Ancient numismatics

The Ancient Numismatics is a branch of numismatics focusing on coins of classical antiquity and its marginal cultures.

Early Asia Minor coin (gold stater) from the time of Kroisos , middle of the 6th century BC. Chr.

Early drachma from Athens with Athena and owl

Political representation on a Roman coin: Denarius of Marcus Iunius Brutus with reference to the Ides of March

Tremissis of Theodoric

object

The subject of ancient numismatics is all coins from their earliest appearance in the 7th century BC. BC to the early Middle Ages , including pre-money forms, medallions and accountants . This includes not only Greek and Roman coins, but also the coinage of neighboring cultures of this time, including oriental empires, Lydians , Persians , Parthians , Sassanids , Hellenistic monarchies as well as their Graeco-Bactrian and Greco-Indian special forms ( e.g. Kushana ). Other special areas of research are represented by Jewish numismatics or Carthaginian coinage.

In Europe, ancient numismatics include Iberian , West and East Celtic coins, Germanic coins and other neighbors of the Greco-Roman cultural area. Coins from the Migration Period and Byzantine coins finally lead to medieval numismatics.

Methods

Ancient coins can provide insight into history in a variety of ways. Ancient numismatics is embedded in numerous neighboring disciplines that strive to incorporate their results. The individual coin can be examined for its weight and its metal composition and provides insights into the currency, economic and social history. In addition to the production technology, the organization of the mints and artistic developments are also examined. Coin images and legends provide insights into political, constitutional, religious and intellectual history. By analyzing found coins, ancient numismatics researches the currency circulation and the chronology of settlements, fortifications and sites of warlike events. Only the evaluation of find coins in an archaeological context enables the meaning and function of coins to be determined in various life situations of ancient people. Findings-oriented studies have recently shown the great potential of this research area.

Research and Teaching

Today, ancient numismatics represents an ancient science specialty, which is located at the interface between archeology and ancient history. Analogous to this, ancient numismatics is carried out in university teaching and research in ancient history (mostly combined with epigraphy and papyrology to form the auxiliary sciences of antiquity ) and in classical archeology. In Germany there are chairs or institutes in Frankfurt and Tübingen. In the latter place, the institutional connection between the numismatic work center , classical archeology and the university coin collection is a special feature. In Vienna, today's Institute for Numismatics and Monetary History was founded in 1965 under Robert Göbl . Further focal points or important collections exist in Cologne, Münster, Salzburg, Bern and Zurich.

Collections and coin cabinets

Large European collections

• Department of coins and medals in the British Museum
• Cabinet des Médailles of the Bibliothèque Nationale
• Coin collection of the Museo Nazionale Romano
• Athens Numismatic Museum
• Münzkabinett Berlin

In German-speaking countries

• Federal collection of coins, medals and money tokens , Vienna
• State Coin Collection Munich
• Münzkabinett Winterthur
• Cologne coin collection at the Institute for Classical Studies (especially Alexandrian coins)
• Coin cabinet in the Rheinisches Landesmuseum Trier
• The coin collection of the Institute for Classical Archeology at the University of Tübingen includes over 20,000 objects, including 8,000 Greek coins.
• Museum August Kestner in Hanover

Magazines

• The Numismatic Chronicle , London (since 1838)
• Revue Numismatique , Paris (since 1836)
• Revue Belge de Numismatique , Bruxelles (since 1842)
• Journal for Numismatics , Berlin (1874–1935)
• Rivista Italiana di Numismatica , Milan (since 1888)
• Yearbook for Numismatics and Monetary History , Munich (since 1949)
• Monetary News (since 1966)
• Numismatic magazine , Vienna (1870–1937, since 1949)
• Italia Numismatica (since 1949)
• Numismatica , Rome (since 1935)
• Numizmatikai Közlöny , Budapest (since 1902)
• Swiss Numismatic Review (1891–1923, since 1925)
• Schweizer Münzblätter , Basel (since 1949)

literature

• Karl Christ : Ancient Numismatics. Introduction and bibliography. Scientific Book Society Darmstadt 1991, ISBN 3-534-03707-3 .
• Christopher Howgego: Money in the ancient world: What coins reveal about history, Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft Darmstadt, 2nd edition 2011, (English original edition Ancient History from Coins , Routledge, London 1995), ISBN 978-3-534-23940-5 .
• Maria Radnoti-Alföldi : Ancient Numismatics. Part 1: Theory and Practice (= cultural history of the ancient world . Vol. 2). Philipp von Zabern, Mainz 1978, ISBN 3-8053-0230-4 .
• Maria Radnoti-Alföldi: Ancient Numismatics. Part 2: Bibliography (= cultural history of the ancient world. Vol. 3). Philipp von Zabern, Mainz 1978, ISBN 3-8053-0335-1 .
• Maria Radnoti-Alföldi: Methods of Ancient Numismatics (Ed.), Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1989, ISBN 3-534-07533-1 ( Paths of Research, Volume 529 ).

Web links

Commons : Ancient (pre 476) Western coins  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ^ Karl Christ: Ancient Numismatics. Introduction and bibliography. Scientific Book Society Darmstadt 1991, p. 10.
2. ^ Karl Christ: Ancient Numismatics. Introduction and bibliography. Scientific Book Society Darmstadt 1991, p. 9.
3. ↑ Stefan Krmnicek: coin and money in the early Roman Eastern Alps: studies on the coins in circulation and function of coins on the finds and findings of Magdalensberg. Verlag des Kärntner Landesmuseums, Klagenfurt 2010 (= Kärntner Museumsschriften 80 = archaeological research on the excavations on Magdalensberg 17 ).
4. ↑ University of Frankfurt: Institute for Archaeological Sciences, Dept. II ( Memento of the original from April 14, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
5. ↑ University of Tübingen: Ancient Numismatics
6. ^ Institute for Numismatics and Monetary History
7. ↑ Numismatic Department of the Institute for Antiquity ( Memento of the original from October 8, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
8. ^ Research Center for Ancient Numismatics
9. ↑ http://www.muenzkabinett.winterthur.ch/
10. ↑ http://muenzen.uni-koeln.de/
11. ↑ University of Tübingen: Ancient Numismatics ( online )