What is the value of a denarius today?
Today, at least in the U.S., a days pay can vary from $58 and up. So, could one fairly say as a ballpark figure: “A denarius was worth a day’s pay for a skilled laborer. That would be roughly equivalent to a $50 bill”.
What was a denarius during the Roman period?
The basic silver coin of the Roman Empire was the denarius. By decree of Caesar Augustus in 15 b.c.e, It was nearly pure silver, 95–98%, and had a fixed weight and value in relationship to the rest of the Roman monetary system.
What was a Sesterce worth?
During the Roman Empire it was a large brass coin. The name sestertius means “two and one half”, referring to its nominal value of two and a half asses (a bronze Roman coin, singular as), a value that was useful for commerce because it was one quarter of a denarius, a coin worth ten asses.
Is denarius a silver?
The denarius contained an average 4.5 grams, or 1⁄72 of a Roman pound, of silver, and was at first tariffed at ten asses, hence its name, which means ‘tenner’. It formed the backbone of Roman currency throughout the Roman republic and the early empire.
How long was denarius used?
500 years
The denarius was the most important silver coin in ancient Rome for almost 500 years. In the border territories of the realm it was later often copied by tribes of the Migration Period.
What was the denarius used for?
The silver denarius was introduced shortly before 211 BC. The coin was needed to pay the mercenaries in the Roman armies for their services, because these foreigners had no use for the traditional Roman bronze coins. The denarius was to become the major silver coin of the Roman Empire for the next 400 years.
How much silver is in a denarius?
4.5 grams
The denarius contained an average 4.5 grams, or 1⁄72 of a Roman pound, of silver, and was at first tariffed at ten asses, hence its name, which means ‘tenner’. It formed the backbone of Roman currency throughout the Roman Republic and the early Empire.
Was the denarius a Roman coin?
The denarius, introduced in 211 BC, was the principal silver coin of Rome for five hundred years. The profile head of the goddess Roma—the personification of Rome—was the most popular image depicted on silver denarii in the second and first centuries BC.
What is a denarius?
The denarius contained an average 4.5 grams, or 1⁄72 of a Roman pound, of silver, and was at first tariffed at ten asses, hence its name, which means ‘tenner’. It formed the backbone of Roman currency throughout the Roman republic and the early empire. The denarius began to undergo slow debasement toward the end of the republican period.
What is the weight of a Roman denarius?
Denarius of the Roman Republic. Coins of the Roman Republic were completely reworked and re-planned around 211, where the denarius was first officially issued. Set at a standard weight of 1/72 of a Roman pound (roughly 4.5g) of silver, the first silver denarii immediately formed the backbone of coinage throughout the Roman Republic.
What was the predecessor of the Roman denarius?
Predecessors to the Denarius. The Silver Roman denarius is speculated to have drawn its roots from the small silver Greek coins circulating in Italy around 4th Century BC. These coins, known as the silver stater and the silver didrachm, weighed roughly 1/48th of a Roman pound (approximately 6.8 grams).
When was the denarius coin made?
The denarius ( Latin: [deːˈnaːriʊs], pl. dēnāriī [deːˈnaːriiː]) was the standard Roman silver coin from its introduction in the Second Punic War c. 211 BC to the reign of Gordian III (AD 238–244), when it was gradually replaced by the Antoninianus.