Double denarius5/3/2023 These inscriptions most likely indicate a ratio of 20-to-1, which accords with the approximately 5 percent silver of the alloy. The date of the revolt is uncertain, and the loss of life is probably exaggerated, but it likely was associated with Aurelian’s reform of 274.ĭespite resistance from mint workers, the double-denarius was replaced with Aurelian’s new coin, which was marked with a numerical formula in Latin (XXI) or Greek (KA). Thousands of lives are said to have been lost in the siege of the mint facility. They led a brazen revolt at the mint in Rome, an event described in the Historia Augusta and by the authors Eutropius and Aurelius Victor. ![]() Strong opposition to Aurelian’s reforms was raised by workers accustomed to taking their cut of the silver passing through the mint. However, the ailing double-denarius was Aurelian’s main target: he replaced it with a similar, but improved coin often called an aurelianianus since it is described as such in an early sixth century A.D. ![]() In his reform the denarius was briefly reintroduced as a legitimate, circulating coin, as were some novel base metal coins. In 274 the emperor Aurelian (270 to 275) reformed the empire’s coinage, improving the intrinsic value of his precious metal coins. In this period, the decline in silver coinage mirrors the decline in Rome’s fortunes as an empire. Early in Gordian’s reign the double-denarius was nearly 48 percent pure and was well made, yet by the early 270s it contained less than 2 percent silver and was struck haphazardly. However, soon after achieving its supremacy, the quality of the double-denarius began to fall precipitously both in silver content and production quality. The double-denarius had now become the standard silver coin of the realm, and would remain so for the next three decades. With one notable exception, later denarii all appear to have been ceremonial pieces. From 238 to 241 he almost exclusively struck double-denarii, then, from 241 to 243 he issued both denarii and double-denarii, and from 243 to 244 only double-denarii.Īfter Gordian ceased production of denarii in 243, that denomination was rarely struck again. Gordian’s pattern of silver coinage was odd, suggesting the implementation of at least two changes in his monetary policy. Three of the six emperors who reigned during that year struck this denomination, with the last of them, Gordian III (238 to 244), doing so on a large scale. The double-denarius was reintroduced in 238, a year of violent revolution. The next two emperors, Severus Alexander (222 to 235) and Maximinus I “Thrax” (235 to 238), did not strike double-denarii. The denomination was then issued by his successor, Macrinus (217 to 218), and also by the next emperor, Elagabalus (218 to 222), who for unknown reasons appears to have ended the coin’ production in 219. 360 and 425 - so this information must be considered questionable.Ĭaracalla struck double-denarii up until his murder in April, 217. Though that may have been what they were called when that work was composed, Historia Augusta is deeply flawed and was composed long after the use of the coin - sometime between A.D. ![]() Today it is best known as an antoninianus since a reference to argentei antoniniani in the Historia Augusta refers to Caracalla’s new double-denarius. The ancient name of the double-denarius is uncertain. A quick survey of 50 double-denarii of Caracalla included coins ranging from 4.13 to 6.1 grams an equally random sampling of 50 denarii from the year of Caracalla’s reform yielded a range of 2.67 to 3.62 grams. The weights of coins on a piece-to-piece basis varied considerably. Since both coins were of similar purity (about 50 percent in this period), the new double-denarius appears to have been overvalued in relation to the denarius, perhaps to help compensate for Caracalla’s hike in legionary salaries. It is believed that the new coin was officially valued at two denarii since it bears the hallmarks of a double-denomination: male portraits are adorned with a radiate crown and female busts rest upon a crescent moon.Īveraging about 5.10 grams when it was introduced, the double-denarius had the silver content of only 1.5 denarii, as that denomination typically weighed about 3 to 3.4 grams. Nowhere is it recorded why the double-denarius was introduced, though it may have been in an attempt to stretch resources.
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