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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Valentinian, post: 4041923, member: 44316&quot;]Yes, although these are just modern names. The antoninianus began under Caracalla and commenced a gradual decline in silver value until the reform of Aurelian in 274 increased the quality of the coins. We use the same name, &quot;antoninianus,&quot; for the good-looking coins of Caracalla and Gordian III as we do for the very-low-silver coins of Claudius II and pre-reform coins of Aurelian. Do the much nicer post-reform coins of Aurelian deserve a different name?</p><p><br /></p><p>Most catalogs don&#039;t bother to distinguish them. They are still radiates. But, they were quite different to the ancients. The amount of silver in a coin mattered to them, and it had just been increased and regularized by Aurelian. I have written many words about ancient coins and used the term &quot;antoninianus&quot; many times for these later coins, but I am beginning to think that &quot;aurelianus&quot; is a better term.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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