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Provincial coinage gives us a unique insight into the Roman world, reflecting the values and concerns of the elites of the many hundreds of cities in the Roman empire. Coins offer a very different perspective from written history, which usually represents the views of the senatorial class, and which was usually composed long after the events that are described. The coins, in contrast, provide evidence without hindsight, and uniquely allow a systematic examination across the whole Roman world. This volume makes it possible for instructors and students and scholars to deploy a complex set of material evidence on many historical topics. It includes over two hundred illustrations of coins with detailed captions, so providing a convenient sourcebook of the most important items, and covers topics such as the motivation for Roman conquest, the revolution of Augustus, the world of the Second Sophistic and the crisis of the third century.
The provincial coinage was transformed during the new regime of Augustus and the adoption of his portrait. Roman interventions, however, were rare and localised, except for Nero.
The diverse system of provincial city coinage saw the appearance of many personal names, including those of women, and the coinage was controlled mostly by the city elites.
Silver coinage developed accompanied by locally produced silver. Gold was introduced in the late first century bce. Both were reformed by Nero, and the system eventually collapsed.
The ideas of the Second Sophistic were reflected in Asia. A new method of production was introduced. Small denominations were discontinued. The cities struggled to recognise Hadrian’s lover Antinous.
The city coinages reflected the debasements of the central empire in different ways. The monetary system became fragmented, and started to collapse in the 250s, before finally ending in c. 275.