they were worth more intrinsically than the so-calledhigher denomination. During the whole of this period, because it was pure, thegold coinage occupied what at first sight looks like an anomalous position, butit is fairly obvious that the money-changing system would have coped byadjusting the number of base metal coins obtained for it, or required for itspurchase.
Post reform silver-washed antoninianusof Aurelian circa AD 273-275
Reverse:ORIENS AVG
Mintmark: XXIA
Aurelian (A.D. 270-275) attempted a currency reform that brought a measureof stability. The antoninianus was produced atsomething like its original size and although the outer silvering was improved,the actual silver content remained low. These reformed antoninianioften bear the mark XXI (or the Greek letters KA which mean the same), thoughtto refer to the ratio of 20 parts copper to one of silver in their composition.There were rare issues of smaller denominations, including a base metal denarius.The antoninianus remained the standard coinuntil the reforms of Diocletian in A.D. 296. The gold coinage was stabilised ata weight of 1/70th of a Roman pound
Diocletian's first step was to improve the weight of the gold coins at 1/60thof a Roman pound in weight, then he reintroduced apure silver coin, which we call the argenteus,weighing 1/96th of a pound. Both coins approximated to the standardof the coins in the time of Nero over 230 years earlier; with, possibly,similar relative values. The silver-washed antoninianuswas abandoned, its place taken by a similar coin without the silver content.For want of a better name this coin is called a 'post-reformradiate'. A new denomination, weighing some 10 grams appeared. Again, wedo not know what this coin was called but it is usually referred to as a
Silver '
As part of Diocletian's reforms the number of mints was greatly expanded. Inthe early empire the sole central mint at Rome sufficed, but the numbers hadgrown considerably in the 3rd Century because of the vast quantities of coinsneeded to be produced. The follis was mintedat all of them, initially with a standard reverse type, GENIO POPVLI ROMANI(The Genius - i.e. spirit - of the people of Rome). Mintmarks, the useof which had also been developing in the late 3rd Century, were included onnearly every coin, necessitated by the standardisation of reverse types.
The largefolles barely survivedDiocletian's reign and from A.D. 307 were progressively reduced in size andweight to a coin of only 17mm diameter and under 2 grams by A.D. 330. In themeantime Constantine the Great (A.D.307-336) had, in his turn, initiated aseries of reforms. The gold coinage was reduced in weight to a standard of 1/72ndof a pound, a weight atwhich it continued to bestruck for several hundred years, as a consequence of which it became known asthe solidus. Late in his reign, the argenteuswas reintroduced, but is usually referred to as a siliqua,together with a silver coin weighing the same as the solidus which wecall a miliarense (to compound matters therewere so-called heavy miliarensia of 1/60thof a pound which occupied the same position relative to the earlier gold coinsof the reign.
Reverse:FEL TEMP REPARATIO
Mintmark: R*Q
In A.D. 346, Constantine's sons and successors, Constansand Constantius II, discontinued the small
Valenssilvermiliarense
Mintmark TRPS.
During the reigns of Julian, Jovian, Valentinianand Valens, following the example of the usurper Magnentiusin Gaul, attempts were made to introduce a larger silver-washed bronzeapproximating to the original centenionalis.Similar attempts with slightly smaller coin in the reigns of Gratian andTheodosius I were equally short-lived. By then thecoinage consisted of gold solidi, silver
Julian silver-washed large bronze minted at
Reverse:SECVRITAS REIPVB
Mintmark: CYZB
Appendix1.
As a handy notation, late Roman bronze coins are usually defined by their size.These are:
AE1 | Over 25mm diameter |
Occasionally, coins borderline in size are referred to as e.g. AE3/4 orAE2/3.
Appendix2.BARBAROUS COINS
Photo
Forgers exploited ignorance of newly-introduced coin types and theilliteracy of the population, by producing imitations of Roman coins on a hugescale. These contemporary forgeries are interesting and worthy of study intheir own right and appear to emanate from specific centres of production in,for example, Gaul. They can usually (but not always) be distinguished by poorworkmanship, blundered legends, and incorrect die axis (with official ImperialRoman coins the die axis of the reverse is exactly the same as obverse, withthe design either the same way up or upside down - with forgeries the axes areusually at an angle with one another).
These forgeries come in two types. Copies of early silver
The others were copies of bronzes, which come in waves and tend to followthe introduction of new coin types. In the 1st century, copies of the copper asof Claudius abound. Thereafter there was a lull until the 3rd Century when castcopies of base silver denariiwere made. Following the collapse of the Gallic Empire (A.D. 260-273) set up bythe rebellion of Postumus, there was a vastoutpouring of what are called 'barbarous radiates', forgeries of thelast greatly-debased antoniniani.No sooner had this coinage subsided than the rebellion of Carausiusprovided the impetus for more copies. A high proportion of so-called
The constant changes to the bronze coins in the 4th Century broughtsuccessive waves of imitations. Especially favoured were the URBS ROMA andCONSTANTINOPOLIS coins of Constantine and the FEL TEMP REPARATIO coins of
In the final phase many of these copies were extremely small, some barely 5mm diameter and are often called minims or minimissimi.
A final note concerns the late 4th Century s
Appendix3. COINHOARDS & SITE FINDS
There is a wide divergence between the sort of coins found on an averageRoman archaeological site in Britain and in hoards. A common feature of earlysites is the large number of 'plated' forgeries of
Coin hoards tend to be deposited following major coinage reforms. At onetime it was thought that they were the result of some disaster, an argumentthat had to be strained at times to equate the end of a hoard by the date ofthe latest coin in it with some known event. All kinds of special argumentswere put forward to explain the gap. For example, a 30 year lapse in time hadto be explained as the time it took for a coin to be minted in Rome and thenarriving at the frontier. The trouble with that argument was that it had to beequally applied to hoards of a similar type found nowhere near the frontier andin areas that had not suffered the same disaster. Nowadays the economicarguments are more widely accepted.
Appendix4. ROMANEMPERORS KNOWN TO HAVE VISITED BRITAIN
JuliusCaesar 55 and 54 B.C.
Claudius A.D. 43
Vespasian A.D. 43 as Legate of Legion II during the invasion
Hadrian A.D. 122
Pertinax - Governor of Britain during the late 2ndCentury
Clodius Albinus - Governor of Britain A.D. 193
Septimius Severus A.D. 207-211, died in York
Caracalla A.D. 207-211
Geta A.D. 207-211
Carausius A.D. 287-293
Allectus A.D. 293-296
Constantius I A.D. 296 and A.D. 306, died in York
Constantine the Great A.D. 306-307
Constans A.D. 346
Magnus Maximus - Army commander A.D. 383 (andpossibly his son Flavius Victor as well)
Constantine III - Army commander A.D. 407 (and possibly his son,
Changes and additions:
Minor changes made 30 June 2001.Photo of Constanscentenionalisadded.
Photo of Allectusantoninianusadded 3 July 2001
Link to new page illustrating London mint coins AD 296-325 added 10 July 2001
Photo of Severus denarius added 31 March 2002
Photo of Magnus Maximus solidus added 31 March 2002
Minor corrections made and photos of Allectus '
Link to new page about Carausius and
Photo of Julian AE1 added 3 June 2002
Minor corrections and additions to the text January 2007
Minor amendments to the text August 2020
When you collect coins, the ancient ones are a pretty attractive option and, by far, the most popular ones are the Roman Imperial Coins.
The first one is how easy you can get these coins. The Roman coins are very easy to find in countries from Europe like Italy, France, Spain, Great Britain, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, from Asia, like Turkey, Syria, or Africa like Egypt. The regions were occupied by the Romans in ancient times and coin finds are numerous and also the collectors’ interest in this domain is large. But if you live in the USA or Australia, finding the coins you need can be hard and usually you must bring them from abroad or, if you buy them from a local market, pay a little bit more, because of their scarcity on the local market.
But that is not all. In some cases, you cannot take out from some countries ancient coins or artifacts, because of the laws. Moreover, in some countries, owning these coins is prohibited by law, with some exceptions. So, before you start these collection, find out as much as you can about the opportunities you have or the difficulties you may encounter.
After deciding to start a collection and finding a market from where you can buy, you must think what you want to buy. First of all, a collection with all the nominal values. If you try to collect all these coins that circulated from the first century to the second century AD, you will need to find two gold coins, an aureus and a quinarius aureus, two silver ones, the denarius and the quinarius argenteus, and five bronze ones, the sestertius, the dupondius, the as, the semis and the quadrans.
But to complete the collection you will need some serious money, finding an aureus below 2000 $ being a real chance (usually this coin is worth 4000-6000 $). A decent denarius can be found from 20 $ to 200 $, and it can be even more expensive if it is a rare type. The sesterius is also a little bit expensive, around 100-200 $, sometimes cheaper or not. The other bronze coins are easy to find.
But the sum of money that you are willing to give is not enough. For example, if you live in Germany, it will be pretty easy to find silver or gold coins on the local market. Why? Because the Roman Empire paid to the German populations large sums of money as subsidia, different gifts for different reasons. And the payment was made, of course, in precious metal. But it is hard to find here bronze coins because these were hard to transport, a large number was necessary to make a big sum of money and also because these coins were subsidiary coinage, that means that you need a central authority that will guaranty it’s legal tender. In France for example, you can find nice bronze coins or even silver but gold coins are very rare.
Depending on the money you have, you can collect only a particular type of coins. For example silver denarii. The bronze sestetius is also an attractive option, due to its large dimensions (usually 27 gr. and around 25-35 mm) and its beautiful scenes. But even then you will try to find a more particular theme.
For example, a coin for each emperors from Augustus to Romulus Augustus (27 BC to 476 AD). But it is hard to find them all, because there are hundreds of them. Also, some are rare, like Otho(69 AD), Vitellius (69 AD), Pescenius Niger(193) and many others but in some cases they are impossible to find, like Julian of Pannonia (285) or Valerius Valens (316). Some collectors try to concentrate on one dynasty like the Julio-Claudian one (14-68, Tiberius, Caligula, Nero) or the Severian one( 193-235, Septimius Severus, Caracalla, Geta, Heliogabalus, Severus Alexander). You can also decide to collect the coins minted for the emperor’s wife, mother, daughter, father and so on. Some people collect these emperors starting from ancient sources. For example, Suetonious Lives of the twelve Caesars , describing the lives from Caesar to Domitian.
Another theme of collecting, very popular, is represented by the coins with the emperor on one side and a member of his family on the other. The perfect coin of this type is an aureus minted by Septimius Severus, with a reverse showing the face of Iulia Domna, his wife, and their two children on each side, Caracalla and Geta.
The type of Consecratio, types minted for a dead emperor soon after his death, usually showing him carried away by an eagle or on an altar, are also an option.
Usually, the Roman coins carry on the reverse gods or goddesses. Some people collect a particular god. For example, the Mother of The Gods, Cybelle, or the goddess of love, Venus, or the god of war, Mars, or the goddess of wisdom, Minerva.
If you collect these types, you must know how to identify these gods. Each of them has some particular features. For example, Minerva is always wearing a round shield and a spear and has on her head a helmet. Sometimes she is accompanied by her animal, an owl. The goddess of fortune, Fortuna, is shown with a rudder and a cornucopia, a symbol of wealth. She can sit on a throne or can stand looking on one side.
A god can have different names. For example, Mars can be the god of peace, Mars Pacificatori, or the god of victori, Mars Victor, or the god of revenge, Mars Ultor with different images.
Usually rare, in some cases the goddess is a personification of a defeated enemy. A woman that appears on the Trajan series of coins with the legend DACIA CAPTA (the conquered Dacia) is the personification of that province.
On the reverse military scenes can appear, weapons taken from the prisoners, like a sestertius of Antoninus Pius, showing some ancilla , particular shields.
Or maybe scenes with the emperor, in religious moments, like sacrificing before an altar, political ones, speaking in front of the troops (ADLOCVTIO AVGVSTI) or the Senate, or military ones.
Another main problem is represented by the fake coins. Ever since the XVI century, making fake coins for profit was profitable business. One of the most famous counterfeit was the german Carl Becker, who lived in the first half of the XIX century. He had a special gift for this job and his creations are considered masterpieces, in some cases hard to identify as fakes. It is also true that today his fakes are considered to be more expensive then the originals but the fake is a fake.
Unfortunately, today, some fakes are very dangerous for collectors. The fakes from the Bulgarian school are almost perfect in some cases. Also the Chinese fakes are starting to be more accurate then ever. Only with time and experience, these fakes can be avoided.
But in the end, you will decide what you want to collect. And even if you know that the collection will never be finished, as all the coin collections, the satisfaction will still be great when you add a new beautiful piece to it.
Collecting Ancient Roman Coins Part II: Issuer
How to identify the
. The issuerIt is very important for a collector of ancient coins to properly identify the piece that he has. A good and fast identification can help him when he buys that coin and can protect him from possible frauds or misunderstandings.
Of course, it is impossible to know all the coins. But knowing a few little things can be very useful.
First of all, when you take in your hand a coin, it is very important to know who issued it. For the Roman imperial coins, that person is always the emperor or one of his family members.
As every Roman, the emperor has a name that must follow certain rules. The name is made up of 3 parts.
Let’s take Caesar for example. His name is Caius Iulius Caesar. Caius is the praenomen, or first name. Iulius is the nomen or nomen gentile, his family’s name, and Caesar is the cognomen or nick name, in this case meaning either the bald or that he was born by caesarean section. The poet’s name, Publius Ovidius Naso follows the same rule, Naso being the cognomen and meaning “big nose”. Sometimes the first name can be abbreviated as C for Caius, P for Publius, Ti for Titus Cn for Cnaeus and so on. Also, the name can carry more then one cognomen.
In legal matters, the name also contains another part, the father’s name. This part appears between the nomen and the cognomen and it is accompanied by the formula filius, “the son of…” For example, Caesar’s father was also Caius, so his full name is Caius Iulius Caii filius Caesar. Translated: Caius Julius Caesar, son of Caius.
The emperor’s name is basically the same.
When Octavian took the supreme power in the Roman State, he changed his name. His official name was from this moment on Imperator Caesar Divi Filius Augustus.
Imperator was his first name. It was the name of the function that he had. In modern times it can be assimilated as fieldmarschal althrough in all the modern languages it gave the word “emperor”. This name conferred to a person a high military authority.
Caesar was his adoptive father’s cognomen but for Octavian it is his family name, to suggest his close connection with him.
Divi Filius means “the son of the divine (Caesar)” and gives him religious authority, as son of a god.
Augustus was his cognomen and means at the same time, sacred and authority.
All the emperors that came after Augustus kept this formula of the name, adding some more cognomens, usually representing some functions and of course changing the father’s name. In time, the names became more and more complex. For example, an aureus of Trajan has the following legend around the emperor’s head: IMP CAES NERVA TRAIAN AVG GERM. On the other side, the next part is PONT MAX TR POT COS II.
IMP is Imperator.
CAES is the abbreviation for Caesar.
The next part of the name is missing but it can be understood as NERVAE FILIUS, the son of Nerva, his adoptive imperial father.
NERVA TRAIAN is Nerva Traianus. The presence of the Traian formula shows that it cannot be only the emperor Nerva.
AVG is Augustus.
GERM stands for Germanicus, the winner of the German population. These triumphant names are given in the honor of the great imperial victories over barbarian populations. These titles were used by an emperor for imperial propaganda and played the role of cognomen. Also, the abbreviation can appear as DAC, PARTH, SARM, GOTH and so on, for Dacicus, Parthicus, Sarmaticus, Gothicus …. In some cases the formula MAX is added at the end, and means MAXIMUS. For example, Germanicus Maximus means the supreme winner over the Germans. Because this title was given after important battles which were won, their presence or the absence is an important clue in dating the coin more precisely.
PONT MAX or sometimes only P M means Pontifex Maximus, supreme priest, an important function. It can only be given to the emperor himself at the beginning of the reign. Even if there are two emperors simultaneously on the throne, only one can be Pontifex Maximus.
TR POT is the abbreviation for Tribunicia Potestatis, a function that means tribune of the people. This is the most important dating detail. Every year, on the 10th of December, the emperor and only he took this function. It is represented on the coin as the first (number I=1 is omitted yet from II=2 onward).
COS II means Consulus 2 or Consul bis, that is “consul for the second time” and it means that he was or is consul for the second time. It is also a dating clue, because Trajan was consul 7 times. This function is one of the most important, being assimilated with the modern prime minister function.
Other 2 names and abbreviations are missing from this coin.
The first one is P P or pater patriae, the father of the country. It always appears at the end of the name and it must not be taken by mistake as P M.
Another important function is CENS or Censor, responsible with the morales. Every 5 years, the censor ordered a population numbering and also studied the structure of the Senate. If he considered necessary he appointed new members or put out old ones for morality problems. Because it was a function that gave great power, it was almost exclusively used by the emperor. Sometimes the word PERPETUUS is added, this meaning that he is “forever Censor”.
In time, the legend became more complex or more simplified. Also, the letters were changed. For example, in the third century the form IMP was sometimes written IIIIIP because of the method of writing the M. Moreover, almost all the emperors were using the name Marcus Aurelius Antoninus with the imperial names and confusion can happen.
Collecting Ancient Roman Coins Part III: Dating
How to identify the Roman coins. The dating.
After you find out the coin’s issuer, you must find as much information as you need about the exact minting date. The emperor’s reign years are fine to start with, but this is only general.
The emperor’s official name has enough clues to help you. In some cases you can figure out even the month. In other cases, you can only find out a certain period of time, shorter then the reign years; however, this is better than nothing.
Every part of the emperor’s name is taken by him in specific events. The presence or the absence of one name is a clue.
Let’s take one silver denarius of Septimius Severus, 193-211.
On one side, the head and the legend L SEPT SEV PERT AVG IMP X. on the other side P M TR P V COS II P P.
The name starts with the formula IMP CAES, but here it can be understood without being written. The letter L is the standard abbreviation for Lucius, the first name of the emperor and SEPT SEV for Septimius Severus. PERT is the name of the adoptive father, Pertinax, emperor for 63 days in 193. AVG means Augustus and it represents his title taken in 193, at the beginning of his reign.
IMP has an interesting situation, it means Imperator. Imperator was his first name but it also indicates a function, similar to the general (or better said fieldmarschal), a glorious title given to a soldier after a great victory. The first Imperial title is taken at the moment of rising to power and after this moment it can be given frequently. Septimius tenth imperial title was taken in 197 and before 198, his eleventh imperial title.
PM means Pontifex Maximus and it is a title took in 193 and kept until his death in 211.
TR P V means his fifth tribunate, started at 10 december 196 and ended at 9 december 197. The next day he started his sixth tribunate.
COS II means consul for the second time. The first one took place in 194 (actually in year 189 he was consul suffectus or temporary, a secondary function) and the second in 194. The third started in the year 202 so by this title, the coin is minted between 1 january 194 and 31 december 201.
PP stands for Pater Patriae, the father of the country, and it is taken in 193.
All this information gives a precise date. This coin was minted somewhere between 197 and 198.
As I said, the absence of some elements can be a clue. For example, Septimius took the title Parthicus in 198. The absence of this title means that the coin is minted before 198. Or after 202, his name starts as SEVERVS PIVS AVG…. that can also be a dating clue.
Of course, all this information is hard to remember but, in time, with experience, it will be more and more easily to date a coin. Here are other tips:
- From Augustus to Trajan, no emperors have a beard. Except Nero who appears with whiskers.
- The first century coins, especially the ones which date from 14-69 have a head that has a long neck. Moreover, they don’t have any kind of clothes.
- The Flavian dynasty (69-98, Vespasian, Titus, Domitian) is easy to identify by the round heads, with wrinkles.
- From Trajan onwards, the emperor usually has a cloth or military armour.
- From Hadrian onwards, most of the emperors have a beard.
Collecting Ancient Roman Coins Part IV: Identify
How to identify the Roman coins. The coins
From Augustus to Diocletian 27 BC-286 AD.
It is very important that after you properly identify the issuer of the coin and you date it correctly, to identify the nominal of the coin. Unlike the modern times, when the value of the coin is clearly stated on it, in ancient times, the value was known by the weight and the diameter of the coin.
Here are the main coins of the period 27 BC-286 BC
GOLD COINS
Aureus - a coin made from gold, as its name states. It was first minted around 210 BC but it was an exotic coin, with a high value. The republican pieces are usually rare.
From Augustus, it was a gold coin of high purity, around 23 k, and a weight of 7.9-8 gr. and a diameter of 19-21 mm. It had a value of 25 silver denarius. On one side, the head of the emperor appears or, more rarely, a member of his family. On the other side, different scenes are presented.
From the time of Nero, the weight drops from 64 AD to around 7.6-7,7 gr. and from the second century AD to around 22 k of gold. From the time of Septimius Severus and his son Caracalla the weight was around 6,5-7 gr. In the third century the weight was very different from emperor to emperor, in the context of the crisis. The weight went from 3,5 to 5,5 gr. Diocletian also minted some aureus around 5,4 gr.
The aureus is a very rare coin. A normal value for this coin is around 3000-4000 $. In some cases, like a rare emperor or a rare reverse, the coin can easily go over 10.000 $. Usually, these coins have circulated quite a bit and a good coin is not rare, like a VF. A UNC, however, is very hard to find.
Quinarius aureus - the golden half. It represented ½ of an aureus and also half of its weight. It is a rare coin, seldom seen in circulation. It was minted on rare occasions. It weights around 4 gr. and has a similar look as the aureus. From the third century, because of the more and more light aureus, it disappeared from circulation.
These coins are very rare and expensive, even more than the aureus.
SILVER COINS
Denarius is the standard coin in the roman system. It is made from silver and that’s why it is sometimes named as denarius argenteus. It values 1/25 from a gold aureus and 16 asses.
In the republican time, it was first minted around 210 BC. In the beginning, it valued only 10 bronze asses, thus named denarius (from decem, which means ten).
It weighed around 4,4 gr. in the beginning. Augustus minted denarius at around 3,9 gr. From 64 AD, Nero minted them around 3,5 gr. In the second century, the coin dropped to around 2,5-3,3 gr but pieces of 3,8 are not unusual.
The diameter was around 17-18 mm for the denarius in the first century. At the beginning of the second century, it was around 18-20 mm. Starting with the first part of the reign of Septimius Severus, it was a more thick and small coin, around 15-17 mm but from the second part of the reign, after 202, it became thin and large, around 18-21 mm.
The quality of the silver was around 90-93 %, in the beginning. From the reign of Trajan, 98-117, it was around 70-80 %. Septimius Severus minted denarius at around 50-70 %. Sometimes, these coins were made from bronze and only silver plated.
In the third century, in the context of inflation, its value dropped and after 238 it can rarely be seen in circulation.
This coin is one of the most common for the Roman Empire. It was minted in large quantities. Most of them are valued today at 20-50 $ a pieces of medium condition and not so rare. In some cases, for example a rare emperor or rare reverse can have a high value, around 1000 $ or even higher. Usually the Consecratio theme or the family coins, with more than one member are rare.
Also, this coin is hard to find in decent condition. Even a VF is sometimes hard to find, because these coin circulated for a long period of time. A XF is almost a dream.
Quinarius argenteus represents half a denarius. It is made from silver and has a weight of half this coin, around 1,2-1,7 gr. It is similar to the denarius. It is a very rare coin, hard to find and usually expensive.
Antoninianus has a value of 2 denarius. It was introduced in 215 and as a distinctive feature, the emperor’s head has a radiate crown, while the empress has a lunar crescent over her shoulders. It had a diameter of 23-25 mm and initially a weight of 5,5. The silver content was only 50 %.
After 238, it lost weight, to around 4,5. After 251 it became a bronze coin, with only 3-5 % silver. Also, it was light, around 3 gr. Even so, light pieces can be found. Aurelianus, 270-275, tried to improve this coin but failed. It disappeared from circulation after Diocletian reform.
BRONZE COINS
Sestertius is a quarter of a denarius. It was originally made from silver but Augustus mints this coin in bronze. It usually bears the mark HS as a symbol of value.
It has a diameter of 25-40 mm, and a weight of 25-27 gr. Usually, it has superb scenes on the back, because of the large available space. In the third century, it started to lose value and weight, after the second half of the century it disappeared from the market.
Bronze Roman Money
Usually, this coin is hard to find. A fine example can go from 100 to 300 $. Cheaper pieces can be found. Also, depending on the back, they can be much more expensive.
Roman Money Crossword Clue
Some of the most spectacular pieces are the ones with buildings. For example the one dedicated by Nero in honour of his Ostia harbour.
Dupondius was a coin made from orichalcum, a bronze alloy. It weights around 13 gr. and the diameter can vary in size. It was equal to ½ sestertius or two asses. After 64, its distinctive mark was the radiate crown that stands on the emperor’s head.
These coins are scarce, yet decent pieces can be found.
As is the basis of the Roman currency. It was a unit made from bronze. During the republican time, it had different weights, from 1,5 kg (aes rude), being minted as ingots. It soon lost its weight and became a coin (aes grave) with a weight of 327 gr. In 89 BC, the weight was considered equal to one ounce (aes uncial). Augustus minted asses at around 10-11 gr. It was made of bronze. The first century pieces are simple and inexpressive but usually rare. The second and third century pieces are common.
The price of this coin can vary. It is very hard to find a good quality piece.
Semis was a measure unit ever since the republican times. It is a rare coin, very rarely minted. It was half of an as, as the name states (semis=half).
Quadrans was ¼ of an as, as the name states (quadrans=quarter). Also a rare coin. Was minted ever since republican times. In the imperial time, it was rarely minted. Lots of collectors have the tendency to take the fake denarii, made from bronze, as quadrans. The main difference is the style. The quadrans have a slight negligent aspect.
It was the less valuable coin in circulation. Cicero uses the word quadrantaria to describe something very cheap
For more information on Roman coins please read the following in our coin articles
Collecting Ancient Roman Coins Part V- last pagan Emperor.
Roman coins, family coinage
Gold coin Emperor Trajan
Rare roman coin Valerius
Bronze roman coin sale
Vasilita Stefan