Featured Justinian's Monetary Reform of AD 538

Justinian I (the Great) had an ambition to restore the Roman Empire to her former greatness. In order to do this he had to first pacify Khusru I, of Persia, with large sums of tribute to stabilize the Eastern front. Next he began a campaign to reconquer the Western Roman Empire. With Belisarius, Narses, and other generals this herculean feat was accomplished, although only short lived. By AD 538 the Mediterranean basin could be called Roman again, and the Eastern empire was enjoying a period of peace and stability. Fighting the Gothic barbarians in Italy endured much longer. The recovery of Italy cost the empire 300,000 pounds of gold. In 538 Justinian could boast 5 years of major achievements, including military victories in the West, administration reorganization throughout the empire, the codification of civilian law, and the rebuilding of Hagia Sophia. So what triggered the Monetary Reform of AD 538 ?
Conquering Carthage from the Vandals brought with it an enormous amount of gold for the imperial treasury. When Belisarius returned to Constantinople, he was awarded a full triumph in grandiose style. It became clear that an adjustment in the exchange rate between gold and copper was necessary. Aside from economic considerations, above all, the monetary reform was a political statement. Justinian wanted to stand out above his predecessors for his achievements by creating a new and heavier bronze coinage with better die cutting, and different iconography. The follis (40 nummi coin) and solidus were given a new obverse design of the front facing emperor in full armor, holding a Globus Cruciger in his right hand. The reverse of the follis now had a reign date indicating when the coin was struck (much to the delight of coin collectors). The reverse of the solidus now depicts a front facing angel holding a staff and Globus Cruciger. The follis would now range in size from 38 to 45 mm in diameter, not unlike the old imperial medallions of Rome. They were truly striking in appearance and must have impressed the common people since many of them were drilled and worn as pendants. The new reform coinage was a clever use of propaganda by Justinian.


Byzantine Empire, Justinian I, AD 527-565 (struck Year 13, AD 539/540), Nicomedia Mint, Officina 2. AE 40 nummi: 22.47 gm, 41 mm, 6 h. Obverse inscription: D N IVSTINIANVS PP AVG. Reverse inscription: ANNO XIII NIK B. Sear 201. AK Collection


Byzantine Empire, Justinian I, AD 527-565 (struck AD 545/565), Constantinople Mint, Officina 7. AV Solidus: 4.54 gm, 20 mm, 6 h. Reverse inscription: VICTORIA AVGGG Z, in exergue CON OB. Sear 140. Ex Iconodule Collection. AK Collection.

Silver was treated as an independent element in the monetary system and used as a token coinage because it was constantly fluctuating in value with gold. Since so little silver was used in coinage after the coinage reform of Anastasius, in AD 498, Justinian found no need to change its design.


Map of the Byzantine Empire late in the reign of Justinian I

References:

Wikipedia

Byzantine Coins and Their Values, 1987, David R. Sear. Published by B.A. Seaby Ltd., London

Essay by Philip Gierson, Byzantine Coinage, Copyright 1999, Dumbarton Oaks. Trustees for Harvard University, Washington, D.C.

Essay by Andrei Gandila, Heavy Money, Weightier Problems: The Justinianic Reform of 538 and its Economic Consequences, 2012. Published by the Societe Francaise De Numismatique, Paris

CT members are welcome to post their favorite coins of Justinian I.

 

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Justinian I (527 - 565 A.D.)
Æ Follis
O: DN ISTINI-ANVS PP AVG Helmeted and cuirassed bust of Justinian facing, holding globus cruciger and a shield.
R: Large M, cross above, ANNO left, regnal year XXXI right, G ( = officina 3 ) below, THEUP in ex.
Theoupolis - Antiochia
18.64g
32mm
SB 220

 

Great write up Al, Ironically it was a Plague that brought the conquests to a halt. Constantinople was losing thousands a people a day in 540. It changed the empire forever.

 

Educational and interesting write-up, @Al Kowsky ! This deserves to be a featured article!

 

Thanks, @Al Kowsky for the write up about the monetary reforms. And great coins.


BZ Justinian I 527-565 CE AE Folles 30mm 17g 40 Nummi M monogram



BZ Justinian I 527-565 CE AE30 Folles 12.2g 40 Nummi M monogram

 

BenSi, You're right . Justinian I was a victim of the Plague too, but he managed to survive. Cities like Antioch were hit especially hard by the Plague, & to top it off a devastating earthquake ! After the devastating Plague life did go on, although never the same....

 

@Al Kowsky Great write-up!
I have recently become enamored with these large Byzantine coins. This is my favorite Justinian:

 

Mat, I wonder if anyone with the Plague handled this coin ? Antioch was finally lost in the reign of Heraclius .

 

Nice write-up Al. Glad that you mentioned people holing those big Justinian folles to wear as pendants. It makes me feel not as bad about this one:



Justinian I Æ Follis
Year 20 (546-547 A.D.)
Nicomedia Mint
DN IVSTINIANVS PP AVG, helmeted, cuirassed bust facing, holding cross/globe and shield, cross right / Large M, ANNO left, cross above, XX right, B below, NIKO in exergue.
SB 201; DOC 117b.
(18.00 grams / 32 mm)

 

Pre-Reform Follis, note the smaller size and weight.

Justinian I (527-565 A.D.)

AE Follis, Constantinople Mint, 10 grams, 28mm

Obverse: Diademed, Draped and Cuirassed Bust Right, DN IVSTINIANVS PP AVG

Reverse: Large M, cross above, star to left and right, officina letter below

Reference: SB 160, Dumbarton Oaks Collection 30.

 

Justinian 40 nummi
20 nummi
16 nummi
10 nummi
5 nummi

 

Thank you, Al, for a great write up and 2 wonderful coins!

In addition to militarily reuniting the 2 halves of the old Roman Empire, Justinian also sought to build a unified administrative system, codifying Roman law that had developed over centuries. Since the 16th century his legislative work has been known as the Corpus Iuris Civilis. Part of the Corpus is his Novellae, or Novels. The dating of many of the copper coins from Justinian's year 12 onward is a result of his Novel 47 of 31 Aug. 537, which stipulated that legal and official documents should include the regnal year. It was felt that the copper coins fell into this category, so much of the reformed coinage of Justinian's year 12 onwards is dated.

I'm embarrassed to admit that before this morning, I had never actually READ the text of Novel 47, but I will give just a snippet here of the relevant section from Chapter 1:

“Wherefore We order that all those officials employed in drawing up documents or decisions, no matter where this may be, and that the notaries who, in compliance with certain rules, draw up various instruments in this great city, or in other parts of the Empire, over which God has given Us the right to preside, shall begin as follows: "The year of the reign of the Most Holy and August Emperor," and, afterwards insert the name of the Consul for that year, and then the indiction, month, and day; in order that the date may be entirely preserved by the mention of the reigning sovereign and the order of the consulate, and the other formalities be observed, as is customary, and when this has been done no changes should be made.”

Trying to pick and show my favorite Justinians is like trying to illustrate my favorite child, or dog...so only one must suffice...

Constantinople, 539/40. 23.83 gr. 42 mm. 7 hr. Sear 163; Hahn 95a; DO 38e; BNP 48; BM 50-1; R. 501. T. 100.

 

Alegandron, Your 1st follis looks like handsome coin for an early issue . The 2nd coin looks like it was used as a tool of some kind . If coins could talk ....

 

furyfrog02, That's a great example of a pre-reform follis from the "City of God" . The sandy patina adds to its beauty . There is something special about putting a hefty bronze in your naked hand .

 

One of the odd-balls of the reform-era folles of Justinian I is this one, attributed to a military mint in Salona or Ravenna. These are considerably smaller than other folles of that era, and the reverse lacks inscriptions - just the big M and a cross.

This information comes from a CNG auction:

"The correct attribution of this unsigned series of bronzes remains uncertain, but numerous examples have been found in the environs of Salona in Illyria, an important Byzantine fort and staging area for military activity in Italy. Both Belisarius and Narses used it as a headquarters in their campaigns against the Ostrogothic king Baduila (Totila, 541-552), who conducted a brilliant guerrilla campaign against superior Imperial forces until his death at Busta Gallorum in 552. There is some debate about the date of coinage at this mint. Grierson supports a date in the 540s-550s, at the height of the Italian war, while Hahn in MIBE dates it later, to 562-565, based on similar styles of bust found on dated Ravenna mint issues from late in Justinian's reign. In any case, the reduced size, simplified design, and scarcity of these bronzes speaks of a short-lived issue of limited circulation." https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=6205979



Justinian I Æ Follis
(c. 540s-550s or 562-565 A.D.)
Salona / Ravenna Mint (?)
(Military Mint)
IVSTI[NI]ANVS PP, Helmeted facing bust, holding globus cruciger and shield; cross to right / Large M; cross above, no mintmark or Officina.
DOC I 358; MIBE 248; SB 329.
(6.43 grams / 21 mm)

 

Mike, Thanks for posting this little treasure ! I was hoping someone would post a pendant follis. No doubt this coin was pierced in ancient times . Over the years several pierced Justinian folles went thru my hands and a couple I gave away to customers when I had a shop in Rochester, NY. Foolishly I didn't keep 1 for myself . In the "old days" you could find these coins at shows in junk boxes for a buck or two . Not anymore .

 

A.C.H., You're right, that coin is a "light weight" ! It doesn't appear to be heavily worn either . The patina gives it great eye appeal .

 

This was one of my first Byzantine coins. I was mostly into denarii before 1989 when I got this Antioch follis from Ken Dorney.

In 1991, this Nikomedia, year 14 joined up. I liked the lighter green patina.

 

gogili1977, That's a nice selection of Justinian coinage . I wish the photos of the last 3 were better . The follis & half follis are handsome coins .

 

Voulgaroktonou, Your follis is a GEM ! A great strike from fresh dies, and a handsome dark, uniform patina . Thanks for the passage from Novel 47 . Believe or not, we had to read that in high school . In those days I was more interested in the girl sitting in front of me . I should read it again .