In Context [Roman] Coins
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[Roman] Coins in Context Nathan Elkins [email protected] Why are “coins in context” important? • *Chronology (of a feature, site, or of coins themselves) • Economic Conditions, Coin Circulation and Supply • Demographic Movement and Military Dispositions • Iconography • Object Biography Chronology (Close contexts vs find series) • Coin finds in the 1950s/1960s vs today • Example of Vindonissa: (list 1) and (list 2) • Close contexts (von Kaenel, CIC pp. 9-15) • Find series (Wigg-Wolf, CIC pp. 109-125) Site chronology: the example of the Roman auxiliary fort at Yotvata, Israel • Foundation of the site: inscription vs coins • Abandonment of the site and (numismatic, archaeological and comparative evidence) • Implications for ceramic chronologies Coin Circulation and Coin Supply/ Mobility and Immobility of Coin • Richard Duncan-Jones • F. Kemmers • Movement of Denominations • Supply Mechanisms Demographic Movement/ Military Dispositions • Syrian coins at Bath: D.R. Walker. 1988. “The Roman Coins,” in B. Cunliffe (ed.), The Temple of Sulis Minerva at Bath II: The Finds from the Sacred Spring. (Monograph No. 16). Oxford: Oxford University Committee for Archaeology. 281-358. • Imperial court on the Rhine: F. Kemmers. 2003. “Quadrantes from Nijmegen: Small Change in a Frontier Province,” SNR 82: 17-34; id. 2006. Coins for a Legion: An Analysis of the Coin Finds from the Augustan Legionary Fortress and Flavian canabae legionis at Nijmegen. (Mainz: Von Zabern, SFMA 21). In the same vein: N.T. Elkins. 2009. “What are they doing here? Flavian Colosseum Sestertii from Archaeological Contexts in Hessen and the Taunus- Wetterau Limes (with an Addendum to NC 2006),” NC 169: 199-204. • The movement of Constantinian bronze coinage from West to East, but not East to West. (Noeske – Egypt; and at Yotvata). Iconography • Different types of images on AV, AR vs AE: W.E. Metcalf. 1993. “Whose Liberalitas? Propaganda and Audience in the Early Roman Empire,” RIN 95: 337-346. • ***Martial images supplied to soldiers at Nijmegen: Coins for a Legion: An Analysis of the Coin Finds from the Augustan Legionary Fortress and Flavian canabae legionis at Nijmegen. (Mainz: Von Zabern, SFMA 21). • Audience targeting of architectural coin types? N.T. Elkins. “Monuments on the Move: Architectural Coin Types and Audience Targeting in the Flavian and Trajanic Periods,” in the Proceedings of the XIVth International Numismatic Congress in Glasgow (in press). • Historiographical and methodological treatise: N.T. Elkins, “Coins, Contexts, and an Iconographic Approach for the 21st Century,” in H.- M. von Kaenel and F. Kemmers (eds.), Coins in Context I: New Perspectives for the Interpretation of Coin Finds (Mainz: von Zabern, SFMA 23). 25-46. Architectural Types and Audience Targeting Sample Area and Size: 13,563 Total Coins Germany (FMRD) Austria (FMRÖ) Slovenia (FMRSl) Rome (SSO I, SSO II) Italy (RMR Ve) Totals Vespasian 1770 278 305 469 220 3042 Titus 336 170 102 274 341 1223 Domitian 2207 541 339 996 371 4454 Trajan 2487 857 494 573 433 4844 Totals 6800 1846 1240 2312 1365 13563 Number of Vespasianic Ara Providentiae Proportional Geographic Asses from Sample Area Distribution of Ara Providentiae 70 Types for Vespasian, n=72 60 50 Germany (FMRD, n=61/1770) 40 Austria (FMRÖ, 30 n=0/278) 20 Slovenia (FMRSl, 10 n=1/305) 0 Rome (SSO I and SSO II, Germany Austria (FMRÖ) Slovenia (FMRSl) Rome (SSO I, Italy (RMR Ve) n=10/469 ) (FMRD) SSO II) Italy (Veneto = 0/220) Ara Providentiae, n=72 Ara Providentiae (f. Titus), n=9 Ara Providentiae (f. Domitian), n=1 References Tiberian Type for Divus Augustus Number of Titus' Ara Providentiae Proportional Geographic Distribution Asses from Sample Area, n=22 of Titus' Ara Providentia Types for 18 16 Divus Augustus, n=22 14 Germany (FMRD, n=5/336) 12 10 Austria (FMRÖ, n=0/170) 8 Slovenia (FMRSl, n=0/102) 6 4 Rome (SSO I and SSO II, n=17/274) 2 Italy (RMR Ve, n=0/341) 0 Germany Austria (FMRÖ) Slovenia Rome (SSO I, Italy (RMR Ve) (FMRD) (FMRSl) SSO II) Copies Tiberian Type for Divus Augustus Number of Domitian's Ludi Saeculares Coins from Sample Area* 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Germany (FMRD) Austria (FMRÖ) Slovenia (FMRSl) Rome (SSO I, SSO II) Italy (Veneto) Italy Collections (after Hobley) Fruges-Sest., n=1 Suffimenta-Sest., n=0 Goat and Sheep/Bovine Sacrifice-Dup., n=2 Victimless sacrifice-As, n=36 *n from excavations only Proportional Geographic Distribution of Domitianic Victimless Sacrifice As, n=36 Germany (FMRD, n=14/2207) Austria (FMRÖ, n=5/541)) Slovenia (FMRSl = n2/339) Rome (SSO I and SSO II, n=11/996) Italy (Veneto, n=4/371) Trajan Proportional Geographic Distribution of Trajanic Bronzes with the Column of Trajan, n=27 Germany (FMRD, n=15/2487) Austria (FMRÖ, n=8/857) Slovenia (FMRSl, n=1/494) Rome (SSO I and SSO II, n=3/573) Italy (Veneto, n=0/433) Proportional Geographic Distribution of Trajanic Bronzes with the Danubian Bridge, n=25 Germany (FMRD, n=12/2487) Austria (FMRÖ, n=6/857) Slovenia (FMRSl, n=2/494) Rome (SSO I and SSO II, n=1/573) Italy (Veneto, n=4/433) Proportional Geographic Distribution of Trajanic Bronzes of the Aqua Traiana, n=14 Germany (FMRD, n=3/2487) Austria (FMRÖ, n=2/857) Slovenia (FMRSl, n=0/494) Rome (SSO I and SSO II, n=8/573) Italy (Veneto, n=1/433) Trends and Conclusions: • Denotative types (usually celebrating the construction/ reconstruction of a monument in Rome) are uncommon and therefore difficult to assess. Modern selection processes may explain their lack of appearance in the sottosuolo finds where we would most expect to see them. Many denotative types, for what it is worth, are frequent in Italian museum collections. • In spite of the lack of a large sample for many denotative types, the evidence from the sottosuolo finds for the Aqua Traiana types does indicate that, at least as regards this type, audience targeting was geared towards the Roman capital. • Quantifiably, the most common architectural types are those which connoted broader ideas or concepts. Trends and Conclusions: Vespasian No. of Architectural Types Total Percentage of Total Trier 10 256 3.90% Rome 12 482 2.49% Domitian No. of Architectural Types Total Percentage of Total Trier 2 353 0.58% Rome 13 1109 1.17% Trajan No. of Architectural Types Total Percentage of Total Trier 8 420 1.90% Rome 14 573 2.44%.