The History of Roman Coins
- At the time of the Republic, Rome's economy was largely pastoral. Most Romans were livestock farmers and used a barter system. Cattle were usually the standard of exchange. The word "pecuniary" comes from "pecunia" which is the Latin word for money, and this in turn comes from "pecus" which means "cattle." As the Republic grew and acquired new territories, they also took control of the commerce in the conquered lands. Coins were eventually adopted to become an additional form of exchange. At the beginning of the third century BC, the coins used were called "aes rude" ("rough bronze") and were made from that metal.
- Not all types of coins were in general circulation. Those made from silver and gold were mainly used by the government for the salaries of its military and administrative personnel. Those made from bronze were used for daily commercial transactions. At the time of the Republic, the goddess Roma, who personified Rome, was pictured on the earliest silver coins. The powerful families and individuals who were responsible for manufacturing the coins would promote their influence by putting on the coins abbreviations of their names and the image of a renowned ancestor.
- Silver and gold Roman coins had intrinsic value because they were made from precious metals. This value, however, was not always stable due to inflation, precious metal shortages and shortfalls in the state's finances. When silver coins were first introduced they were nearly pure silver and weighed around 4.5g each. When major wars or huge construction projects were undertaken, these coins would usually be debased and contain less silver to cope with the expenses.
- The aes weighed one Roman lb., or "libra," and weighed roughly 335.9g. This bronze coin was used as the basic unit in the hierarchy of coin values. Next was the dupondius which was also made from bronze and equivalent to two aes. Tthe sestertius was also bronze and equal to four aes. The next in value was the denarius, made from silver and equal to 16 aes, and finally the aureus, which was the gold coin and equivalent to 400 aes.
- Local authorities in the outlying territories were allowed to mint bronze coins. The only requirement was that they follow the standard system of weights and measures put forth by Rome. The minting of gold and silver coins, however, was strictly centralized in the city of Rome. At the period of the Republic, these coins were minted in the Temple of Juno Moneta. Juno as the wife of Jupiter was the chief Roman goddess and had many roles as indicated in the many variations of her name. As "Juno Moneta," she was the protector of Rome's finances. Three junior statesmen aspiring to become senators were assigned to supervise the minting. They were called "tresviri monetales" (trio of money men). Chief among their duties was deciding which imagery was to be stamped on the coins.