Monetary Systems

-David Ewen

The coinage of Ancient Greece began in the middle of the sixth century BCE when the Aeginetans had commenced striking silver coins according to the Pheidonian system of measure. Pheidon of Argos organized a system of weights and measures during the eighth century BCE, which later became the model for Aegina's coinage. The Pheidonian weight standard comprised the talent, equal to 37,320 grams; the mina, 622 grams; the drachm, 6.22 grams; and the obol, 1.03 grams. Silver drachms and obols were issued according to this system; didrachms were also produced at twice the weight of a drachm (Gardner, 112-119).

Prior to coins, the monetary system of the Greeks involved the exchange of bronze bars, known as obeli. Contact with the Kingdoms of Lydia and Ionia on the western coast of Turkey most likely provided the Aeginetans with the idea to begin coining. In Lydia, the Aeginetans would have come in contact with the coins of Croesus which were among the earliest struck (Williams, 25). When coinage began in Aegina, one silver obol was to be valued as one bronze obeli. The drachm, six times the weight of an obol, likewise represented six obeli, and the didrachm twelve (Gardner, 116).

The Aeginetan standard spread throughout Greece, reaching Athens, and even areas of Northern Greece well into the fourth century BCE (Gardner, 112). It was not until the fourth and third centuries BCE that Greeks adopted the practice of minting bronze begun by their colonies in Southern Italy (Williams, 34). The Athenians started producing small denominations in bronze, such as the chalkous (1/8 obol), by the end of the fifth century BCE.

Minting with metals other than silver was a result of waning silver supplies and the need to fund a war effort. Still desperate for precious metals, Athenian currencies were also minted in gold (Kraay, 68-69). A monetary system such as this required an acknowledged relationship between the value of each precious metal. The accepted standard of gold to silver was 1:12; for silver and bronze, the ratio was 1:120.

Athenian bronze coinage was significant, allowing for a more versatile currency that could not be achieved under a monometallic system. The Athenian monetary system comprised the following denominations: decadrachm (10 drachm), tetradrachm (4), didrachm (2), drachm (1), triobol (1/2), diobol (1/3), trihemiobol (1/4), obol (1/6), and several other subdenominations of the obol, the most common being the hemiobol (1/12 drachm). Other drachms were produced (i.e. pentadrachm), though infrequently (Hill, 64-65). Neither the earliest Athenian coinage, the Wappenmünzen, or the early Athenian owl series - most of which were struck in larger denominations, namely the tetradrachm - involved any bronze coinage (Kraay, 60).

Coinage was not a new phenomenon when it was adopted by Rome. The Greek colonies in Southern Italy had minted silver and bronze, influencing coinage in Greece itself (Burnett, 1). The monetary system of Italy during what is termed the Romano-Campanian period (300 - 210 BCE) comprised the bronze bars known as aes signatum, bronze discs called aes grave, and struck coins of silver and bronze (Burnett, 2-4). Silver was used predominantly in the southern regions of Italy, while bronze was more common to the north. Aes grave were valued according to the Roman system of weights. A bronze as was the equivalent of a Roman libra (324 grams) and subdivided into twelve uncias (hence pounds and ounces). A semis equaled a half an as, a triens a third, a sextans a sixth, and the uncia a twelfth (Hill, 46). Only one silver coin was produced at this time - the quadrigatus, valued at 10 asses and so-named for its standard depiction of a four-horse chariot.

It was not until c. 212-211 BCE, during the Second Punic War, that the monetary system of Rome was reworked. Silver coins were introduced in response to the cost of provisions for the war effort. This new silver system centered on the denarius, while bronze coinage functioned along the familiar lines of the as and uncia. (Williams, 41) The denarius was issued as the equivalent of ten bronze asses and ultimately served as a replacement for the quadrigatus. The silver coinage also included the quinarius and the sestertius, worth 5 and 2.5 asses, respectively (Williams, 44).

The denarius system remained intact for several hundred years, though it did experience minor alterations along the way. For instance, it was decided c.140 BCE that henceforth the denarius should represent sixteen asses as opposed to ten (Williams, 44). There were occasional additions, such as the silver Victoriate, which was valued as a denarius (Burnett, 35). Gold was often coined in the form of the aureus, the equivalent of twenty-five denarii.

While the system of denominations remained consistent, the metals used to make the coins shifted. Copper eventually became a minting metal for the lower denominations, while coins traditionally minted in silver became brass coinages (Williams, 51-54). Additionally, the amounts of precious metals used in coins was periodically altered. This debasement of currency continued until the "fall" of the Roman Empire.