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.
In the later Roman period, the value of coinage depreciated rapidly. In the 4th century, barbarous imitations of the Imperial coinage were struck and small coins (minim and minimissimi) greatly increased in number. Below is a quick guide to the relative value of coins in the early stages of the Roman Empire: 2 asses = 1 dupondius. Roman historians later attributed coinage unhesitatingly to the much earlier regal period: some derived nummus ('coin') from Numa Pompilius, by tradition Rome's second king, and Servius Tullius was credited with silver coinage, as well as with bronze stamped with the device of cattle.
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, Ulpius Marcellus, and peace was restored.
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 EXERC(itus) BRITAN; they showHadrian addressing a group of soldiers.
Bronze sestertiusof Antoninus Pius AD 138-160 depicting Britannia
This was the actual modelfor Britannia used by Charles II in 1674
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(oriae) BRIT(annicae) on themfollowing the campaigns of Marcellus.
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 Septimius Severus arrived from Rome in A.D. 208 together witha vast army intending to resolve the problems with the northern tribes once andfor all. In three years of campaigning, which took the Roman army to the northof Scotland, they obeyed the command 'Let nobody escapedestruction, no one, not even the babe in the mother's womb'. Thedecimation of the highlands caused by this was so profound it was over 100years before the inhabitants of Scotland were able to mount an effective attackagain. This population vacuum was, in the interim, filled by Gaelic tribes fromIreland, the Hibernae, replacing or augmenting thesurviving Scots.
In A.D. 211, Severus died at York. His two sons, Caracalla (Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Pius, called AntoninusIII in some old books) and Geta hastily returned toRome to secure their inheritance. The Severans issuedcoins in gold, silver and bronze commemorating their campaign in Britain, allbearing the legend VICTORIAE BRITANNICAE in full or abbreviated, as well asadding the honorary title BRIT(annicus) to their nameon the obverse.
Above: Silver denarius of Septimius Severus withVICTORIAE BRIT reverse
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 Allectus, coins were minted in Britain for the first time in250 years of occupation. Two mints were involved, one with a mintmark thatincluded the letter L, almost certainly Londinium(London), and another with signature C or CL. The attribution of this mark hasbeen questioned for many years and at one time Camulodum(Colchester) was favoured, then Clausentum (Bitterne, near Southampton). It has never beensatisfactorily resolved where this mint was situated. Other coins of Carausius bear no mintmark at all, while others have theletters RSR. For the early part of his reign, Carausiuscontrolled a large part of Gaul along the Channel coast and one mint, whosecoins are sometimes marked R, is thought to have been Rotomagus(Rouen) in northern France.
Above: Silver 'denarius' of Carausius, with'RSR' onthe reverse
British Museum Collection
Four denominations were involved, in gold, silver and silvered-bronze for Carausius and Allectus and asmaller, unknown, bronze denomination for Allectus,usually called a quinarius as they always havethe letter Q on them. Among the antoniniani of Carausius werecoins showing conjoined busts of himself with the two rightful joint-emperors,Diocletian and Maximian and the legend CARAVSIVS ETFRATRES SVI (Carausius and his brothers).
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 follis, struck in the name of Diocletian and hisco-emperors, Maximian, Constantiusand Galerius, who formed what is known as the First Tetrarchy.When Diocletian and Maximian abdicated in A.D. 305, Constantius and Galerius were promoted to Augustus(emperor) and two juniors appointed, Severus II and MaximinusII, to form the Second Tetrarchy.
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 Maxentius, son of Maximian, whorebelled against Severus II and killed him. Constantine, who had beendowngraded to a subordinate rank by the Tetrarchs, formed an alliance with Maximian and marched on Rome, defeating Maxentiusat the battle of Milvian Bridge, to become sole rulerof all the western provinces in A.D. 312. Meanwhile Galerius had died theprevious year and his two successors in the east, Liciniusand Maximinus II quarrelledA. D. 313 over territorial claims and in the ensuing battle Liciniuswas victorious. For another eleven years there was an uneasy peace between thetwo halves of the empire until A.D. 324, when victories over Licinius at Hadrianopolis and Chrysopolis left Constantine as sole ruler of the whole ofthe Empire.
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 Constantius II, ignoring Liciniuscompletely.
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 Maximus minted in Augusta (London)
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 Votadini and the Damnoni wereallocated to North Wales and the north of England respectively and othermercenaries were employed in Kent. North Saxon mercenaries were also employedagainst a new attack by the Picts. Stilicho, a Vandalgeneral in the army of the emperor Honorius, came to Britain late in the fourthcentury to organise the country's defences. His efforts were negated a fewyears later when in A.D. 407 the legions in Britain declared one of theirnumber, Constantine, as emperor and invaded Gaul to lay claim to the throne,chosen, apparently, because of his name and it was the centenary of Constantinethe Great's elevation. Following his eventual defeatin A.D. 411, the garrison of Britain was never replenished and when adeputation from Britain was sent to Rome in A.D. 446 it carried a letter withthe famous phrase 'The barbarians drive us into the sea and the sea drivesus back to the barbarians'. No help was forthcoming. A few years later a foederati king called Vortigerninvited the Saxons to occupy the south and effectively Roman rule was at an end. The Romano-Britishtribes were gradually pushed back into Wales, Devon and Cornwall and by thelate 7th Century all of England had come under the control of the invaders.
Carausius & Allectus AD 286-296
London Mint Coins A.D. 296-325
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, orichalcum (a kind of brass) andcopper. During the latter half of the 3rd century onwards coins of gold and asilver-washed bronze alloy were issued. Silver coins made their appearance aspart of Diocletian's reforms late in the 3rd Century, and again during thereign of Constantine, being produced in substantial quantities from about AD350 until the joint reigns of Arcadius and Honoriusat the end of the Century. Thereafter, silver coins are quite scarce.
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 sestertius, which had a nominal value of a quarterof a denarius, and all payments in the market place were made using thatcoin or one of the smaller brass or copper denominations. Before spending agold or silver coin it had first to be exchanged with the money-changers forits current value in these base metal coins. You could also buy gold and silvercoins from the money-changers. Either way you paid a premium, rather like todaywhen obtaining foreign currency.
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 'argentosantoninianosmille' ('one thousand silver antoniniani'- SHA, Firmus, Saturninus,Proculus and Bonosus,XV.8). This coin always shows the emperor wearing a radiate crown (illustratedabove) or, in the case of empresses, showing the portrait bust set on acrescent. These coins weighed about one and a half denariibut were probably valued at twodenarii.Following what proved to be the last major issue of denariiby Gordian III (A.D. 238-244), the antoninianusvirtually supplanted the denarius as the main silver coin produced. Inthe reign of Trajan Decius (A.D.249-251) antoninianiwere overstruck on denariifrom earlier reigns. At the same time an orichalcumdouble-sestertius was introduced but was not continued intofollowing reigns, though some were struck by Postumusin the breakaway Gallic Empire (A.D. 259-268), just before the sestertius ceased to circulate.
Denarius of Gordian III AD238-244
Reverse:LAETITIA AVG N
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 wh denominations by the reign of Carusand his sons (A.D. 282-285)
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 follis. Like the antoninianusit was of approximately 4% silver with a silver wash and consequently the XXImark was transferred to this coin. It is possible that this coin was initiallyvalued at approximately 1/100th of an aureus.
Silver 'argenteus' of Diocletian'sco-emperor, Maximian, introduced in AD 294
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.
Roman Money Currency
Constanscentenionalisminted at Rome
Reverse:FEL TEMP REPARATIO
Mintmark: R*Q
Roman Money Denominations
In A.D. 346, Constantine's sons and successors, Constansand Constantius II, discontinued the small follis derivatives and replaced them with a newsilver-washed bronze coin of about 23 mm diameter. The name of this newdenomination is unknown but has been equated with the centenionalis,a name which suggests that the value assigned to it was at first the same asthe follis of Diocletian, the lighter weight becauseit was 1/100th of a gold solidus. At first they always bore thereverse legend FEL TEMP REPARATIO (Restoration of Happy Times). During his solereign, after the death of Constans, Constantius II discontinued the original siliqua and replaced it with a coin of 1/144thof a pound. His coinage, therefore, consisted of the gold solidus andits half piece, the semis, occasional production of the miliarense, which seemed to have a ceremonialsignificance, and the light siliqua in silverand the centenionalis. By then, the centenionalis had followed the pattern of earliersilver-washed bronzes and declined to a quarter of its original weight and asize of 18mm.
Valenssilvermiliarenseminted at Trier
Reverse: VICTORIA AVGVSTORVM
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 siliquae and small silver-washed bronzes. With only minoradjustments to the weight and size of the bronze coinage, this continued to bethe monetary system until the reforms of Anastasiusin A.D. 498, by which time the western provinces had all been lost to the Romanempire.
Julian silver-washed large bronze minted at Cyzicus
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 denarii were made which have a base metal coreinside a thin 'envelope' of silver. These were especially prevalentduring the Roman Republic and virtually ceased when the silver coins becameheavily debased. Money-changers took to testing silver coins by striking with asharp instrument designed to pierce through the outer covering and show thecore. Many early denarii exhibit these test marks.
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 Carausian coins are nothing more than contemporary copies,and their uncritical inclusion in reference works greatly hamper studies of hiscoinage.
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 Constantius II.
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 siliquae. Many of these are foundclipped, something that was difficult to do on earlier silver coins butrelatively easy on the thin flan siliqua. These are not, of course, forgeries as such.
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 denarii found, coins that are rarely hoarded. Thiswas because possession of a forgery was high treason and rather than riskexecution, anyone finding that they had one quickly got rid of it. There is amajor difference in the coins that are found. Large bronzes are rarely hoardedbut abound in site finds, the exception being mid-3rd century hoards from thereign of Postumus when they had acquired asignificant value. Emperors whose coins are rarely found on sites sometimesoccur commonly in hoards, for example antoninianiof Gordian III to Valerian I. In fact such is the pattern of site findsabsence of what are regarded as common coins does notmean that the site was unoccupied during that period.
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, Constans)
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 'quinarius' and Valens miliarenseadded 24 April 2002
Link to new page about Carausius and Allectus added 22 May 2002
Photo of Julian AE1 added 3 June 2002
Minor corrections and additions to the text January 2007
Minor amendments to the text August 2020
Roman Money During Caesar's Time
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 Maximus minted in Augusta (London)
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 Votadini and the Damnoni wereallocated to North Wales and the north of England respectively and othermercenaries were employed in Kent. North Saxon mercenaries were also employedagainst a new attack by the Picts. Stilicho, a Vandalgeneral in the army of the emperor Honorius, came to Britain late in the fourthcentury to organise the country's defences. His efforts were negated a fewyears later when in A.D. 407 the legions in Britain declared one of theirnumber, Constantine, as emperor and invaded Gaul to lay claim to the throne,chosen, apparently, because of his name and it was the centenary of Constantinethe Great's elevation. Following his eventual defeatin A.D. 411, the garrison of Britain was never replenished and when adeputation from Britain was sent to Rome in A.D. 446 it carried a letter withthe famous phrase 'The barbarians drive us into the sea and the sea drivesus back to the barbarians'. No help was forthcoming. A few years later a foederati king called Vortigerninvited the Saxons to occupy the south and effectively Roman rule was at an end. The Romano-Britishtribes were gradually pushed back into Wales, Devon and Cornwall and by thelate 7th Century all of England had come under the control of the invaders.
Carausius & Allectus AD 286-296
London Mint Coins A.D. 296-325
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, orichalcum (a kind of brass) andcopper. During the latter half of the 3rd century onwards coins of gold and asilver-washed bronze alloy were issued. Silver coins made their appearance aspart of Diocletian's reforms late in the 3rd Century, and again during thereign of Constantine, being produced in substantial quantities from about AD350 until the joint reigns of Arcadius and Honoriusat the end of the Century. Thereafter, silver coins are quite scarce.
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 sestertius, which had a nominal value of a quarterof a denarius, and all payments in the market place were made using thatcoin or one of the smaller brass or copper denominations. Before spending agold or silver coin it had first to be exchanged with the money-changers forits current value in these base metal coins. You could also buy gold and silvercoins from the money-changers. Either way you paid a premium, rather like todaywhen obtaining foreign currency.
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 'argentosantoninianosmille' ('one thousand silver antoniniani'- SHA, Firmus, Saturninus,Proculus and Bonosus,XV.8). This coin always shows the emperor wearing a radiate crown (illustratedabove) or, in the case of empresses, showing the portrait bust set on acrescent. These coins weighed about one and a half denariibut were probably valued at twodenarii.Following what proved to be the last major issue of denariiby Gordian III (A.D. 238-244), the antoninianusvirtually supplanted the denarius as the main silver coin produced. Inthe reign of Trajan Decius (A.D.249-251) antoninianiwere overstruck on denariifrom earlier reigns. At the same time an orichalcumdouble-sestertius was introduced but was not continued intofollowing reigns, though some were struck by Postumusin the breakaway Gallic Empire (A.D. 259-268), just before the sestertius ceased to circulate.
Denarius of Gordian III AD238-244
Reverse:LAETITIA AVG N
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 wh denominations by the reign of Carusand his sons (A.D. 282-285)
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 follis. Like the antoninianusit was of approximately 4% silver with a silver wash and consequently the XXImark was transferred to this coin. It is possible that this coin was initiallyvalued at approximately 1/100th of an aureus.
Silver 'argenteus' of Diocletian'sco-emperor, Maximian, introduced in AD 294
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.
Roman Money Currency
Constanscentenionalisminted at Rome
Reverse:FEL TEMP REPARATIO
Mintmark: R*Q
Roman Money Denominations
In A.D. 346, Constantine's sons and successors, Constansand Constantius II, discontinued the small follis derivatives and replaced them with a newsilver-washed bronze coin of about 23 mm diameter. The name of this newdenomination is unknown but has been equated with the centenionalis,a name which suggests that the value assigned to it was at first the same asthe follis of Diocletian, the lighter weight becauseit was 1/100th of a gold solidus. At first they always bore thereverse legend FEL TEMP REPARATIO (Restoration of Happy Times). During his solereign, after the death of Constans, Constantius II discontinued the original siliqua and replaced it with a coin of 1/144thof a pound. His coinage, therefore, consisted of the gold solidus andits half piece, the semis, occasional production of the miliarense, which seemed to have a ceremonialsignificance, and the light siliqua in silverand the centenionalis. By then, the centenionalis had followed the pattern of earliersilver-washed bronzes and declined to a quarter of its original weight and asize of 18mm.
Valenssilvermiliarenseminted at Trier
Reverse: VICTORIA AVGVSTORVM
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 siliquae and small silver-washed bronzes. With only minoradjustments to the weight and size of the bronze coinage, this continued to bethe monetary system until the reforms of Anastasiusin A.D. 498, by which time the western provinces had all been lost to the Romanempire.
Julian silver-washed large bronze minted at Cyzicus
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 denarii were made which have a base metal coreinside a thin 'envelope' of silver. These were especially prevalentduring the Roman Republic and virtually ceased when the silver coins becameheavily debased. Money-changers took to testing silver coins by striking with asharp instrument designed to pierce through the outer covering and show thecore. Many early denarii exhibit these test marks.
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 Carausian coins are nothing more than contemporary copies,and their uncritical inclusion in reference works greatly hamper studies of hiscoinage.
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 Constantius II.
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 siliquae. Many of these are foundclipped, something that was difficult to do on earlier silver coins butrelatively easy on the thin flan siliqua. These are not, of course, forgeries as such.
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 denarii found, coins that are rarely hoarded. Thiswas because possession of a forgery was high treason and rather than riskexecution, anyone finding that they had one quickly got rid of it. There is amajor difference in the coins that are found. Large bronzes are rarely hoardedbut abound in site finds, the exception being mid-3rd century hoards from thereign of Postumus when they had acquired asignificant value. Emperors whose coins are rarely found on sites sometimesoccur commonly in hoards, for example antoninianiof Gordian III to Valerian I. In fact such is the pattern of site findsabsence of what are regarded as common coins does notmean that the site was unoccupied during that period.
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, Constans)
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 'quinarius' and Valens miliarenseadded 24 April 2002
Link to new page about Carausius and Allectus added 22 May 2002
Photo of Julian AE1 added 3 June 2002
Minor corrections and additions to the text January 2007
Minor amendments to the text August 2020
Roman Money During Caesar's Time
Bronze Roman Money
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