BÍRÓ-SEY KATALIN: COINS FROM IDENTIFIED SITES OF BRIGETIO AND THE QUESTION OF LOCAL CURRENCY / Régészeti Füzetek II/18. (Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum Budapest, 1977)
I. INTRODUCTION
It is characteristic for all three settlements, that bronzes are in majority over the denarii, during the 1st and 2nd centuries A. D. until Commodus. At this time though the denarii occur in larger quantities. In our opinion, the reason for this lies in the decreasing value of the denarii, or rather, in the production of much less bronze coins. Most ot these coins were struck in Viminacium, between the reign of Gordian III and Gallienus . The rarely occurring colonial coins of the 2nd century A. D. increase from Septimius Severus until Alexander Severus. 10 8 According to Pink's theory, these were emergency coins which supplemented the lack of the bronze coins of the city of Rome. i o^ Their role is taken over later by the coins struck under Gordian in Viminacium in the 3rd century A. D. Because of reasons mentioned previously, denarii appear in larger quantities under Septimius Severus, and his sons. It is characteristic to the coin material of all three settlements, that the antoniniani become generally used from Gordian III on. Bronze coins precticaliy disappear from the middle of the 3rd century A. D. , their role is taken by the bronzed antoniniani. There is still a gold coin of Carus from Aquincum from the end of the century. There is a gold quinarius of Galiienus, and two Tacitus aurei, and a Magna Urbica from Intercisa. The majority of gold coins in Intercisa are from this period. These facts concerning the currency of antoniniani are not only characteristic for Brigetio, Aquincum, and Intercisa, but for settlements of other provinces, like for instance Vindonissa also.^° 8 Only from Gordian III on become the antoniniani the ruling silver coin types in the Pannonian hoards at the middle of the 3rd century A. D. The appearance of the Greek provincial coins and the bronzes of Viminacium from the beginning of the 3rd century A. D. is only characteristic for the eastern provinces. The large quantity of bronze coins is typical for all three settlements during the 4th century A. D. Since different amounts of scattered coins are typical for the three settlements, we made relative comparisons concerning each period. About the same amount is characteristic for all three places for the beginning of the 1st century, closing with Nero, or rather a continuity can be observed in Brigetio and Aquincum from 14 A. D. There are only a few coins of the time of Claudius in Intercisa. The influx of larger amounts of money begins with Nero in Aquincum and Brigetio, whereas this can be only noticed from Domitian on, in Intercisa. The amount of money in Brigetio, between the reigns of Nero and Septimius Severus, is much less than in Aquincum, The number of coins is on the increase during this period at all three places, but they reach their peak at different times during the 2nd century A. D. ; under Hadrian in Aquincum; Antoninus Pius in Intercisa; and under Marcus Aurelius in Brigetio. The reason for this peak of currency in Aquincum is definitely due to the fact, that Aquincum is the capital of Pannónia Inferior. Thus it is more important from both a military, and an economic point of view. The decline after the Markoman war is similar at all three settlements. The amount of coinage is higher in Brigetio than in Aquincum during the reign of Septimius Severus, and his sons, but it stays under the earlier yearly average at both pla20
