Constantius II Siliquae

Never!

 

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I think I finally found the reason why Constantius II debased the Siliqua.
From a reliable website.~"Whereas the argenteus had been substantially overvalued (at 1/10 of a solidus) against its bullion value (i.e, it was clearly a fiduciary coin), a 3 scruple siliqua would in fact probably have been undervalued, or close to it, as its value, as compared with the solidus, implied a nominal gold to silver value ratio of 18, a figure probably not too different from the day to day market ratio for bullion, and certainly well above the value of 12 that the mint had customarily used for coins. This would have had two serious consequences - firstly, the coin's high real value meant that in periods of high silver prices it was probably liable to be hoarded rather than spent, or perhaps even melted down, and even more importantly, the government would have lost money on its production."

 

I'm tempted to send all my unwanted Theodosian coins to you lol

 

Please not that!
I'll be a good little Romanophile, I promise

 

A beautiful siliqua, MM. Well-done sir!

 

Mine is 2.9g but lighter from the patchy corrosion. I am extremely unimpressed by the way RIC avoided listing weight ranges for this silver considering they usually gave numbers for Volume VIII bronzes. Certainly there was an economic crisis. How else can you explain the Falling Horseman fall from 5g AE2 to 2g AE4 in the decade of the 350's? Part of this might reflect the cost of protecting the borders from barbarians and the Sasanian menace that timed with the worst of the reductions in the very late 350's.

I don't think we can accept the negative reviews of his rule. We are in no firm position to judge fairly the politics of the 350's. Constantius II was Arian but the histories were written by the Orthodox. People with a religious ax to grind are not known for being fair in their histories. You would think that we would be immune from fighting wars from over a millennium ago but hatred seems to outrank professionalism or journalistic integrity. When the authors of SHA worked, no one would say anything nice about an Arian.

For what it is worth, I deplore the concept that we need to consider the personality or merit of the rulers that issued the coins we collect. I do not have to admire Caligula or condone his activities to collect his coins. I like Antoninus Pius because he had some interesting coins (both Roman and from Alexandria!) not because he was a nice guy or 'Pius'.

 

Once again Dougsmit I kneel before your superior knowledge.
One last question though, do we know what these Siliqua and Nummi could buy?

 

Can someone explain how these silver siliquae fit in to the circulation of the Fourth Century? Did they circulate as commonly as the old denarius when they were of good silver? Were taxes payable in siliquae or did one have to use the gold solidi to do that? How did they circulate along side of the silvered folles that were commonly issued? In short, who used these somewhat scarce coins and for what purpose?

 

I know nothing. That does not put me far behind the scholars and probably ahead of the ones that assume they know something because of some tidbit of evidence they think applies. We assume that the silver siliqua was 1/24th of a gold solidus. The operative word is 'assume' since we do not have documentary evidence. My opinion (notice I said 'my' and 'opinion') is that they did not circulate much. They are not terribly common and they are not commonly seen well worn. I rather suspect that there were some places where some people culturally preferred silver and Rome made coins for those markets. When I was a kid, the US silver dollar was a lot easier to find actually in use in the West than in the rest of the country where civilized people used halves. In that same day people looked at you funny if you had $2 bills since these were associated with horse race tracks. Money is cultural. We know that there were adjustments to coin evaluations and relationships but we do not have a grasp on the complete list or the 'whys' in most cases. Those interested in this sort of thing might enjoy the book Coinage in the Roman Economy by Kenneth Harl but it will leave you with more questions than answers. I will suggest readers try to avoid making assumptions of Roman economics based on what you know about modern systems. For that matter, what worked in 300 did not necessarily apply in 350 or in Alexandria as in Rome. Harl gives a lot of interesting evidence but not simple answers. Realists may recognize that our modern world where gasoline bounces up and down like a ball and is different on opposite corners of the same intersection by a dime and opposite corners of the country by a dollar. My house is twice as 'valuable' as the same sticks in some places and 1/100 the cost in another where rich people congregate for the privilege of living 'there'. These same factors and 2000 years make study of the 'Roman' way a bit difficult.

 

I am really going to have to buy a Siliqua soon, this is really eating me alive.

 

I did read where there is a theory that Siliqua were used based on weight rather than by individual coin. That would seem to back up Doug's claim that these are not to terribly worn down. Interesting indeed.
As far as Constantius II goes, he was not a kind fellow, he murdered his in laws(massacre of the princes) and is generally accepted by historians to be a very easily manipulated and cruel Emperor. That said he did rule the Empire "adequately" for 24 years.

Thank you Dougsmit and others! I will certainly have to read up on the Late Roman Empire tonight.

 

I was watching something last night, they said that when the Romans left Britain, so did the money. It might be why my siliqua is clipped:




Silver Siliqua
DN HONORIVS PF AVG - Pearl diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right
VIRTVS RO-MANORVM - Roma seated left on cuirass, holding inverted spear & Victory on globe
Mint: Milan (393-423 AD)
Wt./Size/Axis: 1.03g / 2mm / -
References: RIC X 1228

 

Very nice coin Pish.
This denomination certainly is my favorite one.

 

Hi Magnus maximus, nice siliqua. This is my Magnus Maximus.
~Doug

 

Very nice coin! This one makes him look like Valens or Valentinian. What is the weight?

 

Thanks for this info. I will try to find that book.

 

Magnus sorry so late for reply but I've got 1.7gm on it.
~Doug

 

No harm done dlhill. Very nice coin. I need to get more Silique from this scarce Emperor.