CHAPTER SEVEN

MINTS

The Romans employed a great number of mints throughout the history of their Empire. The vast majority were ìprovincialî mints, which struck coinage for local use. Those struck by Roman colonies have Latin inscriptions, but most were in Greek. There were more than 600 of these mints, but while their coins formed part of the greater Roman system, they were so different in content and type that they are not covered in this volume beyond the listing of some provincial coins in the values section.

A brief mention should be made, however, of some of the more important provincial mints. Coining silver (or billon) and aes were Alexandria (Egypt), Antioch (Syria), Caesarea (Cappadocia), and the Asiatic mints that produced the cistophori (triple-denarii), such as Pergamum (Mysia), Ephesus (Ionia), etc. Several mints in Cilicia (including Tarsus), Lycia and Pontus also struck notable issues in silver.

Some of these ìprovincialî mints produced both local coinages and Imperial coinages at the same time, and thus the distinction can only be made between the two by the characteristics of the coinages themselves. Chief among these are the denominations, design content and inscriptions.

Sometimes the Romans used temporary mints, especially during the Imperatorial period when military leaders often had coins produced wherever their base of operations happened to be at the time. These ìcampî mints often moved from place to place while striking, and as such the coins are categorized as having been struck at ìmovingî or ìtravelingî mints.

There is also the question of where the dies were engraved versus where the coins were struck. It is commonly believed that for some provincial coins dies were cut at the central mint of Rome. At other times dies seem to have been cut (and coins struck) in one central workshop for a considerable number of cities within a geographic area (of course, the coins bore the names of the cities at which they were destined to be used). We know this because obverse dies bearing the Imperial portrait were combined with reverses designed for several different cities. This was an efficient way to operate, but can often make matters difficult for researchers who are trying to identify coins based on stylistic considerations.

Finally, certain coins were struck in mints which are as yet unidentified. Researchers can only guess as to where their coins were struck based on the physical properties of the coins, their stylistic peculiarities, and their find sites. Indeed, there are many uncertain mints that struck Imperial coins in Britain, Gaul, Spain, Greece, Asia Minor, North Africa, and even in Italy and Sicily. Usually, these are referred to as uncertain mints in ìthe Eastî or something to that effect, because being more exact is impossible until more data is available.

Mint marks were sporadically used by the Romans since early in the Republic, though they were not consistently placed on coins until the late 3rd Century A.D., under Diocletian. Some of the earliest mint marks on Imperial gold and silver coins occur at the Eastern mints of Ephesus and Byzantium under the Flavians. For Ephesus we have EPE or Ephe (sometimes in ligature), and for Byzantium, the letters BY in monogram form.

For most of the history of the Imperatorial period and the Empire, researchers must rely on the circumstances of production and the archaeological record as well as the subtleties of design, inscription, fabric and method of striking to distinguish the products of one mint from another.

The mint at Rome was traditionally housed next to the Temple of Juno Moneta on the Capitoline Hill. Sometime between about A.D. 70 and the early 2nd Century the mint was moved to a new location on the Caelian Hill, not far from the Colosseum. This may have occurred early in the reign of Domitian, as he issued an extensive series of dupondii and asses depicting Moneta Augusti beginning in about 84 and continuing through the end of his reign.

By the turn of the 3rd century A.D., Rome once again had begun to lose its monopoly on coining Imperial currency, and by the later part of that century, a well-established network of Imperial mints had been created throughout Europe, Asia Minor and North Africa. It was at this time that mint marks evolved into a complex system employed Empire-wide.

Mint marks usually occur in the exergue (the area occupying the lowest portion of the reverse ó sometimes separated from the rest of the design by a line), though sometimes in the reverse field, and occasionally on the obverse below the bust in the form of officina markers. On late gold coins, officina marks sometimes are placed at the end of the reverse inscription, a practice that was carried on to Byzantine gold coins. One of the most intriguing uses of control marks occurred at Ticinum, or possibly at Siscia, where the individual letters in the words Aeqviti or Eqviti (meaning ìfor the cavalryî) were used in the control formulas with the officina marks P, S, T, Q, V and VI.

Other letters and symbols (sometimes called ìcontrol marksî) regularly occur in the fields or alongside the mint mark in the exergue. They often indicate the officina (the individual workshop) at which the coin was struck, but in some cases may refer to things unknown to us. Sometimes what seems to be a mint mark or an officina mark is actually an indication of the coinís denomination, its tariffed value, its purity or its weight (see the section on Denominations for some examples).

The officinae were usually indicated on the coins by Roman numerals or Greek letters (usually, but not always, based on the language spoken in the region in which the mint was located), and were sometimes dedicated to specific coinages. Careful study of the coinage can often reveal patterns. For example, under Philip I the officinae were divided among the emperor, his wife and his son, and at other times the officinae were dedicated to specific denominations. The most officinae recorded at one mint is 15, at Antioch during the reign of Constantius II, but their number rarely exceeded 10.

There was also a distinction in the types of Imperial mints, with some being able to coin precious metals, and others not. Early in the Empire the system was closely monitored by the Julio-Claudians and the Flavians, with the precious metal rights in the West being assumed almost exclusively either by Rome or Lugdunum.

In the 5th Century the two types of mints were the Moneta Publica (a permanent mint at which aes coins were struck, with the occasional addition of precious metals), and the so-called Comitatensian mint (a mobile mint which would only coin precious metals, and would usually accompany the emperor). Furthermore, the name Palatine mint was applied to the mint in whatever city the emperor happened to be residing. The name derived from the Palatine Hill (or more correctly, the palace) in Rome, where the emperor resided in the heyday of the Empire.

Three tables are given below. The first lists selected abbreviations found in the mint mark ìformulaî (which are not indicators of mints or officinae). The second lists the ways in which the officinae are usually indicated. The third lists commonly used mint marks. Following these is a general outline of the mints and their activities listed geographically by region. The final section lists the main Imperial mints accompanied by a brief outline of their minting history.

Select abbreviations

These usually appear before or after mint mark, but sometimes in the field.

Select abbreviations

OB	obryzum or (solidus) obriziacus, meaning refined gold. First appeared about 368 when gold coinage was upgraded from c. 95% (to which it had fallen in the central Empire c. 346ñ368) to c. 99% pure.î.
COM	comes auri, representing the official in charge of gold in the treasury
COMOB	comes obryzum
M	Moneta
P	Pecunia (money) or Percussa (struck)[?]
PS	pusulatus or (argentum) pusulatum, meaning refined silver, often paired with mint marks at western mints, such as Mdps
SM	Sacra Moneta (S may mean signata lit. ìstruck atî)
OF	These letters, abbreviating officina, appear in the reverse field on some coins of Valentinian I followed by a numeral indicating the actual officina to which it refers, and in which the coin was struck.

Indicators of officina

These usually appear before or after the mint mark, but sometimes in the field. Unusual varieties occur frequently and are not listed below.

Indicators of officina

A (I) or P or ï	first officina or Prima
B (II) or S or ïï	second officina or Secunda
Γ (III) or T or ïïï	third officina or Tertia
Δ (IV or IIII) or Q or ïïïï	fourth officina or Quarta
E (V)	fifth officina
S (VI)	sixth officina
Z	seventh officina
H	eight officina
Θ	ninth officina
I	tenth officina
AI	eleventh officina
BI	twelfth officina
ΓI	thirteenth officina
ΔI	fourteenth officina
EI	fifteenth officina

The West

Britain produced a great deal of coinage at local ìCelticî mints in the 1st Centuries B.C. and A.D., though these issues were discouraged by the Romans, who attempted to meet the monetary needs of the island with the emissions of Lugdunum or Rome during its early history. Later Britain received the debased double denarii from numerous Western Roman and Romano-Gallic mints. The London mint was opened by Carausius (286/7ñ293), as was another British mint (either Camulodunum or Clausentum) identified with the mint mark C or CL. The mint of London was closed in 324, from which point the island had to rely on output from Germany and Gaul. Itwas reopened only once, by the usurper Magnus Maximus.

During the 4th and 5 th Centuries gold and silver flowed into Britain for the first time in quantities, but the withdrawal of the Roman legions caused an economic and coinage crisis, forcing the inhabitants to ìrecycleî siliquae by clipping them to what appear to be two local weight standards. No coinage was struck in Britain again until about 600 A.D., when the Anglo Saxon mints began operation. During Imperial times, ìirregularî mints in Britain produced and used imitations of Roman coins of the reign of Claudius, of the double denarii of the 260sñ270s, and of the nummi of the Constantinian Era.

Germany was a place of limited minting during the early period of the Empire, but became more important by the early 4th Century. The Augusti of the separatist Romano-Gallic Empire (260ñ274) produced coinage at Cologne (with the mint marks CA and CCAA), at Mainz (where the usurpers Laelianus and Marius were based), and, seemingly at Trier and at Lugdunum in Gaul. Various ìbarbarousî imitations of the radiate and Constantinian-Era variety were produced in Germany. The mint of Trier opened perhaps briefly under Gallienus in 256/7, and subsequently for the Romano-Gallic usurpers; in 293/4 it opened again and remained a major mint until the 420s.

Coins had already been struck in Gaul by the Celts and at Greek Massalia before coming under Roman control. Perhaps the first Gallic mint to strike for Rome was Narbonne (Narbo Martius) in 118 B.C., and thereafter other Republican and Imperatorial coinages were struck at other mints, such as Massalia and Cabellio. Important local coinages of Imperial character (the ìcrocodile aesî) were struck at the Roman colony of Nemausus, with similarly large-module coins being struck at other Gallic mints, including Nimes and Arausio.

The city of Lugdunum began its minting career with limited issues of silver quinarii and some aes, and possibly some of the denarii or aurei of Augustus usually attributed to Spain. However, in c. 15 B.C. it became the chief minting center for Imperial gold and silver in the West, replacing Rome (which continued to strike aes coinage). At some point between the reign of Tiberius (14ñ37) and Otho (69) this honor was returned to Rome, though when this occurred is much debated. The traditional theory is that it was transferred in the first year of Caligulaís reign, but it seems more probably to have occurred late in the reign of Claudius or c. 64, under Nero.

Whenever the shift occurred, Lugdunum was then relegated to striking aes coinage, and produced massive issues for Nero and Vespasian. Lugdunum seems to have ceased operation in either c. 79 or c. 82, after a final issue of aes for Vespasian or Domitian. During the Civil War of 68ñ69, ìcivil warî coinage, initially for Vindex, was struck in Gaul, with some researchers suggesting Nimes as the principal mint.

After more than a century without mint activity, Lugdunum briefly was re-activated by Clodius Albinus (from 195ñ196), and it may have been reopened to coin for the Romano-Gallic emperors (260ñ274). Minting in Gaul seems also to have occurred under Carausius (286/7ñ293), perhaps at Rotomagus (mod. Rouen). An Imperial mint was opened at Iantinum (mod. Meaux), using the mint mark IAN, in connection with the Tetrarchic effort to oust Allectus from Britain, but it was only in operation c. 293/4, for Trier was opened and became the principal Roman mint in the West.

The mint at Aries was opened in 313 when the facilities and personnel were transferred from the mint at Ostia (the port of Rome), which had been closed following the defeat of Maxentius. Aries remained an active mint until the fall of the West more than 150 years later. The usurpers Magnentius and Decentius opened a mint at Amiens, issuing coins from 350 to 353. Later in the mid-4rd Century, Lugdunum was reopened yet again, staying open until c. 420. Some researchers attribute small silver coins of Majorian, Anthemius, Julius Nepos and Anastasius to Soissons in northern Gaul, though this theory is not universally accepted. The cities of Narbonne and Nice may also have produced issues in the 5th Century. Barbarous imitations similar to those of Britain were struck in Gaul for local circulation. The Visigothic capital of Toulouse is believed to have been the mint which produced Visigothic imitations of Roman coins in the 5th Century.

Spain had produced coins for the Carthaginians and for its own independent cities long before the Romans began to strike there either late in the 2nd Century B.C. or early in the 1st Century B.C. The first significant Roman issues were produced c. 80ñ72 B.C. as the Romans battled the rebel Sertorius. More were struck for the civil war between the Caesareans and Pompeians in 49ñ45 B.C., during which Corduba seems to have struck for the Pompeians. Provincial mints were especially active during the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius.

The mints of Colonia Patricia, Emerita and Caesaragusta possibly struck very large quantities of Imperial denarii and aurei for Augustus, with some of those of Emerita bearing the city name. Thereafter minting activity in Spain plummeted. Local copies of the aes of Claudius were produced to remedy a dearth of coinage. Spain became active again during the civil war of 68ñ69, striking for Galba, and Vitellius and producing some anonymous issues. Tarraco seems to have been the principal mint for these coinages, though others undoubtedly were used. Thereafter, Spainís minting needs were supplied from abroad, and no Imperial mint seems to have been opened there again. Barcino was briefly used as a mint city by the usurper Maximus (409ñ411). Lusitania (mod. Portugal) had even fewer provincial mints, and all ceased striking during the reign of Augustus.

Western North Africa was the site of considerable ìtemporaryî mint activity by the Caesareans and Pompeians during their civil war prior to 44 B.C., and seems again to have produced coinage for Clodius Macer and Galba (in the style of Macer) during the civil war of 68ñ69. The principal minting center was Carthage, which became a regular Imperial mint c. 296/7 to aid Maximianus in his war against the Quinquegentiani, but which was closed in about 307. It was briefly reopened during the revolt of Alexander, c. 308ñc.310 and seems to have continued until c. 311. Coins imitative of Roman issues were struck at Carthage by the Vandals beginning in c. 425. Under the Byzantines, Carthage was a mint of some importance.

Italy and Sicily

Italy and Sicily produced a large amount of coinage under the Republic. However, unlike during later times, a considerable number of mints were used. The earliest Roman coins were cast aes of various forms, with struck coinage not commencing until early in the 3rd Century B.C. This first was farmed out by contract at Greek mints in the south (Metapontum, Neapolis, etc.), and only later at Rome itself.

By Imperatorial times, Rome had long been established as the principal mint of the Republic, though in the 40s and through the 20s B.C., it seems to have been supplanted by other mints. It has been suggested that Augustusí precious metal coinage for the Battle of Actium and its aftermath (c. 32ñ27 B.C.), was struck at the south-eastern port city of Brundisium, and that minting later shifted to Spanish mints (c. 25/20ñ16 B.C.), after which it moved to Lugdunum (beginning c. 15 B.C.), where it remained for some 50 to 80 years before returning to Rome. Though some precious metal issues are attributed to Rome c. 19ñ12 B.C., many researchers believe Rome was far more active throughout this period than is generally acknowledged, and was not restricted primarily to aes coinages.

Exactly when Rome was reinstated as the regular mint for precious metal coinage in the West is debated. This occurred sometime between the reigns of Tiberius and Otho, with the most widely accepted theories being that it either happened early in the reign of Caligula, at the end of Claudiusí reign, or later in the reign of Nero (c. 64). After this shift occurred, Rome remained the principal mint in the West until the mid-3rd Century, when minting activities began to be more evenly distributed throughout the Empire.

Milan began to strike under Valerian and Gallienus, only to be closed c. 274, and shifted to nearby Ticinum. Two decades later, the Tetrarchs opened at Aquileia a mint that became quite important, eclipsing Ticinum (closed 326). Aquileia remained open until c. 425. During the collapse of the Tetrarchic system, a mint was briefly opened at Ostia by the ìrebelî Maxentius, but was closed in 313 by Constantine the Great, who moved the operation to Aries. Milan was reopened in the 350s, and during the 5th Century shared the bulk of the minting in Italy with Ravenna (founded c. 402). Both of these mints remained open (along with Rome, which by then was of lesser importance) even after the fall of the Western Roman Empire.

Sicily was the location of a great deal of minting by Greeks, Romans and Carthaginians during the wars between Rome and Carthage, as well as during times of peace; it was used as a mint by the Pompeians during their wars with the Caesareans; and it also produced a limited number of provincial issues. Thereafter, the island seems not to have had a mint until Byzantine times.

Central and Eastern Europe

Central Europe (essentially the region between the Swiss Alps and the Danube, bordered in the west by the Rhine) saw limited mint activity after the Celts had been integrated into the Roman world. Some orichalcum ìdupondiiî of Julius Caesar may have been struck in this region (though northern Italy is usually favored), and Carnuntum (on the Danube at the eastern end of the Alps) was a mint for the usurper Regallianus in 260.

Eastern Europe was an active area for Roman mints throughout most of the Empire, though it became increasingly important with the passage of time. It produced a large amount of Provincial coinage in base metal at its numerous major cities. During the principates of Claudius and Nero (and perhaps later) it seems to have had a quasi-Imperial mint, perhaps at Perinthus, which principally struck aes to Imperial standards. These issues, which may have been struck at more than one mint, are distinguishable from the Imperial products of Rome and Lugdunum only on the basis of their stylistic peculiarities and usually by a curious centering hole on both obverse and reverse. Included in this series are the ìsestertiiî of Britannicus.

During the 2nd and 3rd Centuries provincial aes coinages were massive. Viminacium, on the Danube, near the Transylvanian Alps, seems to have coined silver double denarii for the rebel Pacatian, c. 248ñ249, and possibly other silver for later emperors as well. The three main Imperial mints of the region were Siscia (in Pannonia Superior, about 150 miles east of Aquileia), Sirmium (in Pannonia Inferior, near the Danube, about 50 miles from modern Belgrade) and Serdica (in Moesia Inferior, about 150 miles north of Thessalonica). Though important mints, the emissions of Serdica and Sirmium were sporadic. The coastal city of Salonae may have struck gold in the name of the exiled Julius Nepos (c. 475ñ480), but this has not been proven.

Greece, from Macedon in the north to the Pelopponesus in the south, was the unfortunate recipient of much Roman attention during the Imperatorial period. Many coinages were struck there by warlords using ìtravelingî mints, largely in association with the battles at Pharsalus in 48 B.C. (Caesar versus Pompey), Philippi in 42 B.C. (Brutus and Cassius versus Antony and Octavian) and Actium in 31 B.C. (Antony versus Octavian). In later times, Greece declined greatly in importance, though a productive mint at Thessalonica was opened during the Tetrarchy and remained active until the fall of the West and after. An especially interesting series of coins were struck on Crete under the Julio-Claudians.

The Propontis

The Propontis comprises the European and Asiatic territories lining the shores of the Dardanelles, Sea of Marmara and the Hellespont, the bodies of water linking the Aegean Sea with the Black Sea. It was a vital location both for the economic and military interests of Rome, as it was the crossroads between Europe and Asia. Thus, it comes as no surprise that four important Imperial mints lined its shores. On the European side were Heraclea (formerly Perinthus) and Constantinople (founded by Constantine the Great on the site of Byzantium). On the Asiatic shore were Cyzicus (founded in the 8th or 7th Century B.C.) and Nicomedia (built c. 265 B.C. by the king Nicomedes I on the site of Astacus).

The first of these mints to become operational was Cyzicus, presumably in the mid-250s or the late 260s. Under Diocletian in the early 290s both bieraclea and Nicomedia were opened. It must also be remembered that one of these mints (perhaps Perinthus) struck important ìImperialî coinages in the 1st and 2nd Centuries A.D. The mint and city that proved to be the most important of the four ó Constantinople ó was the last to open. It struck its first coins in 326, some four years before the city itself was dedicated. All four mints, however, were used consistently throughout the remaining history of the Roman Empire.

Asia Minor

Asia Minor, the region which comprises the Asiatic portion of modern Turkey, or Anatolia, was an important center for provincial coinages. No permanent Imperial mint was located in this region, even though the major cities had struck coins for several centuries before the Romans arrived. However, temporary minting occurred in some cities during the later Republic, the Imperatorial period and into the Empire (notably at Ephesus, under the Flavians).

The reason no true ìImperialî mint was founded in Asia Minor is that large quantities of silver coinage were struck at Caesarea and Pergamum. In both cases the silver coins bore Latin inscriptions and were denominated in drachms, a unit which, at about 3.7 grams, weighed the same as the Roman denarius of the era. Caesarea primarily struck hemidrachms, drachms, didrachms, tridrachms, and Pergamum the cistophorus, in essence a triple-denarius piece. Though the cistophorus was principally struck at Pergamum, it seems to have been struck at more than 20 mints, including Ephesus.

Silver coins were also struck at a number of other mints scattered throughout Asia Minor, notably in Lycia and Cilicia in the south, and Pontus in the north. The region of Commagene further to the south-east, produced aes coinage in imitation of Julio-Claudian issues during that era, and is thought to have produced Imperial aes for the Flavians, but the most common of those issues are now attributed to Rome based on metallurgical evidence. Also of note are the various mints that struck silver and billon tetradrachms for the various Persian campaigns of emperors. Despite all this silver, the most enduring legacy of Roman Asia Minor is the aes coinage which was struck with a remarkable variety of designs at hundreds of cities. The Romans also struck provincial issues on Cyprus, especially from the Flavian through the Severan periods.

Syria, the Levant, and Egypt

Syria was an especially important province for the Romans, and Antioch was one of the four capitals of the Empire (the others being Rome, Constantinople and Alexandria). It served as a mint city for the Romans from the 1st Century B.C., and was extremely important throughout Romeís history. It struck vast amounts of provincial aes and silver tetradrachms with Greek inscriptions, and on numerous occasions struck Imperial coinages (with Latin inscriptions) in all metals. It was the city of choice for several usurpers, who had used it as a base for revolts since the 1st Century B.C.

About 50 miles south was the coastal city of Laodicea ad Mare, which struck for Septimius Severus and his family, and probably for others. Another mint of occasional importance was Emesa, an inland city slightly more than 100 miles to the south of Antioch, near the Phoenician border. Most notable among those who struck at Emesa were the Severans and the usurper Uranius Antoninus (253ñ254), though coins also may have been struck there during the revolts of Macrinus and Quietus (260ñ261) and Zenobia and Vabalathus (270/1ñ272).

The Levant, bordered by Syria on the north and Egypt in the south, consists primarily of Phoenicia and Judaea. Its southern portion is often referred to as the Holy Land. Though several mints in the Levant struck silver tetradrachms for military purposes (notably during the reign of Caracalla and later), no silver of any consequence was otherwise struck on behalf of the Romans. However, two great revolts in Judaea were accompanied by silver coins based on the shekel (66ñ70) or on the tetradrachm and denarius (132ñ135). Also, silver shekel-tetradrachms of Tyre (often misattributed to Jerusalem) were struck well into the 1st Century A.D., seemingly for the payment of Temple taxes. A prodigious series of tetradrachms was struck at Tyre during the reign of Trajan, at which point the city may have begun to produce Imperial denarii. An Imperial mint was opened at Tripolis, a port city in Phoenicia, under Aurelian (270ñ275). Itís activity was short-lived, however, for it closed c. 290.

Egypt was a remarkably important province to the Romans, which valued it not only for its strategic importance, but also for its grain harvests, which supplied the city of Rome. Not incidentally, the Romans made an immense profit off the coinage they produced for Egyptís economy, which had been sealed off from the external world since it was ruled by the Lagid (Ptolemaic) kings. Egyptís principal mint was Alexandria, which produced billon tetradrachms and an array of aes coinages from the reign of Augustus through Diocletian (ending with the usurpation of Domitus Domitianus). As such, it was the last mint to strike what we consider to be provincial coins.

About this time, c. 294, it began to produce Imperial issues, mostly aes, but occasionally precious metal issues. In its earlier history, Alexandria had occasionally minted Imperial coins, notably for Septimius Severus and Pescennius Niger. By the time of Constantine the Great it had become an important Imperial mint. Egyptís neighbor to the west was Cyrene, which coined an extremely small issue of denarii for Marc Antony and Augustus about the time of the Battle of Actium (31 B.C.), when it was ruled by the governor Scarpus.

The West

Londinium (mod. London) ó This mint was opened under Carausius, and later used by the Tetrarchs, but closed in 324. Magnus Maximus (383ñ388) reactivated it, at which point it was called Augusta (hence the mint marks AVG, Avgob, etc.).

Camulodunum (mod. Colchester) ó alternatively: Clausentum (Bitterne) or Glevum (Gloucester). This facility was operational under Carausius and Allectus, featuring the mintmarks C or CL.

Colonia Agrippinensis (mod. Cologne) ó A mint for Postumus (260ñ269) and possibly for subsequent Romano-Gallic usurpers.

Treveri (mod. Trier) ó Though Trier may have coined for Gallienus (c. 256/7) and some of the Romano-Gallic usurpers (260ñ274), it opened as an Imperial mint c. 293/4 and closed in the 420s or 430s.

Moguntiacum (mod. Mainz) ó Laelianus and Marius struck coins at Mainz, as may have other Romano-Gallic usurpers.

Ambianum (mod. Amiens) ó Coins were struck here c. 350ñ353 for the usurpers Magnentius and Decentius and for Constantius and Constantius Gallus.

Iantinum (mod. Meaux) ó A mainland mint in operation c. 293/4 in connection with Constantius Iís invasion of Britain to defeat Allectus.

Rotomagus (mod. Rouen) ó Struck pieces of distinctive style for Carausius (with no mint marks or with ëRí).

Lugdunum (mod. Lyon) ó An important Roman mint from the reign of Augustus, though it had coined earlier. It struck most of the Imperial precious metal issues of the Julio-Claudians and closed c. 420.

Arelate (mod. Aries) ó The Ostia mint was transferred to Aries in 313/4. The city was renamed Constantina in 318, and continued to strike through the fall of the West.

Nemausus (mod. Nîmes) ñ Struck aes for Augustus.

Emerita (mod. Merida) ñ Opened in the mid-20s B.C., it is the only certain Imperial Augustan mint in Spain.

Colonia Patricia (mod. Cordova) and Colonia Caesaraugusta (mod Saragossa) ñ Possible Imperial mints in Spain for Augustus.

Tarraco (mod. Tarragona) ñ Active during the Civil War of 68ñ69, and for Vespasian in 70.

Barcino (mod. Barcelona) ó Struck for the usurper Maximus (409ñ411).

Carthage or Carthago (mod. Tunis) ó Coins were struck at Carthage in the early 40s B.C., and then in A.D. 68 and 69 for the civil war. It was operational for about a decade under the Tetrarchs up through the revolt of Alexander (308ñ310), after which it was moved to found the Ostia mint.

Italy

Mediolanum (mod. Milan) ó This mint seems to have opened under Gallienus (c. 259); it closed c. 274, shifting to nearby Ticinum. It reopened c. 352/7 and continued minting until early modern times.

Ticinum (mod. Pavia) ó Though details are uncertain, it seems Ticinum was founded c. 274, when Milan was closed. It remained active until mid-326, when the operation seemingly was transferred to Constantinople.

Aquileia ó This mint opened c. 294, about the time of Diocletianís monetary reform, and eclipsed Ticinum. It closed c. 425.

Ravenna ó Founded c. 402, Ravenna became an important mint because it was the residence of the later emperors. Coins were struck at Ravenna until the West fell, only to be reopened in the 550s.

Rome ó The central mint of the Romans from Republican times, it struck until the fall of the West, after which it was reopened in the 550s.

Ostia ó The port of Rome served as a mint for the ìrebelî Maxentius, c. 308/9. After his fall in 312 it was used briefly by Constantine, who closed it and used the equipment and personnel to found a new mint at Aries.

Central and Eastern Europe

Carnuntum ñ The rebel Regalianus seems to have struck here.

Siscia (mod. Sisak) ó The loss of Gaul to Postumus in 260 necessitated that Gallienus open a mint at Siscia c. 262. It eventually fell into the hands of the usurper Julian of Pannonia (284ñ285). Then it was active throughout the Tetrarchic and early Constantinian period.

Sirmium (mod. Mierovica) ó This mint, near Belgrade, may have coined for Gallienus, but certainly struck from 320ñ326 and from 351ñ364. Subsequent coinages attributed to this mint in the late 370s and early 390s are perhaps better attributed elsewhere.

Viminacium (mod. Kostolac) ñ The rebel Pacatian seems to have struck here, and perhaps also some legitimate emperors in the next two decades.

Serdica (mod. Sofia) ó Believed to have been opened by Aurelian (270ñ275), this mint coined occasionally from c. 303ñ314, and possibly later.

Thessalonica (mod. Salonika) ó This mint opened c. 298/9 after Galerius took up residence there. It continued to strike through the fall of the West (and later) and was reopened in 518.

The Propontis

Heraclea ó Founded on the site of Perinthus (which struck ìImperialî issues for the Julio-Claudians and Flavians), Heraclea may have opened its Imperial mint c. 291, and continued to strike until the reign of Leo I.

Constantinople (mod. Istanbul) ó This mint was opened in 326 (four years before the city was dedicated) with equipment and personnel presumably transferred from Ticinum, which closed its mint that year. Constantinople soon became the main Imperial mint in the East, and remained so for most of the thousand years of the ìByzantine Empire.î

Cyzicus ó Perhaps opened under Valerian I (c. 253ñ5), the mint at Cyzicus almost certainly was open by the reign of Claudius II (268ñ270). It seems to have closed during Zenoís reign and was reopened in 518.

Nicomedia (mod. Izmit) ó Opened c. 294 and became important when Diocletian later resided there. It remained active through 476 and beyond.

Asia Minor, Syria, the Levant, Egypt and Cyrenaica

Pergamum ó This was an important mint for the coining of silver Cistophori and various quasi-Imperial bronzes, all of which served as the main coinages in Asia Minor for much of the early Imperial period, Here also were struck aurei and denarii of Augustus.

Ephesus ó The principal mint for Imperatorial and Imperial cistophori, as well as for a large emission of early Flavian Imperial denarii and perhaps other coinages.

Casarea in Cappadocia (mod. Kayseri) ó During the reigns of Tiberius through Nero a great volume of quasi-Imperial silver (principally didrachms, drachms and hemidrachms) was struck here, as well as bronzes during this period and later. The claimant Pescennius Niger (193ñ194) struck here as well.

Antiochia (Antioch) ó In regular service from the 1st Century B.C., the mint at Antioch primarily struck provincial silver and aes coinage. Antioch was occasionally active as an Imperial mint, especially under the Flavians, Hadrian, Pescennius Niger, Elagabalus and early in the reign of Severus Alexander. Regular Imperial minting occurred from c. 240 onward, and it remained active through Zenoís reign and beyond, being reopened c. 498.

Laodicea ad Mare (mod. Lattakiya) ó This mint was active c. 193ñ202, and possibly later.

Emesa (mod. Homs) ó Like Laodicea, this mint struck early in the reign of Septimius Severus. It later struck for the rebel Uranius Antoninus (253ñ254), and possibly struck coins for the revolts of Macrianus and Quietus (260ñ261), and Zenobia and Vabalathus (270/1ñ272).

Tripolis (mod. Tripoli, Lebanon) ó Opened by Aurelian (270ñ275), this minor mint closed c. 290.

Alexandria ó This was the Empireís most prolific provincial mint (rivaling Antioch and Caesarea), although the occasional Imperial coin was struck here, especially under the Flavians and Severans. In c. 294, just prior to when provincial minting ceased there, Alexandria began to strike Imperial coins. It remained an important mint in Constantinian and later times, and operated through the reign of Leo I. It was refounded c. 538.

Cyrene (mod. Shahat) ó The commander Scarpus and perhaps others seem to have struck here.

Principal mint marks

This listing represents only a portion of the mint marks used, each being listed without the officina marks, which may occur before or after the core mint mark. The reader is cautioned that these marks will sometimes be used by mints other than those listed.

Principal mint marks

A	Arles, Rome, Antioch, etc.
ALE	Alexandria
AM	Amiens
AMB	Amiens
AN	Antioch
ANT	Antioch
ANTOB	Antioch
AQ	Aquileia
AQVIL	Aquileia
AQOB	Aquileia
AQPS	Aquileia
AR	Arles
ARL	Arles
AVG	London (called ìAugustaî)
AVGOB	London (called ìAugustaî)
AVGPS	London (called ìAugustaî)
C	Camulodunum(?), Constantinople
CA	Cologne
CCAA	Cologne
CL	Camulodunum(?)
COM	Thessalonica, Milan, Sirmium
COMOB	Thessalonica, Milan
CON	Arles, Constantinople
CONOB	Constantinople and various mints
CONS	Constantinople
CONSP	Constantinople
CONST	Arles
CP	Constantinople
CVZ	Cyzicus
CVZIC	Cyzicus
CVZICEN	Cyzicus
E	Ephesus
EPHE	Ephesus
EMERITA	Emerita
H	Heraclea
HERAC	Heraclea
HERACL	Heraclea
HT	Heraclea
IAN	Iantinum
K	Carthage
KART	Carthage
KON	Arles
KONSTAN	Arles
L	London, Lugdunum
LG	Lugdunum
LVG	Lugdunum
LVGD	Lugdunum
LVGPS	Lugdunum
MD	Milan
MDOB	Milan
MDPS	Milan
MED	Milan
ML	London
MLL	London
MLN	London
MN	Nicomedia
MOST	Ostia
MSL	London
NIC	Nicomedia
NICO	Nicomedia
NIK	Nicomedia
PK	Carthage
PLG	Lugdunum
PLN	London
PLON	London
PTR	Trier
R	Rome
RM	Rome
ROMA	Rome
ROMOB	Rome
RV	Ravenna
RVPS	Ravenna
SER	Serdica
SIRM	Sirmium
SIROB	Siscia
SIS	Siscia
SISC	Siscia
SISCPS	Siscia
SM	Sirmium
SMAL	Alexandria
SMAN	Antioch
SMAQ	Aquileia
SMBA	Barcino
SMH	Heraclea
SMK	Cyzicus
SMN	Nicomedia
SMR	Roma
SMSD	Serdica
SMTS	Thessalonica
SMTR	Trier
T	Ticinum
TES	Thessalonica
TESOB	Thessalonica
THS	Thessalonica
THES	Thessalonica
THSOB	Thessalonica
TR	Trier or Tripolis
TRE	Trier
TROB	Trier
TRPS	Trier
TS	Thessalonica
VRB ROM	Rome