2022-04-07 Thu

The monetary system came later to the Republic of Rome. The earliest known currency was minted in bronze and silver, gold coins came during the Punic Wars. Romans had a systematic way to mint money, their mint magistrates team was called ‘Tresviri aere argento auro flando feriundo’ meaning ‘Three men for casting and striking bronze, silver and gold coins’ in short Moneyers.

The main magistrates or moneyers were the three also known as 'tresviri monetales'. The official document on the moneyers is not known, but the statements by Pomponius sheds some light on it. The entire document refers to three moneyers –a collage of three. Later on, the fourth magistrate was added by Julius Caesar in 44 BC, it was the time when the mint output was larger due to the reparation for war against Parthia.

These mint magistrates were responsible to issue coins for Republic, they were not merely mint worker-monetrii, they controlled the whole process of minting. The selection of the design was done with this, the person on this post was appointed above the age of 30. All the moneyers inscribed their initials on this coin the above-shown denarius of the Roman Republic depicts the initials in the exergue of the coin on the reverse side.

During the era of imperial Rome, the silver and gold coinage was minted under the authority of the king and the bronze coinage was issued on the orders of the Senate.

Image Courtesy: AmerucanNumismatic.org