Moneyers

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monete repubblicane

Coins of the second phase of the Republic

The moneyers

In the last part of the Roman Republic coins became a mean of communication, thanks to the inscrptions and the images displayed on it. The moneyers, who had the responsibility to define the characteristics of the coins, began to use coins as tool of politic propaganda, celebrating the origin of their family (gens) at the beginning, then using historical references more and more close to themselves; this approach was completed by Julius Caesar, who started to represent on the coins the head of the government in Rome.

The moneyers made part of the Vigintisexviris, that was a college of minor magistrates of the Roman Republic. The name means Twenty-six men since its composition was constituted by:

Augustus abolished the two curatoreses viarum and the four prefects Campani, turning the college of the vigintisexviris into the vigintiviri (twenty men).

The vigintisexviratus was particularly important for the sons of Senators, since it constituted the way to begin the political career, as a necessary condition to access the cursus honorum was to be in charge of responsibilities in this organization.

The monetary triumviris ("tresviri monetales"), took care of the minting of coins, checking the weight and the alloys used for them. The official denomination was Tresviri aere argento auro flando feriundo (IIIvir AAAFF), that is monetary triumviri (III viri) to melt (flando) and to beat (feriundo) bronze (aere), silver (argento) and gold (auro). This position, created in 289 BC and lasted up to mid the III century AD, had at the beginning only three magistrates, but their number was brought to four by Julius Cesar at the end of the republic.

The name "monetary" comes from the site of the mint in Rome, that was in the Capitoline Hill close to the temple of Juno Moneta. According to Livy, this temple was on the place where the geese (sacred animal to the goddess) gave the alarm about the nighttime assault of the Gauls in 390 BC, saving the city. To celebrate this episode, a temple was built to Juno called "Moneta", meaning "who warns."

Coins issued by the moneyers

At the beginning the coins didn't bring the name of the moneyer, even if sometimes the coins used marks to identify the person responsible of a specific issue. These symbols progressively were replaced by short forms of the name of the moneyer, to become commemorative scenes of the origins and the history of the family of the moneyer as form of politic propaganda for themselves.

With the fight among the Roman families for the government of the Republic, this personal use of the information brought on the coins was more and more diffused and the time references more close to the moneyer, producing a large variety of coins according to the family of affiliation of the moneyer in charge for the government of the republic.

Moneyers since 286 to 42 BC

Family since to
DECIA 286 286
HORATIA 264 264
AURELIA 244 90
AUTRONIA 234 234
MATEINA 234 234
AELIA 224 92
PLAUTIA 218 45
CAECILIA 217 44
FURIA 217 53
LUTATIA 217 104
MAENIA 217 110
BAEBIA 217 144
SEMPRONIA 217 174
TERENTIA 217 214
PLUTIA 214 214
SPURILIA 214 214
VALERIA 209 45
JUVENTIA 209 83
SCRIBONIA 204 54
JUNIA 204 58
ITIA 204 204
CORNELIA 200 49
AFRANIA 200 200
SAUFEIA 200 200
ATILIA 194 136
MAIANIA 194 194
DOMITIA 179 40
COILIA 179 54
CALPURNIA 179 64
QUINCTILIA 179 179
MARCIA 174 60
ANTESTIA 174 124
LUCRETIA 164 74
CUPIENNIA 164 164
DECIMIA 154 154
RENIA 154 154
PORCIA 149 46
MINUCIA 149 90
FANNIA 149 149
GELLIA 149 149
CURIATIA 144 144
PINARIA 143 143
PAPIRIA 139 135
TREBANIA 139 139
JULIA 136 88
AUFIDIA 136 136
TITINIA 136 136
MANLIA 135 54
TULLIA 135 135
POSTUMIA 134 43
ACILIA 134 54
OPIMIA 134 134
QUINCTIA 134 134
POMPEIA 129 58
ABURIA 129 123
VARGUNTEIA 129 129
VETURIA 129 129
SERVILIA 124 64
FABIA 123 89
CLOULIA 119 101
CIJRTIA 114 114
AEMILIA 112 44
FONTEIA 112 54
DIDIA 112 112
LICINIA 110 45
CASSIA 109 54
CALIDIA 108 108
FULVIA 108 108
CLAUDIA 106 43
APPULEIA 104 94
CAESIA 104 104
SERGIA 104 104
FUNDANIA 102 101
EGNATULEIA 101 101
HERENNIA 99 99
MALLIA 99 99
FLAMINIA 94 44
AQUILLIA 94 54
MEMMIA 94 60
POMPONIA 94 64
SULPICIA 94 86
CIPIA 94 94
THORIA 94 94
POBLICIA 92 79
COSCONIA 92 92
VIBIA 90 42
AXIA 90 90
TITIA 90 90
CRITONIA 89 89
SENTIA 89 89
VOLTEIA 88 60
TITURIA 88 86
CRESUPIA 84 84
MAMILIA 84 84
MARIA 84 84
NORBANA 84 84
NUMITORIA 84 84
RUBRIA 83 83
ANNIA 82 81
ANTONIA 82 82
FARSULEIA 82 82
FUFIA 82 82
VETTIA 81 69
GARGILIA 81 81
OGULNIA 81 81
VERGILIA 81 81
PAPIA 79 45
PROCILIA 79 79
RUTILIA 79 79
PLAETORIA 74 69
NAEVIA 74 74
SATRIENA 74 74
RUSTIA 71 71
EGNATIA 69 69
CREPEREIA 64 56
ROSCIA 64 64
CONSIDIA 60 49
ALLIENA 60 60
NONIA 60 60
VINICIA 58 58
COSSUTIA 54 54
HOSIDIA 54 54
PLANCIA 54 54
ANTIA 49 45
CORDIA 49 49
NERIA 49 49
SICINIA 49 49
CARISIA 48 48
HOSTILIA 46 46
LIJCILIA 45 45
LOLLIA 45 45
CORNUFICIA 44 42
CESTIA 44 44
METTIA 44 44
SEPULLIA 44 44
ARRIA 43 42
LIVINEIA 43 42
ACCOLEIA 43 43
NUMONIA 43 43
PETILIA 43 43
STATIA 43 43
MUSSIDIA 42 42