Roman Republic

​The Roman Republican Denarius

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With a primary focus of this collection on the 1st century BC Roman Republic, and the lifetime of Lucius Cornelius Sulla, the Republican denarius is the most common coin discussed in these pages.  This 3g-4g silver (AR) coin was introduced in the late 3rd century BC and became a key Roman denomination for the next 400 years.  Coins played a role not unlike modern media advertising that is used by political campaigns today.  Reference numbers cited for individual coins include a reference to Michael Crawford's "Roman Republican Coinage" in two volumes.

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Denarii began with anonymous issues, and soon became a way for moneyers to promote their families, their accomplishments and advance their political careers as they moved up the cursus honorem (which defined roles on the political ladder of the Roman republic).  The head of Roma with dioscuri on the reverse was the common form for many years.

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Useful references for more information:

• Roman Republic see: Numiswiki Roman Republic

• Denarius see: Numiswiki Denarius

• Roman Republican Coinage Online Catalog see: CRRO

• The LIBRARY page on this BLOG