Most of us have Roman Provincial bronzes in our collections and most of these are from Eastern mints, usually, but not always with inscriptions in Greek. But some provincials were issued in the western imperium, in Latin. Now I don't mean those coins issued before Roman takeover such as the coins of Celtic Britain or Gaul or Celt-Iberian Spain but rather issued by some Roman authority, but not part of the regular issue of imperial mints. The one of that kind that comes most immediately to mind is the series of Dupondius or As coinage of Lugdunum with Augustus and Agrippa on one side and the palm and chained crocodile on the other. I have one (not pictured) that weighs 11.8 grams. They average about 11 grams in weight and seem to have circulated, at least locally, at the same value of the imperial brass. In addition to that issue, two cities in Spain, Celsa (Lepida) and Segobriga issued bronze coins with the images of several of the early emperors. In weight they were very close to the bronze coming from the official imperial mints. For example the Augustus As pictured here with the big SC on the reverse weighs in at 10.6 grams and this is average for these coins, The one from Celsa (Lepida) in Spain, with the lovely green patina, with Augustus on the obverse weighs 10.8 grams and the bronze of Caligula from Segobriga is 11.7 grams, which is quite close to the weight of the bronze Asses of Tiberius and Caligula from Rome.. What I wonder about these Latin inscribed Western provincial coins is, did they circulate outside of their provincial origins side by side with the regular imperial mint issues and at the same value, one AS, or if they circulated there at all, was it at a discount? Are they ever found in hoards or in situ with the regular issued bronze in other parts of the empire other than the provinces they were issued in? Any insight on this topic much appreciated.
I used to live in Potsdam, NY, near the Canadian border. Canadian coins, technically worth less than similar US coins, would often circulate at par with them. My guess is that the closer you were to their city of origin, the more likely you were to see them and accept them as equivalent to official coins of the same size. But I have to evidence to support this; it's just a guess.
So did I. Niagara University, right across from Ontario. At the time the exchange rate was pretty close to par so US and Canadian money passed at par on both sides. I sometimes had more Canadian change in my pocket than US.
This is a very interesting topic, which I am not really qualified to say much about. In my recent efforts to educate myself on countermarks, I find that a single source about where, when, and at what value these coins circulated has not been found by me (Online that is). It seems pretty obvious that they were used in the provinces, but the undertypes were often (usually?) imperial. What I'm talking about are those as or imitative as issues from the Balkans, Pannonia or the limes. Here is an example - at 7.16 grams, rather light, but the countermarks indicate a revaluation? I don't know: Augustus Æ As / Dupondius Imperial Moneyer with Pannonia c/m (1st C. A.D.) AVGVSTVS [TRIB]VNIC [POTE]ST in three lines within oak wreath / [?]MSAN[?] around large SC. (Uncertain attribution; possible Balkan imitative) (7.16 grams / 25 mm) Countermarks: AVG, TICÆ obverse / P•P• and CAE reverse. M. Pangerl Collection 75 (AVG), 90 (TICÆ) 81a (P.P.) 77c (CAE) Underweight sestertii were revalued to dupondii at some point - for the provinces or Rome? Jamesicus was the source for this one - (thanks James!): Claudius Æ Dupondius (c. 41-54 A.D.) Unofficial Mint (Sestertius) TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG PM TR P IMP, laureate head r. / [SP]ES AVGVSTA, Spes stdg. left, holding flower & raising hem, [SC in ex.] RIC 99; Cohen 85 (imitative). (16.74 grams / 29 mm) Countermark: DV and edge cut at 3 o'clock, obverse. Pangerl Collection No. 58. This countermark signified validation as a dupondius on lightweight or unofficial sestertii. Then there are all those TICA / AVG countermarks - these are very abundant, usually found on worn-slick discs that may have been asses at some point. Again, who knows? I hope all these countermarks aren't off topic! But the Kevin's original question is a good one - just what was Roman money in the western provinces? What is the connection to the Roman Army (I suspect a big one)? P.S. I can say this about Canadian coins - growing up in northern Indiana we got quite a few of them in pocket change. I used to cull them out as a kid - in the '70s there were still quite a few George VI pennies and even an occasional "stop sign shaped" nickel.
Interesting topic and probably one where getting a definitive answer is a bit tricky. However, I am no expert on western provincial issues. I haven't really found much info in the various sources out there on the Interwebs. Perhaps someone who is more expert can comment on this.
That's why I put it out here. We have some pretty savvy members, some of whom have access to sources not normally available.
It's like the Canadian cent or penny. We still pass them off as cents. No complaints in Buffalo. Just me. Like your coins
It would be interesting to see if anyone has any info but I suspect not much will be know. Maybe there are recorded hoards of western provincial coins found with contemporary imperials, but I imagine they would trade at about the same value as their imperial counterparts. My understanding is these types of coins were minted to deal with monetary shortages...but I may be mistaken.
I believe this is my only coin that is a western provincial: Octavian, 27 BC - AD 14 AE32, 16g, 6h; Colonia Celsa. Obv.: II VIR COL V I CELSA; bare head of Octavian right. Rev.: Bull right; L.POMPE.BVCCO above, L.CORNE.FRONT (moneyers)
I think that's the same as mine except that yours is heavier by some five grams. Maybe the local version of the dupondius.
