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Description: | Roman copper alloy radiate coin hoard, c 7,000 coins contained in a greyware storage jar.The coins range in date from AD 230s-290s, a time of great political upheaval in the Roman world; as is demonstrated by the plethora of rulers represented in the sample below in what is a relatively short period. The group is broadly similar in composition to the many Romano-British coin hoards (at least 200 so far recorded) buried in the aftermath of the breakaway 'Gallic Empire'. The Gallic empire, whose capital was at the city of Trier but which had held dominion over Britain, was established in AD 260 and reconquered by the legitimate ('central') emperor Aurelian in AD 274. The coins also just extend into a second breakaway usurpation which occurred in AD 286/7 leading to the seven year reign of Carausius as a Roman emperor (more correctly a usurper) in Britain with sway over part of the near Continent.The coins are all of the denomination known as radiates, originally a silver multiple of the denarius, but by this time had become debased to the point of being essentially bronze (less than 5% silver).Due to the concreted nature of the find a sample of 140 loose coins were examined and give the following proportions of rulers:?Gordian III (AD 238-44): No. = 1 % of total = 0.71%JOINT REIGN OF VALERIAN & GALLIENUS (AD 253-60)Salonina: No. = 1, % of total = 0.71%SOLE REIGN OF GALLIENUS (AD 260-8)Gallienus: No. = 24, % of total = 17.14%Claudius II (AD 268-70): No. = 20, % of total =14.29%Divus Claudius II: No. =1, % of total = 0.71%Quintillus (AD 270): No. =3, % of total = 2.14%GALLIC EMPIREPostumus (AD 260-9): No. = 2, % of total = 1.43%Victorinus (AD 269-71): No. =24, % of total =17.14%Divus Victorinus: No. =2, % of total = 1.43%Tetricus I (AD 271-4): No. = 29, % of total = 20.71%Tetricus II: No. =16, % of total = 11.43%Uncertain Gallic: No. = 1, % of total = 0.71%BRITANNIC EMPIRECarausius (AD 286-93): No. =1, % of total = 0.71%IRREGULAR: No. = 7, % of total = 5.00%ILLEGIBLE: No. = 8, % of total = 5.71%Estimation of total number of coins:Total weight of coin lump within pot = 13.3kg.Estimated of weight of pot = 1kg (made by scaling up a smaller empty greyware pot of known weight)Number of loose coins = 2388From which av. weight of uncleaned coin ascertained by BM conservator = 2.63gThus number of coins in fused lump of 12.3kg estimated as 4677 coins.Total = 7065 coinsNote on pottery associated with the hoard (by Dr Richard Hobbs, dept. Prehistory & Europe, British Museum):Globular greyware jar, mostly intact but missing neck, rim and part of shoulder, which was probably sheared off when struck by a plough. The fabric is a hard fine grey to buff coloured ware with few visible inclusions. The vessel is decorated around the central body with a double band of incised decoration. (Surviving height: c. 235mm; wall diameter: 6.6mm)
Original Image | Publisher: | http://finds.org.uk | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Identifier: | http://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/r... | Go to resource |
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