Moneta Avgvsti: Second And Third Century Coin Imagery And The Imperial Influence In Roman Britain

Abstract

In the Roman empire, money had both economic and communicative purposes. Analyzing coin composition and images reveals patterns that shed light on Roman emperors’ propaganda. In particular, the coins of the second and third centuries display a juxtaposition between an era that was broadly stable – economically and politically – and one that was broadly unstable. While my undergraduate thesis covers coin image and composition, this article will focus on the latter half, studying levels of use-wear in Romano-British coin hoards buried in these centuries. This research, using data from the third century Beau Street Hoard and the second century Weston Lawrence Hoard, was conducted to identify any effect the imperial message had on spending in Roman Britain. Findings ultimately revealed that while there was little correlation between image and use-wear, there was suggestion of relation between weight and wear. This suggests that the emperor’s message had little effect on the perception of coin value among users. However, wear patterns do point towards an acknowledgment of debasement in the silver content, and subsequent hoarding of more valuable coins.