J Roman Stud 96

Paper suggesting that the question of the Roman Empire's money supply should be seen from a different perspective from that which assumes that all Roman money consisted of coins. The author discusses some Roman texts, together with some material facts, that seem to undermine the latter view, and asks how Roman money might be expected to be recognised when encountered, taking into account money's defining properties in terms of economics. The role of credit in creating Roman money is examined, including the importance of fiduciary coinage and of commodities-used-as-money in Roman monetary history. An estimate is offered as to how much non-coinage money may have added to the money supply, and it is maintained that the concept `the money supply of the Roman empire' is an imperfect instrument for analysing the actual Roman economy. Some brief notes are made on how matters changed in the third century, and in conclusion it is suggested that the prevailing view of Classical Greek money is one of the reasons why the complexities of the Roman monetary system have often been underestimated.