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It surprised me when I first started collecting that there seemed to be an adherence to the gram standard of weight, with an implication of "if it doesn't weigh X something's fishy", as you said the Romans certainly didn't use it and they didn't have the sensitive decimal scales that we have. I had no idea they were made by the bar though, that accounts for a variety of quirks that appear in coins. That Diva Faustina dupondius at the end is stunning, I think a good even patina on base coins can look just as satisfying as a good silver coin.
Coin-making was the closest thing we got to industrial production in a pre-industrial society. They really had to churn out a LOT of coins, so they had to streamline the process somehow, thats where we get some of the weird features we find on roman coins. :)
Weight is so important in ancients. I have a Lucius Versus denarius that is underweight. It took me a week or so pondering this until I realized it's a Limes denarius. So far, that's the only limes denarius I've encountered. It's actually quite well struck and fine example.
Thats very interesting! I know Limes denarii are common around the early third century, but I didnt expect limes pieces from the second century to exist. Cool!
@@ClassicalNumismatics I was surprised too. It wasn't just my conclusion. It was discussed at length on the Forvm Ancient coin community forums. Some heavy weight collectors helped reach this conclusion.
I have a very pretty almost uncirculated denarius of Alexander Severus with Spes on the reverse. It was bought from a respectable dealer on vcoins, but... it only weights 2.0 g. That fact was always giving me a tiny bit of fear, that it might not be authentic. But it seems I shouldn't worry too much. Thanks!
Its a bit on the light side, but yeah, 2 gram coins arent unheard of! Take my Valerian as an example. 2.7 grams for an Antoninianus is very light, but it came from a very reliable auction house. I dont have any fears about its authenticity, its just a light coin!
Well done video which I'm sure will make some people feel better about a few of there coins now. The one's that can be difficult are the Reduced Siliqua after 355. You can find a mix of size's, plus you have to look for clipping too.I have a Julian and Valen's, both in good condition but both our only 1.6 grams when it should probably be 2.0. there non clipped, just came out that way. Another great job from some of ours mentor.
When we get to the very late empire, things can get quite complicated indeed. Apart from gold, accurate measurement of a particular coin's weight was waaay down on people's priorities at the mint.
I have a question, I have a Vespasian denarius whose label has a very strange image, something like a flame inside some kind of container, the inscriptions are very worn and it has damage and bends, the obverse looks standard
i also have such a question: my friend came over yesterday and we were looking at old coins and we drank a lot of seltzer so when i woke up today i had to pee REALLy bad
Let us know what you find out! If they dont have any damage, I'd expect his denarii are close to the expected 3,4 grams. Quality control in the second century was still good.
The coin weights can indeed fluctuate wildly. The most extreme examples i have are from Gordian III. Some antoniniani of are just 2.9 grams, whereas i also have a monster of 6.4 gram. Even weirder, i have a denarius from Gordian III which weighs 4.4 grams, which is more a typical weight for an antoninianus (valued at 2 denarii !). All of these are common types and look as they should, so i do not doubt their authenticity.
I can't believe I just started watching your videos again and this very subject I was interested in was posted just a month ago. I'm very happy to hear you say that denarii of the 3rd century or so should be 3g because I thought denarii were supposed to be 4g and all of mine were lighter. I'm pretty sure I know which of my coins are definitely fake - they're the ones that are too good to be true! But I do have hopes for a Vitellius coin (69 AD) which seems to be a good struck coin, but is a little bit light. One day I'll have it authenticated 🤞
Excellent video! I was a little worried when I got an underweight denarius of Caracalla(rev. Votasus Ceptax) with a few little pieces of green crust on it. But it seems like it's not a limes issue or a modern forgery, just poor quality control on the part of ancient mint. The coin has a couple of small grains of pure copper in it. The rest is silver.
Yes, in the third century, actually from the reign of Severus up to that of Gallienus, the weight of Roman silver (and billion) coins becomes very variable
This will depend on the time period. If we're talking about 1st, 2nd centuries, yes. Third century sestertii get much lighter. There are other factors to take in consideration, such as extensive wear or any potential corrosion.
I have collection of Gordian III - you forgot about inflation problem. In my collection i have one piece of antoninianus with correct weight (6.6 g = 2 x 3.3 g denarius), but most is around 3.6-4.6 g. It was clean scam and inflation at work - exchanging older denarii to the new antoninianus. I have even specimens (antoniniani) with mass lower than 3 g - with mass lower that theoretical denarius! Gordian coins are not rare because of the greatest minting operation of his reign - exchanging order denarii into newly minted antoniniani
I have a denarius of Domitian, which is incredibly thin( around half a millimetre), but it is the right weight ( around 2.8 grams due to heavy wear). There's also marks on the obverse, which make me think that someone in antiquity tried to clip the coin.
Would you like to support the channel and my work?
Consider buying some channel Merch! You get a cool T-Shirt or Mug and you help me make more Ancient Numismatics content. Thank you!
leob.creator-spring.com/
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That's really useful info thanks again Leo👍
It surprised me when I first started collecting that there seemed to be an adherence to the gram standard of weight, with an implication of "if it doesn't weigh X something's fishy", as you said the Romans certainly didn't use it and they didn't have the sensitive decimal scales that we have. I had no idea they were made by the bar though, that accounts for a variety of quirks that appear in coins.
That Diva Faustina dupondius at the end is stunning, I think a good even patina on base coins can look just as satisfying as a good silver coin.
Coin-making was the closest thing we got to industrial production in a pre-industrial society. They really had to churn out a LOT of coins, so they had to streamline the process somehow, thats where we get some of the weird features we find on roman coins. :)
Weight is so important in ancients. I have a Lucius Versus denarius that is underweight. It took me a week or so pondering this until I realized it's a Limes denarius. So far, that's the only limes denarius I've encountered. It's actually quite well struck and fine example.
Thats very interesting! I know Limes denarii are common around the early third century, but I didnt expect limes pieces from the second century to exist. Cool!
@@ClassicalNumismatics I was surprised too. It wasn't just my conclusion. It was discussed at length on the Forvm Ancient coin community forums. Some heavy weight collectors helped reach this conclusion.
@@ClassicalNumismatics I've seen some limes denarii of the Flavian Emperors. Domitian in particular
Very interesting video I love videos like these
Thank you! I'll make more episodes exploring ancient coin manufacture in the near future
I have a very pretty almost uncirculated denarius of Alexander Severus with Spes on the reverse. It was bought from a respectable dealer on vcoins, but... it only weights 2.0 g. That fact was always giving me a tiny bit of fear, that it might not be authentic. But it seems I shouldn't worry too much. Thanks!
Its a bit on the light side, but yeah, 2 gram coins arent unheard of! Take my Valerian as an example. 2.7 grams for an Antoninianus is very light, but it came from a very reliable auction house. I dont have any fears about its authenticity, its just a light coin!
Well done video which I'm sure will make some people feel better about a few of there coins now. The one's that can be difficult are the Reduced Siliqua after 355. You can find a mix of size's, plus you have to look for clipping too.I have a Julian and Valen's, both in good condition but both our only 1.6 grams when it should probably be 2.0. there non clipped, just came out that way. Another great job from some of ours mentor.
When we get to the very late empire, things can get quite complicated indeed. Apart from gold, accurate measurement of a particular coin's weight was waaay down on people's priorities at the mint.
Your new videos are always a nice treat. Good info and almost as exciting as a new coin. Can't wait for your video on your favorite new coins of 2023.
You are going to enjoy what I got this year!
I have a question, I have a Vespasian denarius whose label has a very strange image, something like a flame inside some kind of container, the inscriptions are very worn and it has damage and bends, the obverse looks standard
i also have such a question:
my friend came over yesterday and we were looking at old coins and we drank a lot of seltzer so when i woke up today i had to pee REALLy bad
Thats most likely a sacrificial altar with a flame on top. There are quite a few of this type struck under the Flavians.
@@deathsheadknight2137 try to describe the coin better when you don't know exactly what it represents and it is partially worn
@@Un_69 I was joking. you never asked a question, only made a statement.
so I made a statement and called it a question as well.
Thanks!
Thank you very much Roland! Merry xmas :)
I have two Hadrian's. It'll interesting to take them out of storage and weigh them.
Let us know what you find out! If they dont have any damage, I'd expect his denarii are close to the expected 3,4 grams. Quality control in the second century was still good.
The coin weights can indeed fluctuate wildly. The most extreme examples i have are from Gordian III. Some antoniniani of are just 2.9 grams, whereas i also have a monster of 6.4 gram. Even weirder, i have a denarius from Gordian III which weighs 4.4 grams, which is more a typical weight for an antoninianus (valued at 2 denarii !). All of these are common types and look as they should, so i do not doubt their authenticity.
6.4!! Thats more than the theoretical weight the Antoninianus was supposed to weight to be considered a 2 denarii piece. Impressive!
Another question answered! Ty and happy holidays
Glad to be able to help, Roland. Happy holidays!
Great episode brother. Very interesting and informative! Thanks for sharing 🙏
Glad to be able to help! Do you typically weight the coins you find?
I can't believe I just started watching your videos again and this very subject I was interested in was posted just a month ago. I'm very happy to hear you say that denarii of the 3rd century or so should be 3g because I thought denarii were supposed to be 4g and all of mine were lighter. I'm pretty sure I know which of my coins are definitely fake - they're the ones that are too good to be true! But I do have hopes for a Vitellius coin (69 AD) which seems to be a good struck coin, but is a little bit light. One day I'll have it authenticated 🤞
Very good topic. I've noticed a lot of variability within types.
Excellent video,a hug
Thanks Antonio! :)
Excellent video! I was a little worried when I got an underweight denarius of Caracalla(rev. Votasus Ceptax) with a few little pieces of green crust on it. But it seems like it's not a limes issue or a modern forgery, just poor quality control on the part of ancient mint. The coin has a couple of small grains of pure copper in it. The rest is silver.
It could also be some deposits from whatever the coin was in contact with as it was burried. I wouldnt be worried about it.
Yes, in the third century, actually from the reign of Severus up to that of Gallienus, the weight of Roman silver (and billion) coins becomes very variable
Indeed, Ive seen my fair share of unusually underweight Severan denarii!
@@ClassicalNumismatics Yes and overweight too, some of them weigh over 4g
Woo! First comment 🎉 love the channel by the way
Thank you for the kind words :)
Is 23.7 grams for a sestirus a decent average weight
This will depend on the time period.
If we're talking about 1st, 2nd centuries, yes.
Third century sestertii get much lighter.
There are other factors to take in consideration, such as extensive wear or any potential corrosion.
I have collection of Gordian III - you forgot about inflation problem. In my collection i have one piece of antoninianus with correct weight (6.6 g = 2 x 3.3 g denarius), but most is around 3.6-4.6 g. It was clean scam and inflation at work - exchanging older denarii to the new antoninianus. I have even specimens (antoniniani) with mass lower than 3 g - with mass lower that theoretical denarius! Gordian coins are not rare because of the greatest minting operation of his reign - exchanging order denarii into newly minted antoniniani
I have a denarius of Septimius Severus that weighs 1.95 grams!
Wow, thats light! Does it have some sort of corrosion or anything of that nature? Or is it just super light?
I have a denarius of Domitian, which is incredibly thin( around half a millimetre), but it is the right weight ( around 2.8 grams due to heavy wear). There's also marks on the obverse, which make me think that someone in antiquity tried to clip the coin.
These could also be banker marks
Goatsical yet again 💪🏽💪🏽
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