Log in or Sign up
Coin Talk
Home
Forums
>
Coin Forums
>
Ancient Coins
>
Roman Coins: Do We Know How Long Ancient Roman Coins Circulated After Minting?
>
Reply to Thread
Message:
<p>[QUOTE="DonnaML, post: 8356167, member: 110350"]Here's a copy and paste of one of my posts on this subject, from about two years ago. (I haven't checked to make sure that all the links still work.)</p><p><br /></p><p>What looks like a very interesting article, as translated into English, entitled "Circulation of Roman Coinage in Northern Europe in Late Antiquity," can be found at at <a href="https://journals.openedition.org/histoiremesure/886" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://journals.openedition.org/histoiremesure/886" rel="nofollow">https://journals.openedition.org/histoiremesure/886</a>. A brief excerpt:</p><p><br /></p><p>"In North-Central Europe 2nd century denarii and subaerati are noted almost always in Late Roman and Early Migration Period contexts, i.e. be-tween A.D. 3rd and the 5th century. Most of the denarii hoards, which additionally contain non-numismatic elements, mainly ornaments, are dated to the Migration Period; many deposits from Gotland are recorded even in Late Migration Period contexts. Denarii continue to appear also in Frankish graves dated to 5th and 6th centuries and even later. Strong wear of the denarii from Barbaricum suggests that they were used over a long period.</p><p><br /></p><p>The other very important group of Roman coinage in Barbaricum are 2nd and early 3rd century sestertii found particularly on the south-eastern Baltic — in Pomerania, Sambian peninsula and the lower Neman River, areas settled by Germanic and West Balt societies. Sestertii are registered in hoards, graves, and as stray finds. In my opinion the influx of the wave of sestertii to the Baltic coast ought to be dated to the period between A.D. 180 and the mid 3rd century, until early Valerianus and Gallienus. There is evidence that they originated from the western Empire and the latest series, dated to the mid-3rd century, may have come directly from northern Italy. The distribution, chronology and provenance of this very specific group of coinage strongly suggest its links with the amber trade which, as a result of Marcomanic Wars, had to take place by a roundabout sea route."</p><p><br /></p><p>See also <a href="http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/87152/1/WP275.pdf" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/87152/1/WP275.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/87152/1/WP275.pdf</a> at p. 7: "There is some evidence that late Roman low-denomination coins were still circulating in the</p><p>fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, as were privately produced jettons (Dyer, 1997, p. 40)." [From an paper entitled "Technologies of money in the Middle Ages:</p><p>The ‘Principles of Minting’," by Oliver Volckart of the London School of Economics.]</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Finally, see the [2016] thread at forumancientcoins.com entitled "How long were Roman coin in circulation for?"; it's at <a href="http://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=108861.0;wap2" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=108861.0;wap2" rel="nofollow">http://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=108861.0;wap2</a>. One comment cites an article mentioning Roman bronzes from a hoard circulating (on a small scale) as farthings in 1741; see <a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.b3421958&view=1up&seq=548" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.b3421958&view=1up&seq=548" rel="nofollow">https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.b3421958&view=1up&seq=548</a>. [The book cited is</p><p>Rev. Gilbert White, <i>The natural history and antiquities of Selborne, London,</i> Printed for J. and A. Arch [etc., 1837], Source: HathiTrust.org</p><p>cf. pp. 516-517.]</p><p><br /></p><p>[Another comment, by our own [USER=103829]@Jochen1[/USER], mentions that he had read that "Roman sestertii were used until begin of 19th century as sous pieces in France," presumably because of the similarity in size.]</p><p><br /></p><p>Another comment, by a Forum member named Gallienus1, states:</p><p><br /></p><p>"With the collapse of the Western Empire the new coins minted by the tribal successor states probably could not be produced in the numbers needed for trade, pay for the loyalty of warriors or even for every day exchange. It is therefore reasonable to expect that Roman coins that survived in circulation would be used until worn into featureless discs, then melted down for reuse.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Then the[re] are hoard coins. Hoards have been found from the time they were hidden to the present day. Reading an excerpt from The Social Circulation of the Past: English Historical Culture 1500-1730 by Daniel Woolf indicates to me that hoards were discovered at a much greater frequency in the past than they are today. In the 15th through to 18th centuries some of these coins must have re-entered the economy as unofficial units of exchange based on the monetary value of their metal content.</b></p><p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>Names given for Roman coins such as 'madning money', 'Binchester pennies' and 'Burrough money' certainly suggest that the locals at least may have used them as a means of exchange.</b> The part in the excerpt that makes me weep is the schoolmaster who gets his students to look for Roman coins and when they found enough silver ones he had them melted down to make a silver tankard!" (Citing <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=5fb2qsnZozMC&pg=PA233&lpg=PA233&dq=circulation+of+%3Ca%20href=%27http://www.forumancientcoins.com/catalog/roman-and-greek-coins.asp?vpar=55&pos=0%27%20target=%27_blank%27%3Eroman%3C/a%3E+coins&source=bl&ots=eCC8e-HzIS&sig=IGt_9KA2bw0GKhI7GE9JFVoBXPk&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZzKq62IjQAhWJHJQKHUjQBtE4KBDoAQgfMAE#v=onepage&q=circulation%20of%20roman%20coins&f=false" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=5fb2qsnZozMC&pg=PA233&lpg=PA233&dq=circulation+of+%3Ca%20href=%27http://www.forumancientcoins.com/catalog/roman-and-greek-coins.asp?vpar=55&pos=0%27%20target=%27_blank%27%3Eroman%3C/a%3E+coins&source=bl&ots=eCC8e-HzIS&sig=IGt_9KA2bw0GKhI7GE9JFVoBXPk&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZzKq62IjQAhWJHJQKHUjQBtE4KBDoAQgfMAE#v=onepage&q=circulation%20of%20roman%20coins&f=false" rel="nofollow">https://books.google.com.au/books?id=5fb2qsnZozMC&pg=PA233&lpg=PA233&dq=circulation+of+<a href='http://www.forumancientcoins.com/catalog/roman-and-greek-coins.asp?vpar=55&pos=0' target='_blank'>roman</a>+coins&source=bl&ots=eCC8e-HzIS&sig=IGt_9KA2bw0GKhI7GE9JFVoBXPk&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZzKq62IjQAhWJHJQKHUjQBtE4KBDoAQgfMAE#v=onepage&q=circulation of roman coins&f=false</a> .)"[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="DonnaML, post: 8356167, member: 110350"]Here's a copy and paste of one of my posts on this subject, from about two years ago. (I haven't checked to make sure that all the links still work.) What looks like a very interesting article, as translated into English, entitled "Circulation of Roman Coinage in Northern Europe in Late Antiquity," can be found at at [URL]https://journals.openedition.org/histoiremesure/886[/URL]. A brief excerpt: "In North-Central Europe 2nd century denarii and subaerati are noted almost always in Late Roman and Early Migration Period contexts, i.e. be-tween A.D. 3rd and the 5th century. Most of the denarii hoards, which additionally contain non-numismatic elements, mainly ornaments, are dated to the Migration Period; many deposits from Gotland are recorded even in Late Migration Period contexts. Denarii continue to appear also in Frankish graves dated to 5th and 6th centuries and even later. Strong wear of the denarii from Barbaricum suggests that they were used over a long period. The other very important group of Roman coinage in Barbaricum are 2nd and early 3rd century sestertii found particularly on the south-eastern Baltic — in Pomerania, Sambian peninsula and the lower Neman River, areas settled by Germanic and West Balt societies. Sestertii are registered in hoards, graves, and as stray finds. In my opinion the influx of the wave of sestertii to the Baltic coast ought to be dated to the period between A.D. 180 and the mid 3rd century, until early Valerianus and Gallienus. There is evidence that they originated from the western Empire and the latest series, dated to the mid-3rd century, may have come directly from northern Italy. The distribution, chronology and provenance of this very specific group of coinage strongly suggest its links with the amber trade which, as a result of Marcomanic Wars, had to take place by a roundabout sea route." See also [URL]http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/87152/1/WP275.pdf[/URL] at p. 7: "There is some evidence that late Roman low-denomination coins were still circulating in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, as were privately produced jettons (Dyer, 1997, p. 40)." [From an paper entitled "Technologies of money in the Middle Ages: The ‘Principles of Minting’," by Oliver Volckart of the London School of Economics.] Finally, see the [2016] thread at forumancientcoins.com entitled "How long were Roman coin in circulation for?"; it's at [URL]http://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=108861.0;wap2[/URL]. One comment cites an article mentioning Roman bronzes from a hoard circulating (on a small scale) as farthings in 1741; see [URL]https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.b3421958&view=1up&seq=548[/URL]. [The book cited is Rev. Gilbert White, [I]The natural history and antiquities of Selborne, London,[/I] Printed for J. and A. Arch [etc., 1837], Source: HathiTrust.org cf. pp. 516-517.] [Another comment, by our own [USER=103829]@Jochen1[/USER], mentions that he had read that "Roman sestertii were used until begin of 19th century as sous pieces in France," presumably because of the similarity in size.] Another comment, by a Forum member named Gallienus1, states: "With the collapse of the Western Empire the new coins minted by the tribal successor states probably could not be produced in the numbers needed for trade, pay for the loyalty of warriors or even for every day exchange. It is therefore reasonable to expect that Roman coins that survived in circulation would be used until worn into featureless discs, then melted down for reuse. [B]Then the[re] are hoard coins. Hoards have been found from the time they were hidden to the present day. Reading an excerpt from The Social Circulation of the Past: English Historical Culture 1500-1730 by Daniel Woolf indicates to me that hoards were discovered at a much greater frequency in the past than they are today. In the 15th through to 18th centuries some of these coins must have re-entered the economy as unofficial units of exchange based on the monetary value of their metal content. Names given for Roman coins such as 'madning money', 'Binchester pennies' and 'Burrough money' certainly suggest that the locals at least may have used them as a means of exchange.[/B] The part in the excerpt that makes me weep is the schoolmaster who gets his students to look for Roman coins and when they found enough silver ones he had them melted down to make a silver tankard!" (Citing [URL='https://books.google.com.au/books?id=5fb2qsnZozMC&pg=PA233&lpg=PA233&dq=circulation+of+%3Ca%20href=%27http://www.forumancientcoins.com/catalog/roman-and-greek-coins.asp?vpar=55&pos=0%27%20target=%27_blank%27%3Eroman%3C/a%3E+coins&source=bl&ots=eCC8e-HzIS&sig=IGt_9KA2bw0GKhI7GE9JFVoBXPk&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZzKq62IjQAhWJHJQKHUjQBtE4KBDoAQgfMAE#v=onepage&q=circulation%20of%20roman%20coins&f=false']https://books.google.com.au/books?id=5fb2qsnZozMC&pg=PA233&lpg=PA233&dq=circulation+of+<a href='http://www.forumancientcoins.com/catalog/roman-and-greek-coins.asp?vpar=55&pos=0' target='_blank'>roman</a>+coins&source=bl&ots=eCC8e-HzIS&sig=IGt_9KA2bw0GKhI7GE9JFVoBXPk&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiZzKq62IjQAhWJHJQKHUjQBtE4KBDoAQgfMAE#v=onepage&q=circulation of roman coins&f=false[/URL] .)"[/QUOTE]
Your name or email address:
Do you already have an account?
No, create an account now.
Yes, my password is:
Forgot your password?
Stay logged in
Coin Talk
Home
Forums
>
Coin Forums
>
Ancient Coins
>
Roman Coins: Do We Know How Long Ancient Roman Coins Circulated After Minting?
>
Home
Home
Quick Links
Search Forums
Recent Activity
Recent Posts
Forums
Forums
Quick Links
Search Forums
Recent Posts
Competitions
Competitions
Quick Links
Competition Index
Rules, Terms & Conditions
Gallery
Gallery
Quick Links
Search Media
New Media
Showcase
Showcase
Quick Links
Search Items
Most Active Members
New Items
Directory
Directory
Quick Links
Directory Home
New Listings
Members
Members
Quick Links
Notable Members
Current Visitors
Recent Activity
New Profile Posts
Sponsors
Menu
Search
Search titles only
Posted by Member:
Separate names with a comma.
Newer Than:
Search this thread only
Search this forum only
Display results as threads
Useful Searches
Recent Posts
More...