Roman Treasury Roman Coins (Spain)
When the Roman Empire declined and failed to be able to mint and distribute currency, local communities solved the problem – with false, rough and low value coins that had no intention of deceiving but facilitating daily trade – and which were tolerated by Rome.
A new one, published earlier this month in the magazine Veguetareveals how the counterfeit coins were fundamental to sustain the economy In the end centuries of the Roman Empire.
The investigation, focused on the then called territory gerundensis (Region under the jurisdiction of the city of Gerunda, present -day Girona, Catalonia), analyzes these imitations and their impact on the daily life of the time.
In the fourth and seventeenth centuries, the Roman Empire faced a deep crisismarked by wars, invasions and increasing administrative weakness, which made it difficult to currency production and distribution official.
It was then that the imitative coins – Parts produced locally that copied the drawings of the Roman coins but were made with more materials cheap and inferior quality.
Although they may initially seem fraudulent, they actually played a crucial role: Keep trade operating when the state could no longer provide sufficient currency.
The imitative coinage served a monetized economy that had to respond to the urgent scarcity of new coinage, explains MARC BOUZAS SABATERresearcher at the University of Girona and author of the study, quoted by.
These imitations, far from being rejectedcirculated next to official coins and even with pieces of barbaric kingdoms, such as the vandals, or Byzantine coins.
The study analyzed 185 imitative currencies found in archaeological sites throughout the region, from cities such as ampurae to rural villages such as Vilauba.
The counterfeits were visibly smaller than the originalwith weights that could be half or less. For example, while an official bronze coin weighed about 1.65 grams, their imitations barely exceeded a grass.
Os FRIDATES OF EMPLIERS and the symbols in the coins appeared poorly defined, with exaggerated characteristics or simple lines instead of fine details.
The most often imitated design showed a Roman soldier Figuring a fallen barbaric knight – a symbol of victory widely used at the time. Empero coins such as Magnência or Constantius II were also copied.
The study distinguishes between Two types of imitations: On the one hand, there were the rude pieces made with simple molds, which emerged to compensate for the scarcity of official coinage and They had no intention of deceivingbut facilitate everyday trade.
On the other hand, There were “professional” falsificationsbetter elaborate coins that were almost indistinguishable from the originals And they aimed to pass genuine, although they were less common in the studied region.
Although the falsification was law punishablethe scarcity of official coinage caused the authorities, In practice, tolerate these imitations. The goal was not fraud, but filling the void left by the official coinage, notes the study.
The imitative coins appeared at critical moments At the end of the fourth century after monetary reforms that reduced official production, and in the fifth century during barbaric invasions and the disintegration of the Western Empire.
A fundamental discovery is a coin treasure discovered in Santa Margarida d’empúries, containing a variety of official coinsimitations and even some vandal coins were mixed.
This treasure, dated from the mid -fifth century, shows that the counterfeits still were in use decades after their original models have ceased to be coinned.
The massive presence of these coins reveals two things: that the economy was still active, since the need for false coins – indicate that trade and markets had not collapsed; and that the state had lost control.
The denominations imitated clearly show that they copied currencies very common and low value in the area, highlights the study. In other words, what was being falsified It was what people used every day“Small for everyday shopping, not gold pieces reserved for the elites.”
According to Bouzas Sabater, the imitative coins were a temporary patch but effective for an economy that could no longer depend on Rome.
Imitative coinage served a monetized economy that had to respond to PREVENT SCIENSE OF NEW COUNTY. This is because, especially the daily transactions, which had to be performed in bronze currencies, were the most affected by the scarcity of currency, concludes the author of the study.
In the end, Even a decline empire could stand up “Although at the expense of fake coins.”
