AUGUSTUS AS , (Copper, 7.8 grams, 26 mm) struck circa 18-19 BC Obverse: AVGVSTUS /TRIBUNIC/POTEST within wreath Reverse: T.CRISPINUS III VIR.A.A.A.F.F. around large S C With countermark PP (RP?) and CAE I found this today at the Wilmington Delaware Coin Club show. The countermarks have me guessing. Anyone up on them?
Okay. I went to the Museum of Countermarks on Roman Coins link (thanks ro1974) and I now can confirm that I have countermarks from Roman Pannonia (modern area being part of Austria, Hungary, Serbia, etc.). So, now the question remains....why? It's a roman coin already. Why did it need to be counterstamped?
We tend to think of the Roman Empire in modern terms: as a homogenous political entity. In fact, it was constantly changing hands and boundaries. Provinces in particular experienced frequently shifting allegiances. Coinage had to be re-monetized occasionally to make (or keep) it legal tender. In the case of Pannonia, it's likely that the coins were stamped in order to localize them. That is, they would have been worthless outside of the province. This would have prevented the depletion of small change in the area - a very common practice in the ancient world. That, and the production of civic issues that were only considered legal tender in limited regions. Those are magnificent examples of those particular stamps. Nice find indeed!
