Coinage of Greece & Rome
CX246-30/CX346-30, + 15 CAT variants
This module is available in 2026-27.
Module convenor: Prof. Clare Rowan + new colleague.
The aim of the module is to introduce students to the main developments in the coinage of the ancient world, from its Anatolian beginnings in the 7th century BC to the late Roman period and beyond. The module also develops practical skills required for a career in numismatics (whether this be in academia, a museum, or elsewhere).
The module can be taken as 30 CATS (all year): Coinage of Greece and Rome
or it can be taken as a 15 CAT option:
Term 1: Money and Coinage in Ancient Greece
Terms 2 and 3: Money and Coinage in Ancient Rome
Illustrative syllabus
The module will contain both lectures and practical activities (coin identification from different periods, public engagement, die studies and other technical approaches). An illustrative summary of the topics provided, for both Greek and Roman coinage, is below
- coin production: mints, dies, bullion, metal preparation
- money beyond coinage
- uses of coinage in antiquity: political, economic, social, religious
- different types of coinage and how to identify them (Greek, Hellenistic, Iberian, Punic, Roman Republic, Roman Empire, Roman provincial, Late Antiquity)
- the development of small change and alternative currencies/markets
- scientific approaches to the study of coins: metal analysis
- coin hoards, coin finds and their interpretation
Assessment
30 CAT Coinage of Greece and Rome: 1x 2250-3000 word essay in Term 1 (30%), 1x 2250-3000 word essay in Term 2 (30%), 1x exhibition catalogue in Term 3 (40%)
15 CAT options (Money and Coinage of Greece, Money and Coinage of Rome): 1x 2250-3000 word essay (60%), 1x exhibition catalogue (40%)
Summer reading (both titles available online through the library catalogue):
@ Howgego, C. (1995) Ancient History from Coins (Oxford: Oxford University Press)
@ Metcalf, W. (2012, ed.) Oxford Handbook of Greek and Roman Coinage Oxford (Oxford: Oxford University Press)