The ' (plural '), occasionally ''assarius'' (plural ''assarii'', rendered into Greek as , ''assárion'') was a

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids suc ...

, and later

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pink ...

coin A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order ...

used during the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...

and

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

Republican era coinage

The Romans replaced the usage of Greek coins, first by bronze ingots, then by disks known as the aes rude. The system thus named ''as'' was introduced in ca. 280 BC as a large

cast Cast may refer to: Music * Cast (band), an English alternative rock band * Cast (Mexican band), a progressive Mexican rock band * The Cast, a Scottish musical duo: Mairi Campbell and Dave Francis * ''Cast'', a 2012 album by Trespassers William ...

bronze coin during the Roman Republic. The following fractions of the were also produced: the (), (), (), (), (), (), (, also a common weight unit), and (), as well as multiples of the ''as'', the (2), (2), and (3) After the ''as'' had been issued as a cast coin for about seventy years, and its weight had been reduced in several stages, a ''as'' was introduced (meaning that it weighed one-sixth of a pound). At about the same time a silver coin, the

denarius The denarius (, dēnāriī ) was the standard Roman silver coin from its introduction in the Second Punic War to the reign of Gordian III (AD 238–244), when it was gradually replaced by the antoninianus. It continued to be minted in very ...

, was also introduced. Earlier Roman silver coins had been struck on the Greek weight standards that facilitated their use in southern Italy and across the Adriatic, but all Roman coins were now on a Roman weight standard. The

, or 'tenner', was at first tariffed at ten ''asses'', but in about 140 BC it was retariffed at sixteen ''asses''. This is said to have been a result of financing the

Punic War The Punic Wars were a series of wars between 264 and 146BC fought between Rome and Carthage. Three conflicts between these states took place on both land and sea across the western Mediterranean region and involved a total of forty-three yea ...

s. During the Republic, the ''as'' featured the bust of Janus on the obverse, and the prow of a

galley A galley is a type of ship that is propelled mainly by oars. The galley is characterized by its long, slender hull, shallow draft, and low freeboard (clearance between sea and gunwale). Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be u ...

on the reverse. The ''as'' was originally produced on the libral and then the reduced libral weight standard. As the weight decreased, the bronze coinage of the Republic switched from being cast to being struck. During certain periods, no ''as''ses were produced at all.

Imperial era coinage

Following the coinage reform of Augustus in 23 BC, the ''as'' was struck in reddish pure copper (instead of bronze), and the or 'two-and-a-halfer' (originally 2.5 ''as''ses, but now four ''as''ses) and the (2 ''as''ses) were produced in a golden-colored alloy of bronze known by numismatists as . The ''as'' continued to be produced until the 3rd century AD. It was the lowest valued coin regularly issued during the Roman Empire, with semis and being produced infrequently, and then not at all sometime after the reign of

Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (Latin: áːɾkus̠ auɾέːli.us̠ antɔ́ːni.us̠ English: ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 AD and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good E ...

. The last ''as'' seems to have been produced by Aurelian between 270 and 275 and at the beginning of the reign of Diocletian.

Byzantine coinage

The ''as'', under its Greek name ''assarion'', was re-established by the Emperor

Andronikos II Palaiologos , image = Andronikos II Palaiologos2.jpg , caption = Miniature from the manuscript of George Pachymeres' ''Historia'' , succession = Byzantine emperor , reign = 11 December 1282 –24 May 1328 , coronation = 8 Novemb ...

(r. 1282–1328) and minted in great quantities in the first half of the 14th century. It was a low-quality flat copper coin, weighing ca. 3–4 grams and forming the lowest denomination of contemporary Byzantine coinage, being exchanged at 1:768 to the gold ''

hyperpyron The ''hyperpyron'' ( ''nómisma hypérpyron'') was a Byzantine coin in use during the late Middle Ages, replacing the '' solidus'' as the Byzantine Empire's gold coinage. History The traditional gold currency of the Byzantine Empire had been the ' ...

''. It appears that the designs on the ''assarion'' changed annually, hence they display great variations. The ''assarion'' was replaced in 1367 by two other copper denominations, the '' tournesion'' and the '' follaro''.

References

{{Authority control Coins of ancient Rome

Republican era coinage

Imperial era coinage

Byzantine coinage

See also

References