Aelia Verina - Solidus
Additional References:
Depeyrot 93/2, Vagi 3795, LRC 593
Notes:
Pearl-diademed and draped bust right, wearing necklace and earrings, crowned by the Hand of God / Victory standing left, supporting long jewelled cross; in field right, star. In exergue, CONOB.
The date of the present solidus is not certainly known. Kent, Grierson and Mays all describe it as an issue under her husband’s successor Zeno, with Kent suggesting it may have been struck in 462 or 466, two of the five occasions on which Leo I held the consulship.
The date of the present solidus is not certainly known. Kent, Grierson and Mays all describe it as an issue under her husband’s successor Zeno, with Kent suggesting it may have been struck in 462 or 466, two of the five occasions on which Leo I held the consulship.
Denomination:
The solidus (Latin for "solid"; pl. solidi), nomisma, or bezant was originally a relatively pure gold coin issued in the Late Roman Empire. Under Constantine, who introduced it on a wide scale, it had a weight of about 4.5 grams. It was largely replaced in Western Europe by Pepin the Short's currency reform, which introduced the silver-based pound/shilling/penny system, under which the shilling (Latin: solidus) functioned as a unit of account equivalent to 12 pence, eventually developing into the French sou. In Eastern Europe, the nomisma was gradually debased by the Byzantine emperors until it was abolished by Alexius I in 1092, who replaced it with the hyperpyron, which also came to be known as a "bezant". The Byzantine solidus also inspired the originally slightly less pure Arabian dinar.
Period:
Imperial Rome. As the Roman Republic began to implode because of
corruption and infighting among powerful members of the Roman Senate, a new type of
Roman Republican coinage emerges, that of the military strongmen who dominated and
fought among each other before the final fall of the Republic. The drama surrounding
the fall of the Roman Republic is a story full of political intrigue, military action, betrayal,
murder and sex scandals. Different parts of this story have been told and retold by
ancient historians, modern day scholars, dozens of Hollywood movies and even an HBO
miniseries. All of the actors in this great drama, Crassus, Pompey, Julius Caesar, Brutus
and Cassius, Mark Antony and Cleopatra and the last man standing at the end of it all,
Octavian (later known as the first emperor of Rome, Emperor Augustus) all minted coins
during this time bearing their names and propaganda images supporting their factions
and political ideals.
Culture:
Ancient Rome. A famous catch phrase "Rome was not built in a day"
definitely applies to the Roman civilization. Rome stated as a series of small villages among the
famous seven hills of Rome along the river Tiber. Eventually through conquest, diplomacy, wise
policies of indirect rule and assimilation, the Romans were able to not only unify the Italian
peninsula, but though a series of brutal wars against regional powers established a great Empire
that spanned Europe, Asia and Africa, making the Mediterrean Sea and "Roman Lake."
All Roman coinage can generally be divided into eight time periods as described below. An interesting thing about Roman coins minted during these eight time periods is that you can literally see the "Rise and Fall" of the Roman Empire on its coinage as the sharp imagery and pure silver and gold coins of the Roman Republic and Early Imperial Period gradually devolves into crude, illegible and heavily debased coins of the "Barracks Emperors" and "Barbarian" Period.
All Roman coinage can generally be divided into eight time periods as described below. An interesting thing about Roman coins minted during these eight time periods is that you can literally see the "Rise and Fall" of the Roman Empire on its coinage as the sharp imagery and pure silver and gold coins of the Roman Republic and Early Imperial Period gradually devolves into crude, illegible and heavily debased coins of the "Barracks Emperors" and "Barbarian" Period.
Item created by: gdm
on 2016-08-14 13:58:08
Last edited by: gdm on 2016-08-14 14:00:27
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Last edited by: gdm on 2016-08-14 14:00:27
If you see errors or missing data in this entry, please feel free to log in and edit it. Anyone with a Gmail account can log in instantly.