The Local Coinages of the Roman Empire
By David R. Sear
This is the only comprehensive and authoritative guide for collectors devoted entirely to the local coinages of the Roman Empire. These were produced by hundreds of mints throughout the provinces from the time of Augustus down to the closing decades of the 3rd century AD. Some were issued by old-established mints with long traditions of earlier coinage, whilst others came from cities which had never produced currency before. Local games and festivals often seem to have provided the occasions for coin production, which was usually quite sporadic. Roman colonial foundations were also active in the production of local coinage, though these utilized Latin inscriptions rather than the usual Greek. The series is so vast that only a token selection of the known types can be presented, but this book should provide the collector with a sound introduction to this much-neglected series and encourage him or her to pursue the interest in more detailed works. Also included in this catalogue are comprehensive listings of the contemporary coinages of independent states and client kingdoms: Celtic Britain; kingdom of Thrace; kingdoms of Pontus and Bosporus; kingdom of Commagene; the Herodian dynasty in Judaea, the Roman procurators and Jewish revolts; kingdom of Nabataea; Arabia Felix; kingdom of Edessa in Mesopotamia; Kingdom of Parthia (from circa 2 BC); kingdom of Elymais; kingdom of Characene; kingdom of Persis; and kingdom of Mauretania.
636 catalogue pages, plus 33 pages of introductory articles, etc.; 10 maps; alphabetical listing of mints; 6,034 coin types catalogued with valuations; almost 1,750 photographic illustrations (by P. Frank Purvey) in the text; published by Seaby, London, 1982.
Price $85
