| Back to Monetary Reform of Diocletian in 295 AD | This page is part of the article Getting Started with Roman Coins | Forward to Monetary Reform of Constans and Constantius II in 348 AD |
Constantine I (The Great) made major monetary reforms around 310 AD when he introduced three gold coins (the Solidus (technically reintroduced), the Semissis and the 1 ½ Scripulum), and two silver coins (the Miliarense and the Siliqua).
| Metal | Denomination | Value (Solidus) | Weight | Notes |
| Gold | Aureus | 1 ⅛ | 5.4g | The Aureus continued to be struck in the East of the empire until 324 AD, and then occasionally until the end of the 4th century |
| Solidus | 1 | 4.5g | ||
| Semissis | ½ | 2.25g | ||
| 1 ½ Scripulum | 3/8 | 1.68g | Also known as the 9 Silliqua. See the notes below. Referred to as a “Fraction” in the OCRE website (see link). | |
| Silver | Miliarense | 1/18 | 4.5g | Introduced around 325 AD Referred to as “Uncertain Value” in the OCRE website |
| Siliqua | 1/24 | 3.37g | Introduced around 325 AD. This was the same weight as Diocletian’s failed Argenteus. The Siliqua appears on the OCRE website as a Constantine II coin from 337 AD onwards (Constantine I died in 337 AD). It’s possible that the Constantine I Siliqua are listed as “Uncertain Value”. | |
| Bronze | Follis | 5.4g (310 AD) 4.6g (313 AD) 3.2g (315 AD) | The bronze Follis continually reduced in size and weight. Rather than assign names, they are classified as follows: AE1 from 25 millimetres AE2 from 21 millimetres AE3 from 17 millimetres AE4 under 17 millimetres |
By 325 AD the only billon coin left was a lightweight billon Follis called a Centenionalis, which was an attempt to reintroduce a large bronze coin.
Notes:
- The 1 ½ Scripulum under Constantine I is awkward to find because it is rare and isn’t explicitly named in RIC VI or RIC VII, which are the volumes for Constantine I. Examples are:
- RIC VI 796 (variant) Trier This site actually lists the coin as RIC 769 for the Treveri mint, but that’s a bronze As.
- RIC VI 797: Trier Around 309 AD
- RIC VII 185: Nicomedia Around 335 AD 1.74g
- RIC VII 365: Trier Around 322-323 AD 1.57g
- RIC unlisted: Nicomedia Around 335 AD 1.73g.
- Some sources [1, 2, 3] use the 1 ½ Scripulum name for a 5.3g coin from Constantine I, and value it as 1 ½ of a Solidus. [4] uses the 1 ½ Scripulum name for a 6.5g from Constantius II. As a scripulum is a measure of weight (1.137g), a 1 ½ Scripulum coin should be around 1.7g, so it’s unclear why these attributions have been made. Gold Aurei struck at the same time had a weight of 5.3g.
Article Navigation
| Back to Monetary Reform of Diocletian in 295 AD | Up to The Imperial Period (27 BC to 476/491/498 AD) | Forward to Monetary Reform of Constans and Constantius II in 348 AD |
