Reading Coins
Anatomy of a Coin
Type – the central device or motif (“dominant design”) on either face of a coin.
Legend – the written content of a coin, usually encircling the type or flanking it (sometimes continues into exergue). Significance: describes issuing authority, describes type, specifies commemoration, gives titles.
Field – undecorated background on face of the coin. Often divided into left and right when describing coin type.
Exergue – Refers to portion of type beneath the ground line. Used for mintmarks, S. C., legend, etc.
Attributes – These are objects included in the image that allow us to determine the specific figures. They are often attached to or held by the portrayed figure.
Obverse - This is the “heads” side of the coin, as it often portrays the portrait of an important figure.
Reverse - This is the “tails” side of the coin.
Denominations
As (pl. asses) - A bronze coin, the basic unit.
Sestertius (pl. sestertii) - A silver coin (it became a brass coin during the empire).
Denarius (pl. denarii) - A silver coin, occasionally minted in gold.
Aureus (pl: aurei) - A gold coin.
S.C.
The mark 'S C' was included on all bronze coins in both the Republic and during the Imperial Period in Rome. It stands for 'Senatus Consultus' or "by decree of the Senate", and it indicates that the coin, along with its images and messages, had been approved by the Senate. It also guaranteed the worth of the coin in Rome.
Reigns of the Julio-Claudian Emperors
Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus Augustus: 27 BCE - 14 CE
Tiberius Claudius Nero: 14 - 37 CE
Gaius Caesar Germanicus (Caligula): 37 - 42 CE
Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus: 41 - 54 CE
Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus. Later became Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus: 54 - 68 CE
The Julio-Claudian Family Tree
Image Credits:
Crabben, J. (2018). Julio-Claudian Family Tree. [online] Ancient History Encyclopedia. Available at: https://www.ancient.eu/image/2131/ [Accessed 23 Sep. 2018].
Sites.fas.harvard.edu. (2018). Roman Money. [online] Available at: http://sites.fas.harvard.edu/~lac61/ASSIGNMENTS/SectionOne/RomanMoney.html [Accessed 23 Sep. 2018].
This page was originally part of the 'Roman Gods in Circulation' exhibit.