Hi, Guys I’m doing some research on ancient Roman 1 century B.C ~ 1 century A.D world goods price list , but the information that I have found on internet usually only forces on foods or some living resources , rarely mention about some luxury item such as gold or silver ring or jewelry , I know the price of jewelry stuff could be highly different depend on its condition , but I just looking for the average or lowest prices in around 1 century A.D ancient Roman world. If you have any related information, article or books ( not only about jewelry , any kind of price list will be welcome ) I hope you could share it with me. Thanks a lot Henry
I don’t have any sources I could provide, but the question got me thinking. Could luxury items even be given a cost, since their manufacture would be a negotiation between the craftsman and the buyer? There wasn’t any sort of mass production on goods that would lead to a uniformity of costs. But you could get that with food or the wages of soldiers which would be close to a “mass production” just ruminations. Again, I haven’t read the sources for Rome
I don't have a source, just have read bits and pieces over the years. One might mention a necklace for so many aurei, but it usually doesn't help much since it never goes into weight of necklace, stones, quality of workmanship, etc. I do know what the ancients called sapphires was lapis lazuli. Clear corundum with a blue color was unknown to ancient Europeans, though I believe rubies were known.
That is a good point. But the situation you mention might be a case by wealthy people , jewelry not only manufactured by precious metal , like bronze and iron , which wear by the commons , also there are many simple design silver ring through ancient world , they seems don’t need to much to work on , so I think there might have a shop or factory , sale or produce massive less-design product , in order to sale it easily , and faster. Just a thought , not so sure (?) Henry
I seem to recollect a post on CT that addressed prices/costs in ancient times, but not sure of the time period you're asking about. I'm guessing the post was 2-3 yrs ago. Perhaps someone will see this post & remember where it is. ...or, maybe I just dreamed about this in a previous life...
I believe jewelry may have been priced quite differently than how it is done in the West today. Most gold jewelry, I think, was a form a bullion. If I understand correctly, even today in India simple gold jewelry (without precious stones of course) is sold by the weight. The time period is off by a bit, but Diocletian's Edict on Maximum Prices gives you some idea of the cost of jewelry at the end of the 3rd century. See below. This is taken from a translation by A. Kropoff, available at http://kark.uib.no/antikk/dias/priceedict.pdf . The unit of currency here is the denarii communes, which was a unit of account not an actual coin. However the nummus, a copper coin with a little bit of silver, was in theory valued at 25 denarii communes. Gold, refined, in bars or in coins (1 lb) = 72.000 Spun gold (1 lb) = 72.000 Goldsmith working in gold (1 lb) = 5.000 Gold cutters making gold foil (1 lb) = 3.000 For drawers of gold in the leaf (1 lb) = 250 Maker of gold thread, gold spinner (1 lb) = 2.500 Goldsmith for simple work (1 uncia) = 50 Goldsmith for precise work (1 uncia) = 80 Refined silver of the first quality (1 lb) = 6.000 Silversmith for work of the first quality (1 lb) = 300 Silversmith for work of the second quality (1 lb) = 150 Silversmith for work of the third quality (1 lb) = 75 So, if you provided the gold you could hire a goldsmith to work it into jewelry for 5,000 d.c. or 200 nummi per pound.
