 | ||||||
On the Coins of Ancient RomeThe Earliest Ancient Roman CoinsThe earliest of the ancient Roman coins didn't really look like coins; they were heavy cast lumps or bars of bronze. This was around 300 BC., when Rome was still a rather insignificant state among others in the area. The reason bronze was used is simple: at the time, Rome had no access to any silver mines, while sources of copper were readily available. These early bronze "coins" were not even coins in a strict sense, since their weight varied wildly and didn't conform to any standard. Soon, however, Rome began to produce round bronze coins of standardized weight; these were also cast rather than struck, and of somewhat coarse appearance.
Around 270 BC., some silver coins began to appear. These seem to have been crafted by Greek artists working for the Romans and are aptly called "Greek-style" coins. The sophisticated style of these coins is very different from the stark, heavy, cast ancient Roman bronze coins from the same period. | Buy ancient coins: You can find a variety of ancient coins at eBay. Examples below show current bid prices - Click to see details. | |||||
|
| ||||||
