brm_990920 - ROMAN REPUBLIC - ANONYMOUS Denier

ROMAN REPUBLIC - ANONYMOUS

(180-170 BC)

The appearance of the denarius since the work of Michael Crawford is fixed at 211 BC The denarius is worth 10 bronze aces. Prior to 211, the bronze ace was semi-liberal and contained 12 ounces. Very quickly, because of the war against Carthage, the weight of the ace will be lowered to become uncial at the beginning of the 2nd century BC. A denier of four scruples (1 scruple = 1.1275 g) is worth then 10 bronze aces which weigh approximately 270 g, i.e. the weight of the old Oscan pound, with a silver/bronze ratio of 60.