DIE PRODUCTIVITY

This chapter considers the implications of the die-estimates for the volume of coin minted. For Rome coin of Hadrian, the die-estimates in chapter 10 show a projected population of about 40,000 dies for silver and for gold, alternative levels of about 1,032 and 530 dies. But no Roman evidence directly shows how many coins a given number of dies produced. Other figures for pre-industrial die-productivity nevertheless suggest broad orders of magnitude. In practice, the relatively stable ratio between gold and silver in large Roman coin samples narrows the range of possibilities.

In an important study of the Amphictionic coinage struck at Delphi in the late fourth century BC, Kinns combined die-study with analysis of the inscription recording the amount minted. He concluded that output was between 11,053 and 27,563 coins per reverse die. These coins were silver staters, larger than Roman denarii. Modern experiments in striking large-diameter coins based on ancient Greek coinage suggested quantities in the range 10,000 to 16,000 for hot striking (Roman mints used hot striking). Moving to the Middle Ages, detailed thirteenth-century evidence about mint-operations from England and France agrees in suggesting a production target per reverse die of between 16,500 and 17,000 coins (Appendix 9). This normally referred to cold striking of silver coins with low relief, using steel or iron dies. Experiments carried out in the nineteenth century with three dies forged by hand produced totals per die of 18,927, 22,432 and 69,399 coins.