Roman Money Information

Early Trade

• In the early days of the empire the trade and barter system was used to procure goods and services. In fact, the Latin word "pecus," meaning cattle, is from where the word for money, "pecunia," was derived.

Early Coins

• Early Roman coins were made of bronze. A piece of bronze weighing a Roman pound was split into twelve smaller pieces called semis (half), triens (third), quadrans (quarter), sextans (sixth), and uncia (twelfth). These coins were called "aes grave," heavy bronze, and were designed with images of exotic animals or a ship's prow. The "Aes grave" eventually became known as the "as."

Greek Influence

• Silver coins were introduced around 269 B.C. due to the influence of the Greeks. Bronze and silver were used simultaneously for about another hundred years.

The Denarius and Augustus

• After an overhaul of the monetary system, the Romans began minting a silver coin called the "denarius." The as and the denarius were used together until the reign of the Emperor Augustus who began minting coins out of silver, gold, brass, and bronze.

Minting

• Roman coins were minted in the temple of Juno Moneta, the source of the English word for "money." The Senate was responsible for minting coins, but it was the emperors who were responsible for the purity of the metals used. Consequently coins varied in purity from one emperor to the next.

Reform

• True reform came in A.D. 301 under Emperor Diocletian who instituted strict purity standards for gold, silver, and bronze coins. But the empire would not see its final monetary reform until the rise of Constantine. Many of Constantine's reforms dealt with replacing pagan with Christian imagery.