Classical Coins

Subject of my article is Classical Coins
The Invention of Coinage
Early Electrum Coins
The first Classical coins were small ingots of electrum, a naturally occurring alloy of gold and silver, initially without any design other than irregular striations on the obverse and punch marks on the reverse. These first coins were struck in Ionia, Asia Minorin the 7th century BC. Examples of these, and other very early coins, were found during the excavation of the temple of Diana at Ephesos, in a concealed foundation treasure comprising more than a thousand artifacts.
About 600 BC the Lydian kingdom began to issue a bimetallic coinage in gold and silver. Initially these staters featured the head of a lion conjoined with a sunburst or star on the obverse,and punch marks on the reverse. Kroisos (561-546 BC) adopted the obverse design of the head of a lion facing a bull. Examples of these coins may be viewed here.
Development of ancient coinage
During the sixth century BC the use of coins throughout Mediterranean littoral states became widespread.
Geographic Classification of Issuing Authorities
Barclay V. Head, Keeper of the British museum's collection of ancient coins during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, developed a geographic classification of issuing authorities that is still used today. [Head, Barclay V. (1911), Historia Numorum; A Manual of Greek Numismatics, Oxford: Clarendon Press.] Essentially, this classification system follows a circuit of the ancient Mediterranean shores eastward from Spain to Asia Minor, thence to the conquests of Alexander the Great in northeast India, and concludes by continuing westward through Palestine to Egypt, Cyrenacia, Libya, Carthage and Numidia. Historia Numorum presents a survey of the principal coin types issued by each authority. A companion book of illustrations of the types described was published by Argonaut Press (London, 1968), ASIN: B000K8I5R2.
Use of ancient coinage
Coins originated as fiscal instruments for payment of government obligations, e.g. the military and construction projects. It was soon realized that coins were a much more convenient approach toward payment for goods and services than the barter economy which preceded their adoption, including such archaic forms of money as gold rings, bronze and iron spits, bronze ingots (e.g. the Aes Signatum of the Roman Republic) and hacksilber (cut up fragments of silver jewelry.
Merchants soon began to preferentially use coins for their transactions, and this induced their adoption by the general populace. Since a stater or drachma was a large sum, enough to support a family for a week, a fractional coinage was soon developed subdividing primary denominations into smaller units e.g. obols and trites.
Development of fiduciary coinage
During this period Greeks began to find fractional silver coins, valued at 1 obol (0.7 g) and less, inconveniently small. They developed bronze coins to replace them, but as an obol equalled 40 g of bronze, the first bronze issues were inconveniently heavy. The practical Greeks soon replaced them with coins valued at much more than the weight of the bronze they contained. This invention of fiduciary currency had consequences they did not foresee, that still affect us today.
The Classical Period

By 520 BC use of coins had spread throughout the Mediterranean; they were struck in southern Italy, Sicily, Macedon, in Greece, in the islands between Greece and Asia Minor, and in North Africa. The most common denominations were silver staters (8 or 12 g) and tetradrachms (17 g). Each city at first used an individual badge of sovereignty on the obverse and a punch impression on the reverse, without legends. About 500 BC engravers began to add small devices, or letters, to the reverse punch. Athens was among the first to adopt a true reverse-type when it began to issue its famous tetradrachms with the head of Athena on the obverse and her familiar, the owl, on the reverse.
Meanwhile the Greek cities of Italy experimented with an interesting but complex approach: large thin coins whose obverse design was mirrored on the reverse. By 480 BC the classical design for Greek coins had evolved: types on the obverse and reverse characterizing the city, with an inscription identifying the issuing city.
The engraving style on archaic Greek coins is quite distinct, and reflects the sculpture and ceramic art of the period. Though images of animals and plants are sometimes realistic, generally figures are stylized and poses stiff, without any suggestion of movement; eyes are depicted in the frontal or Egyptian fashion and fine detail in areas such as hair and beards is lacking.
The Classical period lacks a true boundary on either end, and may be said to begin and end at different times in different places. Nor was the evolution of styles distinct; there was a noticeable transition period between high Archaic designs and the true Classical designs. During this period Greek numismatic art reached its peak, the use of coins became universal and bronze coins were invented.
At the beginning of the period occurred two nearly simultaneous events of great historical importance: the failures of the Persian invasion of Greece and of the Carthaginian invasion of Sicily. Though the Carthaginians were not expelled from the island, their drive to control it was thwarted for many years, while the Persians abandoned their attempt to conquer Greece. The defeat of these great military threats had a profound influence on trade, political and cultural relations among the Greek city-states.
Athens now became a dominant military and economic power as the head of a League formed to maintain naval superiority over the Persians. As such it began to strike coins in great numbers, for use in other cities of the league as well, and Athenian "owls" replaced the native types of many allied cities. Interestingly, the Athenians continued to use the archaic portraits of Athena and her owl throughout this period, although they did evolve slightly. These imperial ambitions ended when Athens lost the Peloponnesian War .
Meanwhile the Greek cities of Sicily and Italy struggled continuously for political supremacy. To the eternal delight of collectors, one form of this competition was in the designs of their coins, which were treated as medals advertising the glories and culture of the issuing city. The result was a serious numismatic art competition, by no means confined to this area but finding its most intense expression there.
At the start of the period three great masterpieces of late Archaic numismatic art were issued: the famous "Demareteion" dekadrachm of Syracuse, and superb tetradrachms of Leontini and Naxos. Images of these and other artistic Greek coin types may be viewed here.
This tremendous opening was succeeded by a rapid development of style over a fifty-year period, and by the end of the 5th century many tetradrachms of really exquisite artistic style were being issued, designed by master artists who often signed their dies. The artistic competition culminated in the splendid dekadrachm issues of Syracuse .
By 350 BC Classical numismatic art had passed its peak and a certain decline began, although many very fine examples of numismatic art were still to come and the overall standard remained high. Artistic style began to evolve from the idealism of the high Classical period toward a more realistic style, and technical execution of dies declined.
The Hellenistic Era
In Sicily the Carthaginians had again become a threat, in Italy the Greek cities lost much of their military dominance over the native Italians, and in both the Greeks exhausted themselves fighting one another. Meanwhile, to the east, Philip II of Macedon was demonstrating a new political order as he became master of all Greece . His son Alexander III, the Great, then led the incomparable Macedonian army and its Greek allies in a rapid conquest of the entire Persian Empire. His premature death began a period of confusion as the new Macedonian Empire disintegrated into rival Greek kingdoms.
The Hellenistic period really begins with Philip II, however it was not until the emergence of the major kingdoms after the death of Alexander that a new order in numismatics evolved. Between the Classical and Hellenistic periods lies a very distinct numismatic boundary: the imperial coinage of Alexander, which continued for many years after his death. Within the area of his Empire there were few civic issues of independent types for nearly two centuries, as individual civic coin types were replaced by this mass-produced coinage and later by the royal coinage of the successor kingdoms.
In the West the Greek cities of Italy lost ascendancy over the Italians and a new power, Rome, began to dominate the Italian peninsula. In Sicily the Carthaginians continued their conquests, until the island was divided between their dominion and that of Syracuse which, under a succession of able tyrants, became the center of western Greek power.
In 280 BC Tarentum clashed with Rome and Pyrrhus king of Epirus, an outstanding military commander, came to aid the Tarentines. Despite initial successes he was unable to defeat the Romans, and his later adventures in Sicily against the Carthaginians fared no better. After the withdrawal of Pyrrhus, Rome and Carthage came into collision, and the result was three great Punic Wars ending in the total defeat and destruction of Carthage. During this century-long death grapple, all of the western city-states became subject to Rome.
In the East the Hellenistic kingdoms were in an almost constant state of war - against each other, and internally as the ruling families fought over succession. The period began with a great Celtic invasion penetrating into the heart of Asia Minor, forming the Celtic district of Galatia. The immense Seleukid realm began to disintegrate as first Bactria, then Parthia broke away, and the Parthians eventually absorbed most of the Seleukid dominion, effectively reconstituting the old Persian Empire. Meanwhile the Macedonian kingdom allied itself with Carthage during the second Punic War, and came into conflict with the rising power of Rome. After defeats in 197 and 168 BC, Macedon and its territories in Greece were subjugated, after which Rome incorporated all the Hellenistic kingdoms into its Empire. The last was Egypt, which passed to Rome in 30 BC after the battle of Actium.
Stylistically this period is one of innovation and evolution, combined with continuing decline in artistic style. Living rulers replaced deities on the obverse of coins as Alexander's successors took the step from satrap to King. The art of numismatic portraiture progressed rapidly, becoming the motif of the period. Hellenistic Greek coins were struck on broader flans to provide more scope for the portrait, often becoming medallic in character. During the first century bc, as the remaining Greek kingdoms were being absorbed by Rome and Parthia, artistic style and metal quality declined as their finances deteriorated. Civic issues by Greek cities, mostly in Asia Minor, continued under the Roman Empire and this series is known as the Greek Imperial or Roman Provincial coins.
The Roman Republic
Until the 3rd century bc, the Romans did not use coins; their needs for money were satisfied by exchanging cast bronze ingots (the Aes Signatum), but as Roman influence and trade expanded, more portable forms of currency were needed.
The first Republican issues were cast bronze coins for domestic use, and silver didrachms to pay and supply the army. The large bronze As, or unit, weighed a full Roman pound (320 g) and this series is referred to as the Aes Grave.
The first two Punic Wars made immense demands on Rome's supply of bronze, and the cast coinage declined in weight until, at the height of Hannibal's invasion of Italy, the coins weighed only a sixth of the original standard.
At that point the cast coinage was abandoned for a new struck coinage, based on a silver denarius worth ten bronze units. The denarius remained the standard Roman monetary unit for the next 450 years, though it was revalued at sixteen bronze units in 140 BC. Stylistically this period is not one of great artistic interest, but the historic content of the coinage is very substantial, as it chronicles the rise of Roman power and the great families whose sons became moneyers in their quest for higher office. Despite the limited scope of the denarius flan, the ingenuity of the moneyers found many ways to devise types that would celebrate their ancestors and their political achievements.
The growth of Roman military power became too much for the political institutions of the Republic, badly strained by the Social War with Rome's Italian allies and by the dictatorships of Marius and Sulla.
The Republic collapsed during the Imperatorial period, when after his brilliant conquest of Gaul, Julius Caesar refused to submit to his political enemies, and led his army into Italy . Historic events were then recorded on the coinage, as Caesar defeated Pompey's faction, became Dictator for life, and displayed royal ambition by placing his portrait on coins.
Caesar's assassination started another round of civil wars, from which his great-nephew Octavian finally emerged as master of the Roman world. In 27 bc the Senate awarded Octavian the title "Augustus," recognizing his preeminent position as Princeps of Rome, an event regarded as the start of the Roman Empire.
The Roman Empire (27 BC - 476 AD)
The Principate inaugurated the Pax Romana, the first extended period of peace the classical world knew. For 250 years the Mediterranean world enjoyed tranquility, good government, safety and economic growth.
The Julio-Claudian dynasty developed the coin types of the Empire, continuing to issue denarii, adding gold aurei, and fractional coinage in bronze and brass. Sestertii were issued with fine medallic portraits reminiscent of the best coins of the Hellenistic kings. Some authorities regard the reign of Nero as the artistic high point of Roman coinage, however coins of fine style continued to be issued long after his demise . To exploit coins for propaganda, interesting varieties such as that showing the port at Ostia were struck.
Under the subsequent Flavian regime and its Antonine successors, Rome enjoyed a long Golden Age. It ended when Marcus Aurelius was followed by his dissolute son Commodus, who fought in the arena and was portrayed as Hercules on his coins.
His assassination inaugurated a period of strife from which Septimius Severus emerged as the founder of a new dynasty. Numismatically this period was one of slow debasement; under the Severans the denarius declined to 50% silver content.
In 214 Caracalla introduced a new silver denomination, the antoninianus, featuring a bust with a radiate crown and valued at 2 denarii. Within thirty years this supplanted the denarius (thereafter rarely issued on ceremonial occasions).
The overthrow of Severus Alexander began a half century of great turmoil for the Empire. After several short reigns, Valerian restored some political stability, but was captured by the Persians and perished miserably.
The reign of his son Gallienus marked the nadir numismatically, as the antoninianus shrank and its silver content declined to less than 5%. These small debased coins were hastily struck in great numbers, often from worn dies, and issues of bronze denominations ceased, while mint marks were introduced to combat counterfeiting.
Gallienus could not hold the disintegrating Empire together, and after Gaul, Spain, Britain and the East broke away he was overthrown. His able successors Claudius II, Aurelian and Probus reunited the empire and regularized the coinage, but there was no real stability until the accession of Diocletian . During this period of woe, the economy of the Empire was severely damaged by barbarian incursions, and its population declined.
Diocletian divided the empire into four zones (the Tetrarchy) each commanded by an Augustus or Caesar with an independent field army, and barbarian incursions were soon controlled. Economic reforms included restructuring the coinage with new denominations and regular issues in gold and silver.
The antoninianus was replaced by a handsome large follis of silver-washed bronze, whose style marks the transition from the Principate into an absolute monarchy. These reforms gave the empire a generation of peace and economic recovery, but Diocletian's wisdom did not pass to his successors, who fought each other for supremacy and devalued the new currency. Eventually Constantine I emerged as master of the Empire.
Constantine (who disliked Rome) then built a new capital, Constantinople on the site of Byzantium, which cost so much that the follis declined to a tenth of the original weight and coins of this reign are the most common of the Roman series. Christianization of the empire began, and a new gold coin, the solidus, was introduced.
On Constantine's death his sons divided the empire, but it was shortly reunited under Constantius II, who introduced the centenionalis to replace the devalued follis. His turbulent reign ended in his death on campaign against his cousin Julian II, the Apostate.
Julian's plans to reinstate polytheism might have succeeded, had he not in turn fallen in battle against the Persians ; his short reign is numismatically interesting for reappearance of pagan types and the reintroduction of large bronze coins.
Valentinian I and his brother Valens succeeded, and ruled effectively until Valens, with almost all of the Roman field army, perished in battle against the Goths at Adrianople .
Theodosius then raised a new army, suppressed the Goths and reunited the empire, but on his death it was again divided between his sons Arcadius and Honorius. They proved to be weak rulers, controlled by their Germanic generals.
Honorius eventually broke with Stilicho, giving the Goths a chance to besiege and sack Rome . The Romans, now too weak to expel the barbarians, then retreated to fortified cities and protected enclaves such as Ravenna, where Honorius expired in 423. Under his ineffectual successor Valentinian III, Germanic tribes repeatedly plundered Gaul and Spain, and Africa was conquered by the Vandals.
During these disastrous years the rural economy of the West was largely destroyed, bronze coins became very small, and the gold solidus and its fractions became the principal currency. By the time an energetic emperor, Majorian, came to the Western throne the situation was irretrievable. After initial successes in Gaul, Majorian's great expedition to recover Africa was betrayed, the Roman fleet was destroyed and Majorian was overthrown by his general Ricimer .
That was the end, though fifteen more years of puppet emperors ensued before Italy fell to the Goths . Although coins of Honorius and Valentinian are fairly common, those of the other Western emperors and usurpers of this period are not, and many rarities in the Roman series date from these troubled times.
While the West slowly collapsed, the wealthier and more populous Eastern empire, though not without its own troubles, enjoyed comparative peace. Arcadius died prematurely and was succeeded by his young son Theodosius II, whose long reign was mostly uneventful. After Theodosius died in an accident his successors Marcian, Leo, Zeno and Anastasius ruled wisely. During the last days of the Roman empire the bronze nummus (c. 0.7 g) declined in value to the point that ordinary people found "making change" for their purchases very inconvenient, and in 498 Anastasius began a major currency reform which is taken as the line of demarcation between the Eastern Roman Empire and its successor.

Anastasius introduced a system of copper coins, based on a follis of 40 nummia and fractions of 20, 10 and 5 nummia, which lasted for hundreds of years. Under Justinian at the early empire's political and numismatic peak, large folles (c. 40 mm) of medallic character were struck. Justinian's military ambitions strained the empire's resources and his successors had to abandon many of his conquests.
An invasion by Slavs and Avars provoked a military revoltled by Phocas , whose savage reign was an utter disaster for the empire. Finally the exarch of Carthage, Heraclius, deposed Phocas .
Heraclius' long struggle to recover territories Phocas had lost to the Persians so shattered Sasanian military power that Persia fell to Arabs inspired by the new creed of Mohammed. During the end of this reign, and in the next, they overran Syria, Palestine and Egypt , captured Cyprus and Rhodes, and ultimately besieged Constantinople. Baffled by its walls and the terrifying debut of "Greek fire," the Arabs retreated , but this respite was soon offset by the loss of Moesia to the Bulgars. Constantine IV led an expedition against them, became ill on campaign and soon died , succeeded by his young son.
Justinian II proved to be a ruthless despot without political wisdom. He began well, defeating the Bulgars and resettling many Slavs into Anatolia, but his extortionate taxation and brutal treatment of the aristocracy led to his overthrow , mutilation and banishment to Cherson. Leontius suffered a like fate after Carthage fell and when Tiberius III did little to halt the Arabs, Justinian returned at the head of a Bulgar army . Mutilation and exile had not improved his disposition; revenge expanded into a six-year reign of terror, which ended only when Justinian was overthrown by his general Bardanes. His reigns are numismatically interesting for the introduction of Christ's portrait as the principal type on the gold coinage.
The accession of Leo III coincided with another siege of Constantinople, opening a long struggle that ended in a great Byzantine victory at Acroinon . This reign was also notable for reintroduction of the silver miliaresion, shifting of coin legends from Latin to Greek, and the Iconoclast movement. Constantine V, a commander of genius who won great victories over the Arabs and the Bulgars, continued the Iconoclast policy, alienating the Pope and leading to the loss of many Byzantine holdings in Italy. After his death , reigns of varying fortunes followed until the accession of Basil I .
Basil did much to improve the condition of the empire, but his son Leo VI neglected foreign affairs, and during this reign Sicily was lost to the Arabs, while the Bulgars devastated the Balkans. Leo's son acceded as a minor, one of whose regents, Romanus, became his father-in-law and co-emperor . Constantine VII then reigned until 963 when Nicephorus II came to the throne.
This great commander did much to restore Byzantine power, and John I continued this resurgence until his premature death . During this reign the follis was changed to an anonymous type with religious motifs and legends, and a lightweight gold coin, the tetarteron, was introduced. From this time the solidus became known as the histamenon nomisma.
Byzantine power reached its peak during the reign of Basil II , conqueror of the Bulgars, during which the histamenon became larger and thinner. Several of his less effective successors married his niece Zoe, during a period notable for debasement of the gold coinage and the introduction of scyphate (cup-shaped) coins.
Constantine IX patronized the arts, but neglected military power while the Seljuq Turks overthrew the Arab caliphates, the schism between the Catholic and Orthodox churches began, and Norman barons attacked Byzantine possessions in Italy. The situation deteriorated throughout the reign of Constantine X, whose successor Romanus IV finally met the Turks in the field and lost decisively at Manzikert , a disaster from which Byzantine power never fully recovered. The empire began to disintegrate during the short reigns that followed.
Alexius I came to the throne in 1081 and his brilliant leadership gave the empire a new lease on life. Allying himself with the rising power of Venice, he defeated the Normans, then repulsed an attack by the Patzinaks, securing the Balkans. Recovering territories lost to the Turks proved to be more difficult, and the First Crusade presented new problems, for its leaders had no intention of restoring liberated areas to the empire. In 1092 Alexius replaced the debased histamenon with a new gold hyperpyron, and introduced the aspron trachy, while the bronze follis was replaced by a smaller coin, the tetarteron. His equally gifted son John I then made an alliance with the Holy Roman Empire and continued the recovery of Byzantine territories.
John's energetic son Manuel I met with initial success, but his offensive in Italy provoked conflict with Frederick Barbarossa. That prince incited the Turks, who attacked and defeated Manuel. He died a broken man , and his successor Andronicus was soon overthrown.
Isaac II made some progress in halting the decline of the empire, but was deposed by his brother Alexius III, who reigned ineffectually until Isaac's son, with the armies of the Fourth Crusade, appeared before Constantinople. Isaac and Alexius IV ruled as puppets for six months, unable to pay the huge indemnity they had promised. When this became public knowledge, they perished in an uprising and Constantinople was stormed by the Crusaders .
During three horrible days of rapine, soldiers of the Cross eclipsed anything the Turks or Saracens ever did. Immense amounts of art and valuables were destroyed; the rest was carried off to adorn Venice and other cities. The still-smoking capital was partitioned among the victors, and the empire became a Latin feudal state as remnants of the aristocracy fled to Epirus and Nicaea to organize exile governments.
This period is numismatically complex, as the Latin empire and Greek exile governments issued large numbers of similar coins. The Latins alienated their new subjects, and a revolt led to defeat of their army at Adrianople and withdrawal from Asia Minor, allowing the Empire of Nicaea to become firmly established. Thessalonica fell to the Greeks and Latin fortunes steadily declined, until Constantinople was retaken and the Byzantine empire was reconstituted under Michael VIII.
This astute diplomat cleverly played one enemy against another, and by his death the empire seemed to have recovered much of its power, but its economy had been shattered. Coinage of the period reflects this; dies are poorly executed, and most of the hastily struck coins are trachys of very low silver content. Under Andronicus II the empire could not field a sufficient army to defend its territories in Asia Minor, which fell to the Turks. In 1348 the plague struck, Turkish conquest of the Balkans began, and in 1372 the empire became tributary to the Sultan. Then Thessalonica fell to the Turks, and by the death of John VI the empire controlled only Constantinople and the despotate of Morea in the Peloponnesus.
Manuel II toured Europe to recruit military and financial help, which arrived from an unexpected source, when the Mongols routed the Turks and captured the Sultan . That allowed some time for recovery of Byzantine fortunes, but although John VIII continued to seek help and even reconciled with the Pope, nothing substantial developed. When Constantine XI assumed the throne, he could only shore up the walls and await the inevitable. It came in April 1453, when Muhammed II arrived with a vast host armed with siege cannons. Constantine and his small garrison fought with a heroism worthy of antique Rome, inflicting immense casualties; early on May 29, after a last service at Hagia Sophia, the last Emperor rode out to meet his destiny as the Turks stormed the breaches and the Byzantine Empire passed into history.
The fall of Constantinople marks the end of the Classical Period, including Classical coinage.

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