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Kenneth W. Harl
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Coinage in the Roman Economy, 300 B.C. to A.D. 700 (Ancient Society and History) First Edition

by Kenneth W. Harl (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 14 ratings
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Richly illustrated with photographic reproductions of nearly three hundred specimens, Coinage in the Roman Economy offers a significant contribution to Roman economic history. The first comprehensive history of how Roman coins were minted and used.

The premier form of Roman money since the time of the Second Punic War (218-201 B.C.), coins were vital to the success of Roman state finances, taxation, markets, and commerce beyond the frontiers. Yet until now, the economic and social history of Rome has been written independently of numismatic studies, which detail such technical information as weight standards, mint output, hoards, and finds at archaeological sites. In Coinage in the Roman Economy, 300 B.C. to A.D. 700, noted classicist and numismatist Kenneth W. Harl brings together these two fields in the first comprehensive history of how Roman coins were minted and used.

Drawing on literary and documentary sources as well as on current methods of metallurgical study and statistical analysis of coins from archaeological sites, Harl presents a sweeping overview of a system of coinage in use for more than a millennium. Challenging much recent scholarship, he emphasizes the important role played by coins in the overseas expansion of the Roman Republic during the second century B.C., in imperial inflationary policies during the third and fourth centuries A.D., and in the dissolution of the Roman Mediterranean order in the seventh century A.D. He also offers the first region-by-region analysis of prices and wages throughout Roman history with reference to the changing buying power of the major circulating denominations. And he shows how the seldom-studied provincial, civic, and imitative coinages were in fact important components of Roman currency.

Richly illustrated with photographic reproductions of nearly three hundred specimens, Coinage in the Roman Economy offers a significant contribution to Roman economic history. It will be of interest to scholars and students of classical antiquity and the Middle Ages, as well as to professional and amateur numismatists.

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  1. ISBN-10
    9780801852916
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0801852916
  3. Edition
    First Edition
  4. Publisher
    Johns Hopkins University Press
  5. Publication date
    July 12, 1996
  6. Language
    English
  7. Dimensions
    6 x 1.5 x 9 inches
  8. Print length
    472 pages
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

This thought-provoking work . . . should be important reading for scholars in a variety of disciplines. It challenges, for example, the long-held belief that a large-scale drain of Roman specie went to India and the East in the early centuries of the Roman Empire and the concept that the western provinces of the Roman Empire were never completely monetized. These reinterpretations and others, presented forcefully with careful documentation, should arouse the attention of anyone interested in ancient or medieval history, economics, or numismatics.
―History

Book Description

Richly illustrated with photographic reproductions of nearly three hundred specimens, Coinage in the Roman Economy offers a significant contribution to Roman economic history. The first comprehensive history of how Roman coins were minted and used.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0801852919
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Johns Hopkins University Press; First Edition (July 12, 1996)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 472 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780801852916
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0801852916
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.64 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.5 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 14 ratings

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Kenneth W. Harl

Kenneth W. Harl

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Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
14 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Steven Miller
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent seller. Book was in perfect condition, shipped promptly. Thank you!
Reviewed in the United States on January 14, 2022
Verified Purchase
This book is, to my knowledge, a unique look at a large and long-lasting empire operating on a coin (precious metal) based economy. Valuable to historians, of course, but also worthy of consideration by modern day economists.
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Bruce Trinque
4.0 out of 5 stars First rate information about the role of coins in Rome
Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2002
Verified Purchase
A previous Amazon.com reviewer of Kenneth Harl's "Coinage in the Roman Economy" expressed an interest in seeing a review of the book from the viewpoint of other than a numismatist. I suppose that I can at least partly do this. Although I do collect some ancient Roman coins, I am quite casual in my approach to it and, in truth, I am more interested in the history and people behind the coins than the coins as objects in themselves. In looking on the Internet for information about the use and "real world" value of coins in the Roman Empire, I came across mention of Professor Harl's book. Wanting to better understand how those discolored bits of silver and bronze had come to be and how they were used, I understood that there was no better source.
"Coinage in the Roman Economy" is unabashedly, unflinchingly academic in its approach to its subject. Expect no whimsical anecdotes about mad emperors; don't imagine that there will be thrilling descriptions of great battles. It is safe to say that Brad Pitt's agent is not negotiating for screen rights to the book. Page after page, Harl details the intricacies of Roman monetary policy, how emperors gradually (and sometimes not so gradually) diluted the precious metal content of the coins, reduced their weight, and repeatedly altered exchange rates in efforts to achieve financial stability. Yet, there is an oddly compelling flow and rhythm to that description of one thousand years of coin history as we watch the story of this instrument of Roman power and art play out against a distant background of civil wars, invasions, foreign wars, and calamities. To tackle this book, a reader should already be familiar with the central events and personalities in the long history of Rome. Otherwise, the information presented cannot be integrated with the larger story. But for the student of Roman history, there is much here not readily available elsewhere, including insights into the standard of living in those distant centuries.
For collectors of ancient coins, of course, there is another entire realm of information contained in this book: explanations of the how those treasured bits of metal were manufactured and distributed, how much a denarius could buy under Augustus and how little under Claudius Gothicus, why new eras brought new coins such as the aurelianus and the nummus.
The ideal reader of "Coinage in the Roman Economy" is one who blends interests in both Rome and the coins themselves. It is not light reading, by any means, but effort expended will be rewarded by a new appreciation of the real importance of these small pieces of metal to that complex and now-vanished world.
44 people found this helpful
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douglas o rosenberg
5.0 out of 5 stars Greshams LAW way in advance of his time!
Reviewed in the United States on June 27, 2019
Verified Purchase
Economic history and an understanding of difficulties faced by Rulers with no clue to why debasement and revaluation
strategies were unsuccessful.
One person found this helpful
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John R. Krawczyk II
2.0 out of 5 stars unreadable low quality reprint copy
Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2020
Verified Purchase
This is one reason why physical bookstores have advantages. I received a reprinted edition bound in a plain broown unillustrated cover. The physcial book was very small, nearly the size of an average paperback with extremely small type inside. It's basically unreadable and I simply noted that and requested a return. I have no idea if the book is well written or not. There are no illustrations anywhere: not even on the cover.

Even for someone very interested in this subject, the book as printed is unreadable. The text is clear but only useful for going to page XXX and looking up word ###.
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DR
5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding!
Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2015
Verified Purchase
Outstanding scholarly work on the subject. Harl is clear, thorough, and detailed throughout. A tremendous and reliable resource we are fortunate to have available. You won't find any fluff in Harl's work. Buy with confidence.
One person found this helpful
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curitiba66
5.0 out of 5 stars Coins and the Roman economy. History, economics and numismatics.
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2017
Verified Purchase
Excellent reference work. It helps one to better understand how coinage was so important in the daily life in both the western (Roman)and eastern (Byzantine) world.
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Tough to read
Reviewed in the United States on July 18, 2000
I found this book scholarly, and I think it is intended to be so. Were this book otherwise organized, it could be easier to manage. I found that the many (fifty or more per chapter) footnotes were cumbersome to look at, being grouped together apart from the main text. Furthermore, most of them refer just to the origin of data. But some have more extensive contents. I could have done without many of them, but not of all of them. That kept me jumping around. Plates with illustrations are similarly placed, but this is not so annoying.
This overview of the roman monetary system and coinage in use for a millennium in the Roman world is compelling. Prices and wages are also analyzed, as far as extant documents allow.
Politicians from around the world could learn a lot about how Gresham's law, the economic principle that bad money drives out good (good money automatically disappears because of hoarding) works; Rome provided good example that people can't be fooled easily.
Rating this book with four stars, I'm judging it as a numismatist interested in roman history and economics. I'd like to see ratings from people with other concerns.
26 people found this helpful
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Reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book
Reviewed in the United States on September 26, 2009
Verified Purchase
This book is a wealth of information. The tables on coin metal fineness have helped me in making my coin purchase decisions. Thanks to Mr. Harl for his excellent work.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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うみほしの影
4.0 out of 5 stars 自分の知りたいことが分かりました
Reviewed in Japan on May 8, 2014
Verified Purchase
ローマ帝国でコインがどのように使われたかを調べるために買いました。実際にどのようにコインが流れていたのか，どのように質が変化したのか，流れを知ることができます。情報量は多いです。
　しかし目的意識が無いと読めないでしょう。私はこの本からグラフを作ったりしましたが，文章→数値的統計に変換する作業が必要です。また単語も大仰というか，古風というか，もっと簡潔な表現ができるだろうと思える文体です。もっとグラフで書けば簡単に分かるのにと思う部分が多々あります。
　そういう点で読みにくい本ですので星一つ減です。
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