Ancient Roman Coins
Ancient Rome was one of the history's mightiest empires, and Roman developments in art, literature, architecture, law, technology, and language continue to have a major influence on the world today. The coins that survive from that period help us relive the stories of emperors, powerful gods and goddesses, and uniquely Roman feats.
Roman emperor coins, with their many faces and symbols of power, will delight you every single time you find yourself glancing at them. It was common practice for a new emperor to commission coins with his own likeness; thus, there is a great variety of bronze and silver Roman coins representing emperors so powerful, their names and legends survive to this day.
AncientAssets is committed to offering you a selection of endlessly fascinating, high-quality, and affordable Roman coin jewelry.
Bronze coins
Bronze - that foundation of precious metals - was the coin of the realm in ancient times. The earliest cast and minted coins were the bronzes of ancient Greece and Rome. They were the coins that changed hands in the marketplaces of Athens, Sparta, Rome, and Byzantium.
In nearly every culture that used metal coins, bronze indicated coins of lower denominations. The smallest known ancient coin, the Biblical widow's mite, was bronze. It's estimated that the widow's mite was enough to purchase grain to make daily bread.
While bronze coins were the most common coins used in the ancient world, it can be difficult to come by examples of bronze coins in excellent condition. Because they were traded and used the most, many bronze coins that were created are "lost" - literally dropped and ground into the dirt and subjected to the ravages of time. However, AncientAssets selects from a small percentage of ancient bronze coins that have survived in good condition.
Silver coins
Silver coins were among the first coins ever minted, and ancient silver coins are among the most prized by collectors of ancient coins. The finest artisans in the ancient empires created the dies with which the coins were struck. The images on the heads of the coins are those of some of the most powerful leaders of the ancient world. Of course, these gorgeous discs of precious metal were more currency than art when they were in circulation thousands of years ago. A Roman soldier's salary ranged from 3 silver denarii a day to 25 silver denarii a month. A single denarius would buy enough grain to make bread for nearly a month.
Silver and gold coins were used for larger purchases and saw far less circulation than bronze coins. Silver coins were buried in jars or leather pouches that protected them from the elements and the ravages of the earth and air. Because of this, silver coins that have made the trip through time are much likelier to be in better condition than bronze coins, though there are fewer of them still in existence. Between their relative rarity and their better quality, ancient silver coins tend to have considerably more value to collectors than bronze coins.
