A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii From Uitgeest / P. Vons

I
ifi
Berichten van de Rijksdienst
voor het Oudheidkundig Bodemonderzoek
jaargang 37, 1987
AFKORTINGEN/ABBREVIAT1ONS
ASAB
Annales de la Societe royale d'archeologie de

Bruxelles
APL
Analecta Praehistorica Leidensia
AWN
Archeologische Werkgemeenschap voor Nederland (Archaeological Work Group for the Netherlands)
BABesch. Bulletin (van de Vereeniging tot bevordering der
kennis van de) antieke beschaving
BAI
Biologisch-Archaeologisch Instituut, Groningen
BAR
Britisch Archaeological Reports
BH
Brabants heem
BJ
Banner Jahrbiicher
B(K)NOB Bulletin van de(n) (Koninklijke) Nederlands(ch)efn) Oudheidkundige(n) Bond
BMC
H. Mattingly, Coins of the Roman Empire in the
British Museum, I-IV, London 1923-40
BRGK
Benefit der Romisch-Germanischen Kommission
BROB
Berichien van de Rijksdienst voor het Oudheidhundig Bodemonderzoek
CIL
Corpus imcriptionum Latinarum
IPP
Albert Egges van Giffen Instituut voor Prae- en
Protohistorie, Amsterdam
JMP
Jaarboek voor muni- en penningkunde
JRGZM
Jahrbuch des Romisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums Mainz
JROB
Jaarvenlag van de Rijksdienst voor het Qudheidkundig Bodemonderzoek
KPK
Koninklijk Penningkabinet, Leiden
Med, RGD Mededelingen van de Rijks Geologische Dienst
NAFN
Neue Ausgrabungen und Forschungen in Niederiachsen
NAP
Nieuw Amsterdams Peil (Dutch Datum Level)
NDV
Nieuwe Drent$(ch)e volksalmanak
NKNOB
Nieuwsbulletin van de Koninklijke Nederlandse
Oudheidkundige Bond
OML
Oudheidkundige Medede(e)lingen uit het Rijksmuseum van Oudheden te Leiden
PPS
Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society
PZ
Praehistorische Zeitschrift
KDMZ
RIC
MMO
ROB
SJ
Stiboka
TZ
zwo
Rijksdienst voor de Monumentcnzorg, Zeist

H. Mattingly/E.A. Sydenham, The Roman Imperial Coinage, I-III, London 1923-62
Rijksmuseum van Oudheden, Leiden
Rijksdienst voor het Oudheidkundig Bodemonderzoek, Amersfoort
Saalburg Jahrbuch
Stichting voor Bodemkartering, Wageningen
Trierer Zeitschrift
Nederlandse Organisatie voor Zuiver-Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (Netherlands Organization for the Advancement of Pure Research)
NOOT
Het aardwerk is op schaal 1:4 afgebeeld, tenzij
anders aangegeven; de profielen van het handgevormd aardewerk zijn wit, die van gedraaid
aardewerk zijn zwart getekend.
Unless otherwise stated, the pottery is drawn to
a scale of 1:4; the profiles of hand-made pottery
are represented in white, of wheel-made pottery
in black.
BERICHTEN VAN DE RIJKSDIENST

VOOR HET OUDHEIDKUNDIG BODEMONDERZOEK
Berichten van de Rijksdienst

voor het Oudheidkundig Bodemonderzoek
Proceedings of the State Service

for Archaeological Investigations
in the Netherlands
jaargang 37, 1987
REDACTIE
W.A. van Es, J.F. van Regteren Altena, P. J. Weltering,
W.C. Mank en G.H. Scheepstra
Adres: Rijksdienst voor het Oudheidkundig Bodemonderzoek,
Kerkstraat i, 3811 CV Amersfoort, Nederland
Grafische verzorging:
Typografie, drukken en binden:
Omslag:
ISSN:
ROB, afdeling Grafische Productie

Casparie Heerhugowaard B.V.
Dick Letema en ROB, afdeling Grafische Productie, op basis
van een ontwerp van Aart Verhoeven
0167-5443
Auteursrecht voorbehouden/Copjyrz^/zr reserved
ROB, Amersfoort 1989
INHOUD
Janneke Buurman, A Middle Bronze Age CornStack at Twisk, Province of North Holland
R.M. van Heeringen, The Iron Age in the
Western Netherlands, II: Site Catalogue and
Pottery Description. Map, sheet i
P. Vons, A Second-Century Roman Hoard of
Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest, Province of
North Holland
39 (7)
123
J.H. van der Werff, Roman Anaphoras at

'De Horden' (Wijk bij Duurstede)
153
W. J.H. Verwers, North Brabant in Roman and

Early-Medieval Times, IV: The Merovingian
Cemeteries
173
B. Groenewoudt, Deventer-Kloosterlanden:
Pottery and Settlement Traces from the
Merovingian Period
225
H.F. Hamerow, Anglo-Saxon Settlement

Pottery and Spatial Development at Mucking,
Essex
245
Hemmy Clevis, Nijmegen: Investigations into

the Historical Topography and Development of
the Lower Town between 1300 and 1500
275
H.M. Zijlstra-Zweens, The Sword of the Voorst:

A Baselard?
391
P. VONS
A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded

Denarii from Uitgeest
Keywords: excavation, hoard, heavily corroded, new

cleaning process, conservation, hoard-horizont end II,
Roman period, Uitgeest, North Holland, the Netherlands, 27 references.
INTRODUCTION
Between 1980 and 1983, the State Service for Archaeological Investigations (ROB) carried out excavations on a
site containing settlement traces of the Roman Period
and Early and Late Middle Ages.1 The site, north of
Uitgeest in the province of North Holland, lies in the
hamlet of Dorregeest and is bordered on the west by the
old road connecting Uitgeest and Akersloot, the Geesterweg; east of it is the Haarlem-Alkmaar motorway.
Uitgeest is situated in Free Germany, about 45 km
north of the Roman Limes (fig. i).
The investigations produced a number of uncommon
Roman imports. In addition to Roman pottery, many
metal objects came to light, especially in the refuse
layers in a creek remnant from the Dunkirk I transgression phase, west of the settlement. The unusual Roman
finds comprise a small bronze flask, a bronze foot, presumably from a vessel or a piece of furniture, decorated
with a lion's head, and a cheek-plate of a helmet.
In the same creek-fill west of the settlement, a concentration of 1302 second-century denarii was found (fig.
2). In view of the close proximity of the denarii and the
identical nature of their corrosion, it may be assumed
that the coins belong together and were lost or hidden
in the ground in a container of perishable material (such
as leather, wool, or linen), which has left no trace. Their
dispersal is likely to have been caused by medieval
ditch-digging or by their being washed away in the
i Woltering 1982, 204-8; 1983, 214-20.
Fig. i Situation of Uitgeest and the Roman Limes,

i. Uitgeest; 2. Limes.
creek. The denarii were retrieved both from the medieval ditch-fill and from the soil beneath it.
Of the 1302 denarii found, 1186 have been identified;
60 could not be identified because of extensive corrosion; 56 were put aside to await new techniques that
may in the future provide less time-consuming procedures for dealing with corroded coins. Table i and the
diagram fig. 3 give a summary of the coins' chronology.
123
p. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest
TABLE i
Summary of Roman denarii from Uitgeest 1981/83
Trajan
Hadrian
(98-117)
(117-138)
2OI
(Sabina
(L. Aelius
22)
7)
Antoninus Pius (138-161)
675 (Faustina I
208)
(Faustina II
33)
(Antoninus Pius
and Marcus Aurelius 7)
(Marcus Aurelius
76)
Marcus Aurelius (161-180)
287 (Divus Antoninus

(Lucius Verus
(Commodus
(Faustina II
(Lucilla
Commodus*
(180-192)
Antoninus Pius or Marcus

Aurelius
13 (Crispina
4 (Faustina I or
Faustina II
Total identified
Unidentifiable
Untreated (still possessing corrosion crust)
1186
Sum total
1302
55)
37)
2)
86)
17)
9)
4)
60
56
* Latest dated coin: Commodus RIC 135, AD 186.
Fig. 2 Uitgeest; i. Calais IV sandy beach deposit; 2. peat; 3.

Dunkirk I creek deposits; 4. Dunkirk I creek remnant; 5.
present-day field boundaries; 6. present-day buildings; 7. outline of excavated area; 8. house-plans of Roman (or probably
Roman) date; 9. wells of Roman (or probably Roman) date.
After Woltering 1983, afb. 10.
All of the denarii were severely corroded (fig. 4) and

two, three, or more of them might be stuck together,
forming a single corroded lump (fig. 5). The nature of
the corrosion crusts was found to be such that the usual
methods of cleaning, which would make identification
possible, were useless.
Similar badly corroded denarii dating from the Early
Imperial Period had been found before, in excavations
at Velsen. These too could not be cleaned in the traditional way; therefore the so-called 'cutting and splitting'
technique was developed for them. This could be ap-
plied successfully both to denarii and Roman asses.

With this technique, described in detail on a previous
occasion,2 it became possible to lift off in one piece the
corrosion crusts from both sides of the coin. Determination was then carried out mainly on the basis of the
negative inscription and design on the inside of the
crusts.3
Many of the Velsen denarii had shown a silvery sheen
on the inside of the corrosion crusts, while the cores,
that is, the remains of the actual coins, consisted of a
black substance similar to that found in the equally
badly corroded copper asses. In these cases the author
assumed he was dealing with so-called 'plated denarii'.4
2 Vons 1977.
3 For the meaning of the various concepts employed in describing the structure of the corroded denarii, see fig. 16 and
the explanation on page 130.
4 A plated denarius has a base-metal core (mostly copper or

iron), coated with a thin layer of silver. Externally, a plated
denarius is indistinguishable from a solid silver coin. In Vons
1983, the subject of plating is discussed in detail.
CONDITION OF THE COINS
124
Fig. 3 Number of specimens averaged per reign year.
Fig. 5 ... stuck together in some cases ...
When he was asked to examine the denarii of the Uitgeest hoard, and saw that these resembled the corroded
denarii from Velsen, he adopted the cutting-and-splitting technique that had been devised for the latter.
This, briefly, meant cutting a small groove into the corrosion crust, around the edge of the coin, using a rotary
disc with a diamond abrasive. Then alternating immersion in hot and cold water with the addition of a surface-tension reducing chemical, washing-up liquid, for
example, were applied in the attempt to prize off the
crusts as complete as possible. At first this worked very
well for the denarii from Uitgeest, and crusts came
away beautifully (fig. 6). This seemed to confirm this
impression that the Uitgeest denarii were also plated.
There were numerous examples of corrosion crusts
showing on their inner surface a fine shiny-black
counter-relief with a design and inscription of the original denarius (fig. 7 and 8).
There existed, however, an important difference between these and the Velsen denarii, whose cores did not
emerge in the form of coins after removal of the crusts,
but tended to consist of a soft black substance or a black
powder. The cores of the Uitgeest denarii, on the other
hand, often had the appearance of intact coins with a
black lustre. Whenever cleaning could be carried out in
<-#*?*"
Fig. 4 ... severely corroded ...
Fig. 6 After splitting: ... two 'corrosion plaques' and the

'core' ... (ref. no. 456, RIC M.A. 529).
125
/ ,
\5 *-^
Fig. 7 'Core' (ref. no. 1073, J?/C M.A. 677).
:Tf
126
Fig. 8 Inside of corrosion plaque from core fig. 7 (negative

turned over to correct mirror image).
FECVNDITAS
.,
Fig. 9 Identification from the core (ref. no. 79, RIC HA.
176).
HADRIANVS AVGVSTVS
'! -;
COS. IIII
Fig. toa
177)-
Identification from the core (ref.no. 376, RIC A.P.
Fig. lob (Ref. no. 376, RIC A.P. 177).

COS. mi
ANTONINVS A V G . PIVS.P .P.TR.P.XII
,^&~^.^.:
* '''I 4 . t
'
fcs
>
^^,, .5?-*
'*
Fig. na
Ref.no. 1115, RIC M.A. 711 (obverse).
F A V S T I N A AVGVSTA
Fig. l i b
Ref.no. 1115, RIC M.A. 711 (reverse).
SAECVLIFELICIT
127
CLEANING THE COINS
the way described, identification was possible from examining the cores. Figures 9, 10, and ii show clear examples. In other cases identification had to be based on the
inner faces of the corrosion crusts. The difference from
the denarii from Velsen, and the fact that all of these
cores featured a black gloss, made P.J. Woltering, supervisor of the excavations at Uitgeest, decide to have
the metal composition of some Uitgeest coins analyzed,
both of the cores and the corrosion crusts. Analyses
carried out by Professor E.H.P. Cordfunke of the Netherlands Energy Research Foundation (ECN) at Petten
have refuted the hypothesis that these coins were 'plated' denarii, consisting of a base-metal core with a thin
silver coating. It became clear that their immersion in
sulphur-rich ground water had completely transformed
the original silver-copper alloy, which was standard in
the second century AD, into silver and copper sulphides.
Moreover, this metamorphosis affected the cores, in
that they were no longer solid but had become very
fragile; they were found to consist of scores of waferthin
platelets (fig. 12).5
As mentioned earlier, the method developed for the

Velsen denarii was applied to those from Uitgeest from
the beginning. This was a success in that the primary
aim of identification could be met in over 90% of all
cases; but it did mean that in many instances cores and
corrosion crusts were broken, which made identification a most laborious task. Many hours had to be spent
in removing the crusts and in determining each individual coin. When, at long last, this has been carried out
successfully, photographs were taken of the slight relief
visible in oblique lighting. A similar photographic record had already been made on the coins from Roman
Velsen, and served for future verification of identifications. Naturally, it was considered desirable to develop
new possibilities for the following procedures:
a to take complete corrosion crusts off both sides of a
coin core (fig. 6);
b to salvage the core with as little damage done as possible;
while another suggestion was:
c to achieve identification without the removal of the
crust, by means of modern research methods such as
infra-red photography.
Both in the ROB laboratory6 and at the Netherlands
Energy Research Foundation (ECN) in Petten, various
methods7 have been investigated with a view to a more
convenient and less destructive procedure or one that
might make the inscriptions and designs visible through
the crust. To no avail, however. At the Central Laboratory of the Foundry and Steelworks in IJmuiden, numerous tests were carried out (among others, various
sonic vibration tests) to find out whether mechanical or
chemical removal of the crusts should be facilitated
along these lines. Unfortunately, none of these resulted
in an improved method.
However, in the course of the two-year period needed
for cleaning and identifying, the author gradually devised a new cleaning technique, which eventually allowed a higher percentage of coins to be determined.
Moreover, a far greater number of practically perfect
coin cores could be obtained, as may be seen in figs.
13-15.
Because it is expected that in other excavations similarly
5 Cordfunke 1983.
6 Dr J.A. Brongers and G.J. Rombout carried out optical
microscopy on sections of a number of coins.
7 Among other methods: X-ray diffraction, atomic absorbtion spectrometry (AAS), optical microscopy, and scanning
electron microscopy (SEM).
Fig. 12
299).
... wafer-thin platelets ... (ref.no. 515, RIC A.P.
FELICITATI AVG.COS.III
128
>. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest
Fig. 13 Ref.no. 615, RIC A.P. 300.

ANTONINVS AVG.PIVS.P.P.TR.P.XXIII
Fig. 14
FORTVNA COS.Ill
Ref.no. 613, RIC A.P. 360.
DIVA FAVSTINA
AVGVSTA
129
Fig. 15
Ref.no. 759, RIC A.P. 4293.
AVRELIVS CAESAR AUG.P. II F.
COS. II
corroded denarii will also come to light (corroded coins

that could be split into three parts have been found in
Valkenburg and Assendelft), the cleaning method that
gave the best results is described in detail below.
being kept under water, while only a small proportion

were left to dry out. Of these denarii it can also be said
that on the whole the damp specimens were less difficult to open than the dry ones.
In order that the reader may fully understand the most
successful opening method, the author will begin by defining a number of concepts that will often recur in the
following, and illustrate them with the section of a corroded denarius (fig. 16).
The following layers can be distinguished, from outer
skin to core:
A NEW CLEANING METHOD
In cleaning the denarii and asses from Velsen it had

been found that the removal of the corrosion crusts was
generally facilitated by treating the coins immediately
after they were excavated and still damp from the soil,
instead of first leaving them to dry. This experience resulted in most of Uitgeest's freshly excavated coins
Fig. 16 Section of a corroded denarius.

130
A Top layer: the thick outer layer of corrosion (fig. 17).

This layer may vary in thickness from i mm to 3 or 4
mm. In some cases it is brittle and is broken away quite
easily from the underlying layer B. In other cases, however, it is extremely hard and very difficult to break up.
Some of the denarii were what might be called 'pockmarked'. Here, the pitted corrosion layer did not have
a smooth surface, but displayed a variety of 'warts'
especially around the edges. These protrusions could
always be broken off without effort (fig. 18).
B Under-layer: the thin inner layer of corrosion (fig. 19).
This layer tended to be very firmly attached to the
Fig. 17 Corrosion layer A, thick outer layer.
coin's core, and mostly had to be broken away forcibly, in

dozens of small fragments. Sometimes parts of the core
were broken off with them, thus seriously damaging the
inscription and design (fig. 20). The thickness of layer B
Fig. 18
'Pock-marked' Ref.no. 983, RIC M.A. 436.
DIVVS AVGVSTVS
layer A
Ref. no. 401, RIC A.P. 194.
layer B
Ref.no. 468, RIC A.P. 238,
ANTONINVS AVG.PIVS.
P.P.TR.P.XIIII
A N T O N I N V S AVG.PIVS.
P.P.TR.P.XVII
never amounted to more than a few tenths of a millimetre.

C Core: the metamorphosed coin.
When cleaning produced an undamaged coin core and
the coin had not worn too much through use, the core
itself presented a clean outline and, apart from its colour, was often hardly distinguishable from an original
silver denarius (fig. 21). The core consists of many
wafer-thin layers of silver- and copper-sulphide (fig.
12), which are very fragile and are easily shattered in
the forceful removal of corrosion layer B.
The outside of a corroded denarius does not betray the
thickness of layers A and B which are to be removed from
the core. These thicknesses vary with each individual coin.
Indeed, a single denarius may have a crust of variable
depth, as when the piece itself is of uneven thickness due
to its having been struck obliquely by the die, for example.
At this stage it is supremely important that the core's
surface is in no way damaged during the removal of
layers A and B. Should this happen however, then the
chances are that, when the corrosion crusts are split off,
the sections of the core will also be pulled apart, thus
P. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest
Fig. 19 Corrosion layer B, thin inner layer.

Ref.no. 23, RIC HA. 83 Ref.no. 857, RIC A.P. 163 etc.
P.M.TR.P.COS.III
Fig. 20 ... sometimes parts of the core come away with the
crust ... (ref.no. 58, RIC HA. 161 cos.in).
a Immediately after removal of the plaque (core/silvery
plaque).
b A start has been made with taking the adhering platelets
off the silver plaque (core/silvery plaque).
132
COS.IIII
rendering the identification of the coin impossible or

very difficult (fig. 22).
It will be clear by now, that the incision into corrosion
layers A and B round the edge of a corroded denarius
(the Velsen method, which at first was also applied to
the denarii from Uitgeest) entails the serious risk of damaging the core's surface. A method had to be found
that would eliminate this hazard.
Eventually, the following procedure produced the best
results; with a pair of wire-cutters (fig. 23) a small piece
is very carefully nipped out of the edge of the corrosion
crust, until the core's surface becomes visible (fig. 24).
Once this has succeeded, the crust is cut or broken away
all round the edge. If the crust is found to be so hard
that wire-cutters are useless, nail clippers may have to
be resorted to. This method works a great deal better
than cutting a groove, but even so it does not guarantee
that the core will remain undamaged; in some cases the
crust is so firmly attached to the core that bits of the latter are nonetheless broken off.
When finally the core's edge has been freed all round,
a start is made with carefully splitting away the corrosion layers A and B from the coin's obverse and reverse,
as shown in figs. 26: 1-12. In this procedure it is advisable to use loose wood-cutting blades which are set into
Fig. 21 ... hardly distinguishable from an uncorroded denarius ... (ref.no. 99, RIC HA. 244).
HADRIANVS AVG.COS.III P.P. FORTVNA AVG.

(obliquely struck).
' ^if '. ,\

* "$:* ">%
ap-^>^
Lvesi: j*_ -f
Fig. 22 The layer of platelets has torn apart.
Fig. 23 Wire-cutters with one flat side (diagonally-cutting).
Z/ 4
Fig. 24 After cutting, the soft core becomes visible (not to

scale).
Fig. 25 Holders with separate blades, brand 'X-Acto'

Blade type no. 4 Blade type no. n Blade type no. 22.
133
m
M
r f?lg3*f.-,f
5
^IS--^
^
i*3S*!fc"
Fig. 26: 1-6 ... stripping away the corrosion crusts ... (ref.
no. 41, RIC HA. 128).
IMP.CAESAR T R A I A N HADRIANVS AVG.
134
v.
11
12
Fig. 26: 7-12 The reverse (ref.no. 41, RIC HA. 128).
P.M.TR.P.COS.III (in field) LIB.PVB.
135
a holder (fig. 25). Immersion in hot and cold water

baths is no longer applied.
The splitting operation is different for each individual
denarius. Sometimes it is found possible to remove corrosion crusts A and B as a whole, in which cases a clearcut design may be expected to appear on the core and,
inverted, on the inside of the removed crust (fig. 7 and
8). Nevertheless, this procedure also does not preclude
the core's surface being pulled away, leaving a blurred
design and inscription. This makes the identification of
the coin far more difficult if not impossible. In general,
however, it will not be feasible to prize off layers A and
B in their entirety. By means of the wood-cutting
blades, small fragments of corrosion are then taken off
the core, an operation requiring considerable effort. As
each denarius demands an individual approach, it is impossible to give general rules as to how this stripping
should be carried out and what kind of situation requires what kind of blade. In these matters, experience
is the best guide. Corrosion layer A, always much
thicker than layer B, on the whole breaks away from B
far more easily than does layer B from the core. B often
has to be prized forcefully off the core. For this it is
For each of the denarii determined, a record card was

written out, stating, among other things, what parts of
the inscription on the obverse and reverse were legible,
details about the designs, and also, in some cases, details regarding the experience gained in opening the
coin. For the identification of the coins, the following
publications were consulted:
Mattingly/Sydenham 1923 ff ( = RIC); Mattingly 1923
( = BMC); and Robertson 1971 ( = Robertson). In the
coin list given below only reference numbers, RIC
numbers, emission dates if known, and brief descriptions of the reverse design are given.
Coinnumber
Coinnumber
RIC.number
Date
Reverse
17-21
80
82
83
86?
86
95
97
113
115
116
117
118
1 20
126
127
128
129
131
135
137
147
148?
150
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
125-128
125-128
125-128
Aequitas standing 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Felicitas standing 1.
Fortuna standing 1.
Fortuna standing 1.
Pax seated 1.
Pietas standing front
Galley 1.
Aeternitas standing 1.
dementia standing 1.
Clementia leans on column
Concordia seated 1.
Felicitas seated 1.
Hilaritas standing front
Libertas seated 1.
Libertas standing 1.
Hadrian seated 1.
Hadrian seated 1.
Pudicitia standing front
Salus seated 1.
Diana standing r.
Hercules seated r.
Hercules seated 1.
TRAJANUS
RIC.number
Date
Reverse
AD 98-117
crucial to work with razor-sharp blades, in order to cut

successfully between the core and layer B. It is therefore advisable to renew the blades after every five to ten
coins treated. Furthermore, it is important to start
stripping a coin there where the coin is found to be
thickest, because at this point the risk of damaging the
core is smallest.
COIN LIST
22
i
3
4
5
96
183
225
363
365
103-111
103-111
104-111
114-117
114-117
Dacian seated r.
Genius standing 1.
Trophy
Providentia standing 1.
Matidia
759
Matidia standing front
IO
ii
12
13-14
15
16
136
12
18
39b
42
6sA
67
7i
76
77
117
117
118
118
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
119-122
25
26
27
28
29
30-31
32-33
34
35
36
HADRIANUS AD 117-138
7
8
9
23-24
Pax standing 1.
Fortune seated 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Justitia seated 1.
Mars standing front. See
section Unknown variants
Mars advancing r.
Minerva standing 1.
Roma standing 1.
Roma seated 1.
37-38
39
40-41
42-43
44
45
46-47
48
49
50-52
Coinnumber
RIC.number
Date
Reverse
HADRIANUS AD 117-138 (cont.)
53
54
55
56
57-63
64
65-67
68-69
70
71-75
76-78
79-80
81-83
84-85
86
87
00
OO
89
90-93
94
95-96
97-98
99-105
106
107
108
109-114
115
116-118
119
I2O-I22
123
124-125
126
127-135
136
137-138
139-140
I4I-I45
146-147
148
149-153
154-155
I56
157
I58
159
1 60
155
156
157
1 60
161
163
169
171
172
173
175
176
181
182
202
214
215
228
230
233
234
24iA
244
247
248
253
256
256?
257
260
261
262
264
266
267
268
274
276
282
290
297
299
300
305
307
310
324
327
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
125-128
132-134
132-134
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
Neptune standing r.
Neptune standing r.
Neptune standing 1.
Roma standing r.
Roma standing 1.
Roma seated r.
Abundantia standing 1.
Abundantia seated 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Genius standing 1.
Pudicitia standing 1.
Spes advancing 1.
Victory standing r.
Seven stars above crescent
Justitia seated 1.
Justitia seated 1.
Modius with corn-ears
Fides standing r.
Fortuna standing 1.
Fortuna seated 1.
Fortuna standing 1.
Liberalitas standing 1.
Moneta standing 1.
Moneta standing 1.
Pietas standing 1,
Pietas seated 1.
Roma seated 1.
Romulus advancing r.
Salus standing r.
Salus standing 1.
Spes advancing 1.
Tellus standing 1.
Victory standing r.
Hadrian standing 1.
Egypt reclining 1.
Africa reclining 1.
Alexandria standing 1.
Hispania reclining 1.
Italia standing 1.
Nilus reclining r.
Hadrian standing r.
Hadrian standing 1.
Coinnumber
RIC.number
Date
Reverse
161
162
163-164
165
166-168
169
170
171
172
330
332
338
339
343
345
361
362
381
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
134-138
Minerva standing r.
Roma seated r.
Abundantia seated 1.
Pudicitia seated 1.
Victory seated 1.
Indulgentia seated 1.
Justitia seated 1.
173-176
177
178-183
184
185-188
189
190
191-193
194
Sabina
390
391
395
396
398
399
401
406
406A
117-138
117-138
117-138
117-138
117-138
117-138
117-138
117-138
117-138
Concordia standing 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Juno standing 1.
Venus standing r.
Concordia seated 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Juno standing 1.
Pudicitia standing 1. See
195-196
197
198
L. Aelius Caesar
430
137
137
433
137
435
199
200
Antoninus Pius-Caesar
Diana standing r.
138
447
Pietas standing 1.
138
452
20 1
202
203
204
205
206
207
HadrianusjL. Aelius Caesar

117-138 ?
63/113?
67/69/71; 117-138 ?
75/77 or
113
117-138 p
330/347
117-138 ?
436/437
p
117-138 p
p
117-138 p
p
117-138 p
ANTONINUS PIUS AD
208
209
210
2II-2I2
213-216
217
Pietas standing 1.
Spes advancing 1.
3
7
ii
12
23
25
138-161
138
138
138
138
139
139
Diana standing r.
Fides standing r.
Pax standing 1.
Victory advancing r.
137
Coinnumber
RIC.number
Date
Reverse
ANTONINUS PIUS AD 138-161 (cont.)
218-220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229-231
232
233-235
236-245
246-249
250-260
261-265
266
267
26
29
34
36
37
43
44
46
473
50
54
58
61
62
64
65
66
66A
139
139
139
139
139
139
139
139
139
139
139
139
140-143
140-143
140-143
140-143
140-143
140-143
268
68
69
70
78
84
85
86
98
140-143
140-143
140-143
140-143
140-143
140-143
140-143
140-143
140-143
143-144?
143-144?
143-144?
143-144?
144
145-161
145-161
145-161
145-161
145-161
269-271
272-274
275
276-278
279-280
281
282-283
284
285
286
287-290
291-292
293
294-298
299-305
306-307
308
309
310-320
321-329
33o-334
335
336-338
339
340-344
345
346-351
138
IO2
IO9
ma
nib
me
117
127
129
1303
131
!3iA
136
137
!43
T
5
151
152
153
154
155
145-161
145-161
145-161
145-161
145-161
145-161
145-161
145-161
145-161
Clasped hands
Lituus, ewer etc.
Fortuna standing 1.
Victory advancing r.
Clasped hands
Clasped hands
Modius
Knife, sprinkler etc.
Minerva advancing r.
Clasped hands
Modius
Modius
dementia standing 1.
Concordia standing r.
Concordia standing 1. See
Clasped hands
Genius standing 1.
Genius standing front
Pax standing 1.
dementia seated 1.
Italia seated 1.
Pax standing 1.
Italia seated 1.
Virtus standing 1.
Victory flying r.
Victory standing 1.
Victory standing 1.
Victory standing 1.
Pax standing 1.
Concordia (?) standing 1.
Felicitas standing 1. See
Clasped hands
Winged thunderbolt
Octastyle temple
Libertas 1.
Pax standing 1.
Virtus (or Roma)standingl.
Coinnumber
RIC.number
352-355
156
157
162
356
357-358
359
360
36i
1633
362-364
167
168
175
176
177
178
179
181
365
366-372
373
374-382
383-384
385-386
387-393
394-395
163
163?
396
iSsA
397-399
188
189
194
400
401-402
403 -406
407-412
413-418
419-421
422
423
424
425
426
200
202
203
204
205
205?
205
208
212
427-430
2i6a
43i
200
432-433
434-440
441-445
446-449
450-453
217
454
455
228
218
219
221
222
229b
(456, see MARCUS

457-463 231
464-466 232
467-468 238
469-471 239
472-475 240
476
477
478
242
479-480
249
246
248
Date
Reverse
Antonius standing 1.
147-148
Annona standing 1.
147-148
147-148
Annona standing 1.
147-148
Annona standing 1.
147-148
Salus standing 1.
147-148
148-149
Annona standing 1.
148-149
Annona standing 1.
148-149
148-149
148-149
Fortuna standing 1.
148-149
Salus standing 1.
148-149
148-149
Crossed cornuacopiae See
149-150
Fortuna standing 1.
149-150
Genius standing 1.
I50-I5I
Fortuna standing 1.
Pax standing 1. (see also
I50-I5I
43i)
Tranquillitas standing r.
I50-I5I
I5I-I52
Vesta standing 1.
I5I-I52
Annona standing 1.
I5I-I52
Fortuna standing r.
I5I-I52
Fortuna standing r.
I5I-I52
Fortuna standing r.
I5I-I52
I5I-I52
I5I-I52
Pax standing 1.
I50-I5I
Pax standing 1. (see also
403/6)
I5I-I52
Pietas standing r.
I5I-I52
152-153
Vesta standing 1.
Annona standing 1.
152-153
Fortuna standing r.
152-153
152-153
153-154
Vesta standing 1.
AURELIUS, RIC. 529)
153-154
Annona standing 1.
Fortuna standing r.
153-154
Vesta
standing 1.
I54-J55
Annona standing 1.
154-155
Fortuna standing r.
154-155
Felicitas(?) standing 1.
154-155
Pax standing 1.
155-156
Ceres seated 1.
155-156
155-156
Annona standing 1.
I45-I6I
I45-l6l
Coinnumber
RIC.number
ANTONINUS PIUS AD
Date
Reverse
138-161 (cont.)
493-494
495
496
497
498-499
500
501
502
503-504
505-506
507-508
509-510
511-512
513
250
252
253
254
260
262
264
267
274
274?
275
277
278
282
284
2853
287
288
290
293
294b
2940
155-156
155-156
155-156
155-156
156-157
156-157
156-157
157-158
157-158
157-158
157-158
157-158
157-158
157-158
158-159
158-159
158-159
158-159
158-159
158-159
158-159
158-159
514
515
516-519
520-524
525-526
527-528
529
530
297
299
300
301
303
305
309
314
159-160
159-160
159-160
159-160
159-160
159-160
160-161
160-161
531
532
533-537
538-553
554
555-557
558-563
564-570
571-574
575
Faustina .
139-141
335
139-141
338
After 141
343
After 141
344
3463
After 141
346b
After 141
After 141
347
348
After 141
3503
After 141
35oc
After 141
576-595
596-599
600
601-609
35i
353
355
356
481-482
483-484
485
486
487
488
489-491
492
After
After
After
After
141
141
141
141
Annona seated r.
Pax standing 1.
Pietas standing 1.
Salus seated 1.
Annona standing r.
Annona seated r.
Salus seated 1.
Genius standing 1.
Annona standing 1.
Annona standing 1.
Annona standing r.
Fortuna standing 1.
Genius standing 1.
Octastyle temple
Salus standing 1.
Salus standing 1.
Octastyle temple
Antoninus standing 1.
Antoninus standing 1.
Antoninus standing 1. See
Felicitas standing I.
Fortuna standing r.
Pax standing 1.
Roma seated 1.
Salus standing L
Roma seated 1.
Juno standing 1.
Hexsstyle temple
Juno (?) standing 1.
Venus (?) standing r.
Venus (?) standing r.
Aeternitas standing 1.
Fortuna standing 1.
Providentia standing 1. See
Providentia (?) standing 1.
Throne
Hexastyle temple
Ceres standing 1.
Reverse
Coinnumber
RIC.number
Date
610
611-612
613-625
626
627-631
632
358
359
360
360?
361
36iA
After
After
After
After
After
After
141
141
141
141
141
141
633-650
651-655
656
657-659
660
661-666
667-668
669-675
676-678
679-684
685
686-697
698-699
700
362
363
363?
364
366
368
370
37i
373
374
377
378
379
38oA
After
After
After
After
After
141
141
141
141
141
After
After
After
After
After
After
After
After
141
141
141
141
141
141
141
141
701-702
703-705
706-710
711-716
717-722
723-732
733
734
735
736
38ib
3823
382b
384
39i
3943
395c
400
401
40iA
After
After
After
After
After
After
After
After
After
After
141
141
141
141
141
141
141
141
141
141
737
Diva Faustina I and Faustina II

After 141 Bust Fsustins II r.
4073
Hybrids
Ceres standing r.
Ceres standing r.
Ceres standing 1.
Ceres standing 1.
Ceres standing 1.
Ceres standing 1. See
section Unknown
variants
Ceres standing 1.
Juno seated r.
Juno seated r.
Juno standing r.
Venus standing 1.
Vesta standing 1.
Vesta standing 1.
Vesta seated 1.
Pietas standing 1.
Pietas standing 1.
Throne
Ceres standing 1.
Ceres seated 1.
Dove r. See section Unknown variants
Antonius standing r.
Ceres standing 1.
Ceres standing 1.
Peacock walking r.
Juno standing 1.
Pietas standing 1.
Pietas standing 1.
Vesta standing 1.
Vesta seated 1.
Vesta seated 1 See section
Unknown Varisnts
738
4ioD
739-740
741-745
Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius

Head Marcus Aurelius r.
140
415
Head Marcus Aurelius r.
140
417
746-750
751-752
753-755
756-758
Marcus Aurelius
422
140-144
423
140-144
140-144
424
426
144 (?)
Emperor standing L
Honos standing 1.
luventas standing 1.
Knife, sprinkler etc.
Honos standing 1.
139
Coinnumber
RIC.number
ANTONINUS PIUS AD
759-776
4293
777-778
431
779
780-784
785-794
795
796
797
798-799
800-801
802-803
804-805
806-807
437
438
444
446
448d
448b,c
or d
45ob
453a
456
459
461
Date
Reverse
138-161 (cont.)
145(147?)
145(147?)
146-147
147-148
148-149
148-149
148-149
148-149
Honos standing 1.
149-150
151-152
Minerva standing r.
Genius Exercitus
standing 1.
dementia standing front
Minerva standing 1.
Genius Exercitus
standing 1.
Minerva standing 1.
Aequitss standing 1.
Aequitas standing 1. See
Virtus (?) standing 1.
Virtus standing r.
Minerva advancing r. See
section Unknown varisnts
Minerva advancing r.
Mars standing front
151-152
153-154
153-154
808
809-810
811
463
4663
466c
812
813
814-815
816-817
818-819
4663 or b 155-156
468
155-156
157-158
475a
4806
158-159
4833
159-160
820
821
483
486
154-155
155-156
155-156
159-160
159-160
Spes advancing 1.
Coinnumber
RICnumber
Date
Reverse
855
856
41-51
54b,68c,
97d or
1360
163, 176,
139
139-161
?
Clasped hands
Annona standing 1.
857
204, 210,
Spes advancing 1.
Minerva standing r.
Minerva standing r.
dementia standing front
dementis standing front
221, 231,
858
859
860
861-862
863
864-865
866
867
868-869
870-874
875
876
877
878
879
880
881-883
822
823-828
829
830-831
832
833-839
840-841
842-845
846-847
848
849
850-851
852
853
854
140
Faustina II, struck under Antoninus Pius

4943
Diana standing 1.
4953
Venus standing 1.
496
5Oob
Concordia standing front
5O2aA
Concordia seated 1. See
5023
Concordia seated 1.
Laetitia standing 1.
5063
5073
5083
Throne
509
5133
Venus standing 1.
5153
Venus standing 1.
Venus standing 1.
5i5b
5173
Venus standing 1.
5i7b
Venus standing 1.
239 or
244
163 or
147-152
204
167 or
147-149
181
203, 219
151-154
or 2293
356-374 After 141
356-377 After 141
375 or
After 141
377
470 or
156-158
475
162-296 136-161
p
136-161
p
After 141
296-307 159-160
Same as coinnr. 857
Hybride ?
Hybride? p
?
After
141?
43 > 54 or 139-161
136
?
136-161
MARCUS AURELIUS AD
161-180
884
885
23
24
161
161
161
161
161-162
161-162
161-162
161-162
161-162
162-163
162-163
162-163
162-163
162-163
886
887
888
889-890
891-894
895
896-899
900-901
902
903-905
906
907
32
35
37
40
50
51
59
62
64
67
70
Annona standing 1.
Salus standing 1.
Vesta standing 1.
? (Faustina II)
? (Faustina II)
Throne (Faustins II)
?
?
? (Faustina I)
p
Annona standing 1.
Head of Faustina II
Salus?
(Faustina I ?)
Clasped hands
?
Concordia seated 1.
M. Aurelius standing 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Concordia seated 1.
Providentis standing 1.
Coinnumber
RIC.number
Date
Reverse
MARCUS AURELIUS AD
161-180 (cont.)
908
163-164
163-164
163-164
163-164
163-164
909-910
911-913
914
915
916-917
918
919
920
921
922
923-924
925-926
927-932
933
934-936
937
938
939-941
942
943
944
945
946
947-949
950-951
952
953-954
955
956
957
958
959-960
961
962
963
964
965
966-972
973-975
976-980
981
982-992
993-1000
82
9i
92
no
ii9A
124
125
138
141
142
145
146
148
163
170
171
176
178
185
186
191
192
203
205
206
216
222
225
228
231
258
259
275
304
320
349
369
420
164-165
164-165
165
165
165
165-166
165-166
165-166
1 66
166-167
166-167
167-168
167-168
168
168
168
168
168-169
168-169
168-169
169-170
169-170
169-170
170-171
170-171
171-172
171-172
172-173
174
174-175
175-176
176-177
176-180
Divus Antoninus
161-180
429
430
161-180
161-180
43i
161-180
433
436
161-180
161-180
438
Armenia seated 1.
Mars standing r.
Mars standing r.
Felicitas seated r.
Mars (or Virtus) standing
r. See section Unknown
variants
Mars standing r.
Annona standing 1.
Roma seated 1.
Roma seated 1.
Annona standing 1.
Pax standing 1.
Pax standing 1.
Pietas standing L
Victory standing front
Fortuna seated 1.
Aequitas seated 1.
Fortuna seated 1.
Salus standing r.
Salus standing 1.
Victory Advancing 1.
Jupiter seated 1.
Mars walking r.
Victory seated 1.
Roma seated 1.
Roma seated 1.
Felicitas (or Pax) standing 1.
Mars walking r.
Pax standing 1.
Roma seated 1.
Eagle standing r.
Eagle standing r.
Eagle standing r.
Eagle on globe
Pyre on four tiers
Pyre on four tiers
RIC.number
Date
Reverse
IOO2
439
161-180
Column
10031008
1009
441
441/4413
161-180
161-180
Square altar
Square altsr
4413
161-180
Squsre sltsr
442
161-180
Antoninus sested 1.
Coinnumber
1001-
IOIOIOII
IOI2-
1014
Lucius Verus
1015482
482-485
161-162
161-162
(obverse crust owing demolishing-chance not removed)
IO23
483
161-162
1024 and
1027
1025
491/4913
49ib
162-163
162-163
491
162-163
See section Unknown
varisnts
501
514
515
163
163-164
163-164
Armenia seated 1.
Mars standing r.
Mars standing r.
5i6
529
529
536
163-164
164-165
164-165
164-165
Mars standing r.
Mars stsnding r.
Mars standing r.
Roma standing 1.
540
542
553
56i
165
165
165-166
166
Parthian seated r.
Parthian seated r.
Victory flying 1.
Pax standing 1.
566
576
166
166-167
Victory standing r.
Aequitas stsnding 1.
586
595
168
168
Fortun3 seated 1.
Aequitas seated 1.
IO2O
IO2I
1022-
1026
1027
1028
1029
1030
10311034
1035
456
1036
10371038
1039
1040
1041
10421043
1044
10451046
1047
1048
10491050
see 1024
Divus Verus
5963 or b After 1 68 p
596b
After 1 68 Funeral pyre
141
Coinnumber
RIC.number
MARCUS AURELIUS AD
Date
Reverse
161-180 (cont.)
Coinnumber
RIC.number
Dste
Reverse
"34
"35
746
749
176-180
176-180
Altar
Funeral pyre
769
771
772
781
p
?
p
p
Hilaritss stsnding 1.
Juno standing 1.
Juno standing 1.
Pudicitia seated 1.
784
Venus standing 1.
785
Venus standing 1.
786
787
788
p
p
p
Venus standing 1.
Venus standing 1.
Vesta standing 1.
162-163
163-164
Providentia stsnding 1.
Commodus
10511052
Lucilla
611
175-176
Hilaritas standing 1.
1136
"37
1138
Faustina II
10531057
1058
10591060
10611064
10651075
1076
10771081
10821090
10911093
1094
"39
669
670
161-180
161-180
Ceres seated 1.
Concordia standing front
1140-
"45
1146-
674
161-180
Diana standing 1.
"47
1148-
676
161-180
Fecunditas standing 1.
677
683
161-180
161-180
Fecunditas standing r.
Fortuna seated 1.
686
161-180
Hilaritas standing 1.
"49
1150
1151
1152
"53
688
161-180
Juno standing 1.
689
161-180
161-180
Juno se3ted 1.
Juno standing 1. See section Unknown vsrisnts
69ib
1095-
Different
70-73
85, 85a,
93, 94 or
1 20
"54
206, 221
168-172
Liber3lit3s standing 1
"55
or 267
252-266
431-432
171-172
161-180
Eagle standing r.
436/438
483 or
161-180
Pyre of four tiers
491
161-163
161-180
161-180
Pulvinar
Salus seated 1.
1156
"571161
1162
694
695
696
161-180
161-180
161-180
Juno st3nding 1.
Juno standing 1.
Juno standing 1.
697
161-180
Juno seated 1.
700
161-175
III2
701
706
161-175
161-175
Cybele seated 1.
11131119
7"
161-175
Pulvinar
1166
11671169
712
161-175
Pulvinar
ANTONINUS PIUS OR MARCUS AURELIUS
713
714
719
722
161-175
161-175
161-175
161-175
Salus seated I.
Salus seated 1.
Faustins standing 1.
Venus seated 1.
II7O-
COMMODUS AD 180-193
731
737
161-175
161-175
Venus seated 1.
Vesta seated 1.
"74
"75
179-180
27(B)
1176
36(A)
181-182
181-182
744
176-180
Peacock r.
IIO2
1103
IIO4
IIO5-
1106
11071108
1109-
ini
II2OII2I
1 1 221123
1124
1125
1126
1163
1164
1165
"73
710/711
713,714
or 7143
728, 729
or 730
786/787
161-180
Venus standing 1. or r.
Venus standing 1.
(no doubt M. Aurelius)
(Faustina I or II)
1127-
1128
1129
1130-
"33
142
Fortuna seated 1.
Liberalitas standing 1
Coinnumber
RIC.number
Date
Reverse
Coinnumber
COMMODUS AD 180-193 (CONT.)
"77
135
186
Libertas st:
ling 1. Latest
dated coin.
Crispina
11781179
276(6)
180-193
11801181
1182
1183
11841186
RIC.number
Date
Reverse
279(6)
28i(A)
283(8)
180-193
180-193
180-193
Clasped hands
Garlanded and lighted altsr
Juno stsnding 1.
286a(B)
180-193
Venus standing 1.
Ceres standing 1.
UNKNOWN VARIANTS
In this closed coin association, seventeen denarii occur

of types which either are not mentioned at all in the
RIC or the BMC lists, or have turned out to be new va-
riants. Robertson (1971) is in fact acquainted with some

of these, as indicated in the following list.
The coins in question are:

Coin no.
ii
RIC
65A
Obverse
Reverse
Comment
(IMP.CAESAR TRAIAN.
P.M.TR.(P.)COS.III
Unusual feature: So far, only known as an

aureus. 'A' now added to RIC number.
PVDICITIA
Unusual feature: The absence of P.P. in obverse legend is remarkable. 'A' now added to
RIC number.
CONCORDIA
Unusual feature: The absence of AVG. in reverse legend is remarkable. 'A' now added to
RIC number.
(CO)S.IIII

aureus. Robertson, however, does know the
denarius (pi. XXXI). 'A' now added to RIC
number.
HADRIANVS AVG.)
194
4O6A
SABINA AVGVSTA
HADRIANI AVG.
267
66A
(ANTON)IN(VS AVG.
P I V ) S . P . P . T R . P . COS.
II(I)
309
I3lA
ANTONINVS A V G .
PIVS.P.P.
396
i8sA
(ANTONINVS AVG.
PI)VS P.P.TR.P.xn
(TEMPORVM FE)LICI
(TAS cos.mi)

aureus. 'A' now added to RIC number.
513
294C
ANTONINVSAVG.
VOTA SVSCEPTA
PIVS.P.P.
DEC.Ill COS.IIII
Unusual feature: This combination of obverse and reverse is unknown. Known obverse legends are: ... p.p.TR.p.xxn (RIC
294b) and .. .P.P.TR.P.XXIII (RIC 307). As
the legend 'ANTONINVS AVG.PIVS.P.P.' does
143
p. VONS / A Second-Century Romsn Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest
Coin no.
RIC
Obverse
Reverse
Comment
occur in the .. .TR.P.XII series but not in the. .TR.p.xxni series, we have decided to classify this as a RIC 294, adding the distinction
'c'. This combination is known to Robertson
(pi. XXXII).
575
3500
(DI)VA FAV(STINA)
A(E)TE(RNITAS)
Unusual feature: This combination of obverse and reverse has not been published except in Robertson (pi. XCVI). 'c' now added
to RIC number.
632
36lA
DIVA FAVSTINA
AVGVSTA
Unusual feature: The reverse design resembles a mirror-image of that of RIC 361. 'A'
now added to RIC number.
700
38oA
DIVA FAVSTINA
CONCORDIA AVG.
Unusual feature: Unknown combination of

obverse and reverse. 'A' now added to RIC
number.
736
4OlA
DIVA FAVSTINA
VESTA
Unusual feature: Vesta sits facing to the

right; so far, only known facing left. 'A' now
added to RIC number.
811
466C
AVRELIVS CAESAR
AVG.P.II.FIL
TR.POT.X COS.II
Unusual feature: This is a combination of

obverse legend RIC 4633 and reverse legend
RIC 466. A combination already known to
Robertson (pi. CII). 'c' now added to RIC
number.
8l8
483A
AVRELIVS CAESAR
AVG.P.II.F.
(TR.POT.)XIIII cos.
(n)
Unusual feature: So far, only known with

CAES for CAESAR; Robertson, however, gives
CAES(AR), implying her aquaintance with this
type. 'A' now added to RIC number.
819
483A
Unusual feature identical to that in coin no. 818.
832
5O2aA
FAVSTINA AVG.
P.II.AVG.F.
CONCORDIA
Unusual feature: The combination of this

obverse legend with a seated Concordia on
the reverse was unknown so far. 'A' now
(ANTONIN)VS AVG.
ARMENIACVS
(TR.P.XV)III IMP.ii.
cos.i(n)
Unusual feature: Only known with obverse

legend reading M.ANTONINVUS AVG.ARMEN.P.M. To Robertson, this variant is a
known one (pi. CXIII). 'A' now added to
RIC number.
144
Coin no.
RIC
Obverse
Reverse
Comment
IO25
49lb
IMP.L.VERVS AVG.
(PRO)V.DEOR.TR.P.III
Unusual feature: Here the head of Verus is

laureate; so far only known bare, 'b' now
cos.ii
IO94
69lb
FAVSTINA AVGVSTA
IVNONI LVCINAE

aureus; Robertson does, however, know the
denarius (pi. XXXII). 'b' now added to RIC
number.
THE HOARD S LOCATION AND SIZE
LATEST DATED COIN AND MOMENT OF DEPOSITION
On an outline map of the Netherlands, Van Gelder et

al.8 show the find-spots of all closed Roman coin hoards
of the first three centuries AD. The attention is immediately drawn to the fact that so far not a single closed
association of Roman coins has been found in the provinces of North and South Holland. All the more important is the discovery in Uitgeest lying 45 km north of
the Limes, on the route to the three northern provinces,
which do show a definite concentration of stray coin
finds and closed coin hoards of the first and second centuries AD". As to the size of this hoard, a number of
1302 denarii may be called remarkably large by Dutch
standards. Most Roman coin hoards in this country
comprise no more than a few dozen or hundreds of denarii, and only two denarius hoards are known to have
consisted of over 1000 specimens. These were unearthed in the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries
however, and little is known about them.10 But even
outside the Netherlands, hoards of over a thousand
denarii are rare. Robertson11 points out that out of the
1200 Roman hoards in England that she describes, only
100 held more than 1000 coins.
The most recently issued coin12 of Uitgeest's hoard of

denarii was minted in Rome under Commodus in AD
186, which forms the terminus post quern for the date of
deposition. The question remains whether this took
place soon after that date or whether scores of years intervened. It is tempting to assign this find to the wellknown 'hoard horizon' of closed coin finds in north and
northwestern Germania, which all have closing coins of
Commodus (AD 180-192) or of his successor, Septimius
Severus (AD 193-211). Such a hoard horizon is commonly attributed to turbulent times, threat of war, tribal upheavals, etc.
In his discussion of the Roman coin finds in the three
northern provinces,13 Van Es draws attention to this
hoard horizon, known already from northern Germany.14 Elsewhere he writes: 'As appears from the coin
finds, a certain degree of unrest must have prevailed in
the late-second century among the tribes in the north of
our country also. It is difficult to point out any cause for
this; the Chauki in the northwest-German coastal area
may have played a part of this'.15
Circumstantial evidence of late-second-century up-
8 Van Gelder/Boersma 1967, 103.

9 Van Es 1960, 48-55 and map III. See also Van Es 1967,
53510 Van Gelder/Boersma 1967 mention under no. 176 (p.
107) a seventeenth-century (Van der Vin: 1622) hoard find
from Nijrnegen (?) containing some 1684 denarii with a closing coin of around AD 270; and under no. 473 (p. 118) a hoard
found in Baerlo near Maasbree in 1830 with 32 aurei and
some 3000 denarii; but only little is known about either.
11 Robertson 1956, 268.

12 No. 1177 in our Coin List, Commodus RIC 135.
13 Van Es 1960, 34-5. Van Gelder and Boersma too (1967,
22-5) write that many more hoards dating to the years around
AD 190 are known, all connected with tribes moving west and
southwestward.
14 Zwikker 1941, 36-7 and map II.
15 Van Es 1980, 46. See also Van Es 1967, 535-9.
145
heavals at the Empire's northwestern frontier is given

by the coins from the castella along the Lower Rhine.
In his report on the coin finds from the castella of Vechten and Arentsburg, Jongkees16 comments on the second-century coins. He notes a significant decline in the
numbers of coins issued during that century (Trajan to
Commodus) and a sudden marked increase under Septimius Severus. The sudden activity under this emperor
points to a strengthening of defences along the frontier,
and is closely related to the turbulence among the tribes
living north of it.
Haalebos in his article on the coins of Maurik17 also
summarizes the finds from a number of Roman forts in
the Dutch Limes zone (among which are Valkhof I,
Vechten, Valkenburg, Zwammerdam, Rossum, and
Cuyk). From the accompanying graph18 it becomes
clear that in all these strongholds the number of coins
is greatly reduced during the second century and
reaches its lowest level under Commodus. Under his
successor Septimius Severus, however, military activity
is stepped up considerably, which is reflected by the relatively large numbers of coins.19
Before assuming that the Uitgeest hoard should also be
ascribed to the late-second-century unrest in the north
and northwest of Free Germany, we should consider
any indication that a much longer span of time might lie
between the minting of the latest dated coin and the
hoard's concealment. Indeed we know some hoards that
consist almost exclusively of first- and second-centuri
denarii with Commodus or Septimius Severus as latest
dated coins, and which nonetheless were not hidden
until the fourth century, as is evident from fourth century coins or other artefacts associated with them. Zedelius 20 studied a number of these oddly composed
hoards, and established that the great majority consisted of first- and second-century denarii, with the addition of only a single or a few fourth-century pieces (all
16 Jongkees 1950.
17 Haalebos 1976.
18 Haalebos 1976, fig. 3.
19 The graph published by Christ in 1960 representing the
Gesamtvolumen der Funde romischer Munzen in Baden-Wiirttemberg also shows a peak under Septimius Severus following
a low under Commodus.
20 Zedelius 1974.
21 Zedelius 1974.
22 Tacitus, Germania, 5. Bolin (1958, 65) comments on this:
'... the well-known statement in Tacitus' 'Germania', which
146
of a high silver content). One of these is the Laatzen

hoard.
In Laatzen (Landkreis Hannover, West Germany) 78
silver coins were found in the fourth-century earthenware pot. Of these, 74 were denarii datable to the reigns
of Nero to Commodus. Only four silver coins (miliarenses/siliquae) were found to belong to the mid-fourth
century.21 This leaves a i5O-year hiatus, as the severely
debased antoniniani and folles of the third century and
first half of the fourth century are lacking. Evidently
these inferior silver-plated coins were not accepted
beyond the imperial frontiers. The same phenomenon
is described by Tacitus,22 who recounts that the Germani show a preference for pieces with a high silver
content, such as bigati and serrati. The first- and second-century denarii from Laatzen are severely worn,
which according to Zedelius points to the fact that they
were not hoarded and handed down in the family for
long periods, but that outside the Roman Empire the
first- and second-century denarii were still in use as
currency as late as the third and fourth centuries.
The hoard from Uitgeest, which lay outside the Empire, should therefore be treated with great caution and
it should be realized that the Commodus latest dated
coin does not rule out a much later moment of deposition. The degree of wear, especially on the younger
coins, is of course a good criterion. Unfortunately, the
Uitgeest denarii reveal little on this point. All of them
are severely corroded and the removal of the crusts has
in many cases also ripped away the surface of the coin
cores. Nonetheless, the overall impression was that the
degree of wear in those cases where the crusts could be
removed successfully, and especially on the more recent
coins, was not such as to suggest long circulation after
the issue of the latest dated coin. This makes it less likely that the hoard was deposited scores of years after AD
186, let alone a hundred years or more.23
was written at his time, that in trading with the Romans the
Germanic tribes preferred payment in two old, easily-recognisable Republican types of denarii: serrati and bigati. We can
see here a regular and normal operation of Gresham's law'.
On p. 77: 'Thus the hoards of Roman coins in India, as in
Germany, show that the Romans paid for their foreign imports with the higher standard specimens of the nominally
equivalent coins which circulated on the Roman market'.
23 The degree to which the opened and cleaned denarii from
Uitgeest will permit the difficult and time-consuming work of
die-comparison to be carried out is yet to be considered.
Fortunately, and this is highly exceptional,24 the Uitgeest hoard was excavated in a settlement context,
which allows us to assume a relationship with the other
coins and artefacts recovered. 25 The settlement is a native one, and its inhabitants, as appears from their
Roman imports,26 maintained ties with the Roman Empire. Zoetbrood studied its Roman material and his first
comment is: 'The bulk of the Roman material is datable
as IIB-IIIA without any doubt, and its dating and composition fits in well with the general picture of North
Holland.' 27
The coin finds in the settlement itself are the following:28
1 Sestertius, Marcus Aurelius, 171-172, RIC 1033,
BMC 1416 and pi. 82:7 (ref. no. 21.4.1)
2 Sestertius, Antonine Period (ref. no. 19.2.21)
3 Sestertius, probably Hadrian (ref. no. 19.1.243)
4 Sestertius, Antonine Period (Marcus Aurelius or
Commodus, ref. no. 19.1.2,413)
5 Double sestertius, Postumus, 259-268, cf. RIC 141
(ref. no. 19.1.240)
6 Sestertius, Antoninus Pius, 147-148, cf. RIC
840-845, BMC 1807 ff. (ref. no. 24.4.13)
7 Antoninianus, Tetricus II, 270-273 (ref. no. 19.3.9)
8 Antoninianus, Tetricus I, 270-273 (ref. no. 16.4.22)
9 Antoninianus, unidentifiable (ref. no. 16.5.17)
10 Antoninianus, Otacilia Severa (Philippus I), 245
(ref. no. 16.4.40)
11 Denarius, Faustina I, c. 141 (ref. no. 21.4.2)
12 Sestertius, Faustina II,...
13 Sestertius, Postumus,
Thus there are a few coins from the second half of the
third century, the youngest being an antoninianus of
24 The bulk of thousands of Roman hoards all over Europe
were found outside the settlements. As Zedelius remarks
(1974, 51, note 258): 'Schatzfunde aus Siedlungen sind selten
bezeugt'.
25 Christ (1960, 19) emphasizes the importance of also including finds from castella and stray finds in the study of
hoards whenever possible. Zedelius (1974, 52) says: 'Die
Analyse von Schatzfunden allein, wie in neuerer Zeit wiederholt
betont wurde, ist zu einseitig und kann kaum zu einer giiltigen
Rekonstruktion des einst vorhandenen Munzvorrates fiihren oder
den tatsdchlichen Umlauf erschliessen. Deshalb ist schon von K.
Kraft gefordert warden, Siedlungs- und Streufunde, in stdrkerem Masse als bisher bei den Untersuchungen zu berucksichtigen',
26 Woltering 1982, 206-7; Woltering 1983, 218-9.
27 Personal communication, P.A.M. Zoetbrood (ROB).
Tetricus (AD 273), but the Roman artefacts do not indicate intensive contact when Roman territory at that
stage.
Returning to the question of whether the Uitgeest
hoard might be reckoned to belong to the late-secondcentury hoard horizon, we can state that the degree of
wear on the coins does not preclude this possibility, and
that the unsettled situation of those days is unlikely to
have passed Uitgeest by, close as it was to the Limes.
Moreover, in view of the greater attention to frontier
defence under Septimius Severus (which manifests itself as an explosion of his coinage in the Roman forts of
the Dutch Limes zone), we certainly should have expected some coins of this Emperor in our large hoard if
it had been concealed during or after his reign (AD 193211). Finally, the chronology histogram (fig. 3) clearly
shows a stepped outline, indicating a gradually accumulated hoard. In cases such as these, Robertson29 assumes
the date of deposition to be not much later than that of
the latest dated coin.
The above-mentioned arguments lead to the conclusion
that the Uitgeest denarii were hidden before the end of
the second century, and that this hoard belongs to the
well-known hoard horizon. It should be remembered
that the Chauki had already carried out raids along the
Belgian coast on previous occasions, to which not only
a hoard horizon but also literary sources bear witness.30
THE DEVIATING COMPOSITION OF THE HOARD
The Uitgeest hoard is remarkably 'young' in its composition. Only denarii of five successive second-century
emperors are present. Namely Trajan, Hadrian,
28 Identifications by Dr J.P.A. van der Vin, Royal Coin
Cabinet, The Hague (nos. 1-8), and by the author (nos.
9-13)29 Robertson 1956, 263: 'If the coins in a hoard formed an
unbroken chronological series, stopping short suddenly with
the latest coins, then the date at which saving or hoarding
ceased was probably followed at once by the date of the deposit of the hoard'.
30 Van Gansebeke 1955, ii and map no. 4, showing nine
hoards with latest dated coin issued under Marcus Aurelius,
which are connected with this invasion. Zedelius (1982, 345)
draws attention to a literary source: 'Die Vita des Didius Julianus berichtet von einer erfolgreichen Abwehr des Statthalters
des Belgica und spateren Kaisers in den Jahren zwischen AD.
176 und 180 (Scriptores Historiae Augustae IX, i, 6 f f . ) ' .
147
TABLE 2 The composition of the Uitgeest and Bargercompascuum hoards, a comparison

Uitgeest
Nero
Galba-Vitellius
Vespasian
Titus
Domitian
Nerva
Trajan
Fig. 2"] Diagram 3: Proportion of first- and second-century
Roman denarii in the hoards of Uitgeest and Bargercompascuum. I.I; 2.11.
Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius and Commodus,

with Trajan represented by a mere 0.5% of the total
(table 2). In this light the Uitgeest hoard was compared
with the nearest large hoard of denarii also closing with
Commodus. This is the hoard of Bargercompascuum
(province of Drenthe) found in 1952 and comprising
312 Roman denarii.31 Table 2 shows the compositions
of both hoards, indicating not only the numbers of
denarii pertaining to each emperor, but also the respective amounts in percentages (see also the diagram fig.
27). Of Bargercompascuum it becomes clear immediately that this find has as Bolin puts it32 an 'old'
composition, while Uitgeest has a particularly young
one. In Bargercompascuum almost a third (31.6%) of
the coins are old ones, dating from before Trajan's
death in AD 117, as against Uitgeest's mere 0.5% (table
2).33
In the various articles written on the subject of the Bargercompascuum hoard,34 the authors have assumed that
they were dealing with the contents of a merchant's
31 JMP 41, 1954, 109-10; NDV 74, 1956, 211-21; Palaeohistoria 5, 1956, 77-99; Van Es 1960, 106-12.
32 Here Bolin (1929, 133) discusses the distinction to be
made between hoards with an early composition and those
with a late one.
33 Although the composition of the Uitgeest hoard is considerably younger (e.g., 24.3% of Marcus Aurelius' issues as
against 12.5% in Bargercompascuum), Commodus is less
strongly represented in Uitgeest than in Bargercompascuum
(1.1% and 3.5%, respectively). Moreover, the latest dated
coin of Bargercompascuum (AD 189, and besides plated!) is
148
__
_
6
Total
0.5
3
C
27
3
7
5
48
201
17.0
57-1
675
287
24-3
13
i.i
1182
100.0
I.O
1.6
8.7
I.O
2-3
1.6
15-4
31.6
0.5
subtotal
Hadrian
Antoninus Pius
Marcus Aurelius
Commodus
Bargercompascuum
19.3
60
103
39
ii
33.1
12.5
311*
100.0
3.5
Latest dated coin AD 186 (RIC 135) AD 189 (RIC 193 plated)
* Of the original number of 312 denarii, one specimen has
since been lost.
purse and that its composition is roughly representative

of coinage circulating in the late second century.35 If
Bargercompascuum indeed reflects the coinage in use in
Commodus' days which Zadoks qualifies36 'in the
Western part of the Roman Empire or just outside its
boundaries' then evidently it still contained a large
proportion of first-century money. All the more curious
then that the great hoard of Uitgeest, 'just outside the
boundaries', should have no more than a fraction of
first-century material!
three years later than its Uitgeest counterpart (AD 186).
34 See note 31.
35 Van Es (1960, 20) remarks that the composition of the
Bargercompascuum hoard cannot be tested against parallel
finds: 'Whether and to what degree the composition of the
Bargercompascuum find is typical for its period cannot be
judged at present. At most, we may assume that it is typical:
the find circumstances seem to indicate that we are dealing
with a merchant's purse'.
36 Zadoks-Josephus Jitta 1956, 90.
Fig. 28 Hoards of denarii with latest dated coin of Commodus, with percentages of pre-ii7 AD denarii within these
hoards.
Outside the Roman Empire: i. The Netherlands: Uitgeest; 2.
The Netherlands: Bargercompascuum; 3. Germany: Hannover; 4-13: Sweden: Gotland; 14. Poland: Galicia; 15. Poland: Posen.
Within the Roman Empire: 16. Germany: Bayern; 17. Great
Britain: Fossoway; 18.: G.B.: New Beggin; 19. G.B.: Beachwell; 20. G.B.: Caerleon; 21. G.B.: Brixworth. 22. G.B.:
Bronwich: 23. G.B.: Barway; 24. G.B. Lydney; 25. G.B.:
Shotts; 26. G.B.: Edwinstove; 27. G.B.: Sheffield; 28. France:
Orne; 29. Austria: Karlsburg; 30. Austria: Vienna; 31. Yugoslavia: Slovenia; 32. Rumania: Szasz Regen; 33. Rumania:
Gyvlafeher-Var; 34. Bulgaria: Vratza; 35. Bulgaria: Chasenfakla; 36. Greece: Cyprus; 37. Egypt.
Literature: i. This publication; 2. Van Es 1960, 106-12; 3.
Bolin, Tabell XXI: I 103; 4. Bolin 1926, Tabell XVII: BH 61;
5. Bolin 1926, Tabell XVII: BH 71; 6. Bolin 1926, Tabell
XVIII: BH 70; 7. Bolin 1926, Tabell XVII: BH 25; 8. Bolin
1926, Tabell XVII: BH 513; 9. Bolin 1926, Tabell XVII: BH
97; 10. Bolin 1926, Tabell XVII: BH 68; n. Bolin 1926, Tabell XVII: BH 590; 12. Bolin 1926, Tabell XVII: BH I33b;
13. Bolin 1926, Tabell XVII: BH 1103; 14. Bolin 1926, Tabell
XXI: AU 67; 15. Bolin 1926, Tabell XXI: AK 90; 16. Bolin
Z
958, Table 6, p. 350; 17. Robertson 1956, Table on p. 284;
18. Bolin 1958, Table 6, p. 347; 19. Bolin 1958, Table 6, p.
347; 20. Bolin 1958, Table 6, p. 347 and Robertson 1956,
Table on p. 284; 21. Bolin 1958, Table 6, p. 347; 22. Bolin
1958, Table 6, p. 347 and Robertson 1956, Table on p. 284;
23. NC 1979, 237-9;
24. Robertson 1956, Table on p. 284; 25. Robertson 1956,
Table on p. 284; 26. Bolin 1958, Table 6, p. 247 and Robertson 1956, Table on p. 284; 27. Robertson 1956, Table on p.
284; 28. Bolin 1958, Table 6, p. 348; 29. Bolin 1926, p. 185;
30-35. Bolin 1958, Table 6, pp. 349-50; 36. Metcalf 1979; 37.
Bolin 1958, Table 6, p. 350.
In order to discover whether the Bargercompascuum or
the Uitgeest hoard is atypical in its composition among
other hoards ending with Commodus, both were compared to a great number of similar finds right across Europe. Bolin's investigations in this field were the main
source in this work. 37
In fig. 28 the percentages of pre-ny AD denarii in each
of 37 hoards are represented. Here there is a striking
answer to our question, in that the Uitgeest hoard
proves to be exceptional. In the hoards shown in the
diagram, there is a high proportion of first-century denarii, not only within but also outside the imperial
37 Bolin 1926.
149
border. A percentage of 30 or more is common within

Roman territory, 38 while hoards in Free Germany (for
example, 31.2% in Hannover, Germany) correspond
with Bargercompascuum's 31.6%. That Gotland
reaches less than 16% is only to be expected, as is the
mere 2% of Poland, even further from the Limes; but
Poland still scores four times as high as Uitgeest.
In order to discover whether hoards with latest dated
coins issued under Septimius Severus (some 20 to 30
years after Commodus) presented a different picture,
and may be one resembling that of the Uitgeest hoard,
the diagram fig. 29 was drawn up. It shows 29 hoards
with latest dated coins of Septimius Severus (AD 193
211). Without exception, there are still plenty of firstcentury denarii in these hoards, even if the overall percentages are slightly reduced. So the question remains:
why should Uitgeest be so out of step?
As figs. 28 and 29 show, we find high percentages of
first-century coins in hoards closing with Commodus
and Septimius Severus, both within and outside the
Roman Empire. Besides, we read in Zedelius' publications39 that a number of fourth- and fifth-century
hoards outside the Empire were found to contain a high
percentage of first- and second-century coins. May we
now conclude that in the late second century such a
high proportion of first-century coins were still in circulation, both within and outside the Empire? As will
be made clear below, we may certainly not.
Zedelius' investigations revealed that outside the Roman
Empire first- and second-century denarii were still in
use by the fourth and fifth centuries. He infers this
from the great degree of wear, which they must have
incurred in Germania. Moreover, we know that the
Germani had a preference for coins of high-standard
silver, which explains why the plated antoniniani were

generally not accepted as currency.
Within the Empire, however, devaluations had taken
place under Nero 40 and Trajan41 by means of lowering
the denarii's silver content while simultaneously attempting to withdraw the denarii of higher intrinsic
value. Bolin draws attention to the fact that hoards
within the Roman Empire that close with coins of the
late-first century and the second are only sporadically
found to contain pre-Neronic denarii.
The large Jever hoard (found in 1850) originally comprised over 3000 denarii, of which Zedelius42 succeeded
in tracking down and identifying 561; among these, the
latest dated coin had been issued by Septimius Severus,
and 71% dated before AD 117. In his discussion of this
hoard he states: 'anderersetts wird man auch nicht sagen
konnen, er (the hoard of Jever) sei typisch fur reichsromisches Gabiet. Jenseits der Grenzen, im Imperium,
durften in dieser Zeit, zu Beginn des j. Jhs., uber hundert
Jahre alte Silbernominale weitgehend aus dem Geldumlauf
verschzvunden gewesen sein'.43 Sutherland too reaches the
conclusion that within the Empire 'the bulk of the silver
coinage circulating at the time of Aurelius seems to
have been made up of the issues of Trajan, Hadrian,
and Antoninus Pius'.44
Thus we may assume that first-century denarii circulated only rarely within the Roman Empire in the late-second century. Then how it is to be explained that within
the Empire the hoards of around AD 200 continue to
yield high proportions of first-century denarii? Zedelius45 attributes the disappearance of the silver coinage
of higher intrinsic value to its withdrawal by the authorities not only under Nero and Trajan but apparently
also later; he points out that this led to hoarding of the
38 Robertson (1956), who published fourteen hoards closing

with Commodus and found in Roman-occupied Britain, also
remarks on the high proportion of first-century coins (p. 270):
'It is noticeable that there was still much Flavian, particularly
Vespasianic, silver available for hoarding. Indeed, so persistently and abundantly does Flavian silver occur in hoards
throughout the whole of the second century, even the latter
half of it, that the survival of this silver in general circulation
and often in very good condition throughout that century
must be accepted as a fact'.
39 Zedelius 1974.
40 Bolin 1958, 59.
41 Cassius Dio Cocceianus, Historia Romana, 78: 15. See
also Bolin 1958, 57-8.
42 Zedelius 1982.
43 Zedelius 1982, 345.

44 Sutherland (1937, 31) discusses among other things the
English hoards which close with Emperor Hadrisn to Marcus
Aurelius and remarks: 'In these (the hoards dating to Marcus
Aurelius' reign; Vons) the sprinkling of Nero's post-reform
issues is now very small, and even the coinage of Vespasian
appesrs much less frequently than before, being in most cases
greatly worn. The issues of Domitianus being still uncommon
as before, the bulk of the silver coinage circulating in the time
of Aurelius seems to have been made up of the issues of
Trajanus, Hadrianus and Antoninus Pius; the coinage of Aurelius himself can scarcely have been as extensive as that of his
predecessors, to judge from the hoards'.
45 Zedelius in a letter dated 25 IX 1984, for which I am
greatly indebted to him.
150
Fig. 29 Hoards of denarii with latest dated coin of Septimius

Severus, with percentages of pre-117 AD denarii within these
hoards.
Outside the Roman Empire: i. Germany: Hessen; 2. Germany: Jever; 3. Sweden: Skane; 4-8. Sweden: Gotland; 9-10.
Denmark: Bornholm; ii. Poland: Maciegowice; 12. Poland:
Eastern Prussia; 13. Poland: Pommern; 14. Poland: Strichlitz.
Within the Roman Empire: 15. Great Britain: Middlesex; 16.
G.B.: Dorset; 17. G.B.: York; 18. G.B.: Hampshire; 19. G.B.:
Denbigshire; 20. France: Haute Savoie; 21. France: Haute
Loiret; 22. France: Finistere; 23. France: Orne; 24. Hungary:
Tiszafoldvar; 25. Hungary: Menden; 26. Hungary: Miskolcz;
27. Hungary: Elek; 28. Hungary: Katajenon; 29. Syria.
Literature: i. Bolin 1958, Table 7, p. 351; 2. Zedelius 1982;
3. Bolin 1926, BL 5; 4. Bolin 1926, BH 83; 5. Bolin 1926, BH
loox; 6. Bolin 1926, BH 69; 7. Bolin 1926, BH 17; 8. Bolin
1926, BH 48; 9. Bolin 1926, BN 13; to. Bolin 1926, BN 17;
n. Bolin 1926, AV 50; 12. Bolin 1926, AN 44; 13. Bolin 1926,
AL 413; 14. Bolin 1926, AJ 303; 15-22. Bolin 1958, Tsble 7,
p. 351; 23. Bolin 1926, p. 162; 24-29. Bolin 1958, Table 7, p.
352.
The hoard found in Renkum in 1811 (JMP 47, 1960, 89-91)
has not been included herein although it does not contain any
pre-Hadrian coins. Only a small proportion of the original
collection of denarii have been preserved, and Professor A.N.
Zadoks-Josephus Jitta supposes that the most worn-down
specimens were melted down in the nineteenth century.
silver pieces, in accordance with Gresharn's Law which

states that 'Bad money drives out good money'.46 Even
today we see that the silver one guilder and the twoand-a-half guilder pieces of the 19505 and 19605, of
higher intrinsic value than today's silverless nickel
specimens, no longer circulate but remain by thousands
in piggy-banks, safes, and collections.
Having found that there were virtually no first-century
coins in circulation by the end of the second-century 'in
the Western part of the Roman Empire or just outside
its boundaries', 35 we conclude that the Uitgeest hoard

must be a merchant's working capital rather than a
hoarded family fortune, because it reflects the composition of late-second-century cash as used in trade within
the northwestern part of the Empire and just outside it.
The owner of the Uitgeest denarii must have had close
ties within the Empire.
On the other hand, we can now state that the Bargercompascuum 'merchant's purse' contained either its
owner's gradually accumulated capital (which does not
necessarily make him a merchant) or his ready money
kept especially for trading with Free Germany, and that
thus to some degree it represents the coinage current in
late-second-century Germania Libera.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
A special word of thanks is addressed to Dr J.P.A. van

der Vin (Royal Coin Cabinet) and P.J. Woltering (ROB)
46 Gresham's Law says that higher standard coins ought to
disappear: firstly, by export; secondly, by hoarding; and
thirdly, by melting down.
151
who contributed to the present article by furnishing

ideas and discussing specific problems. I am grateful to
them and to Professor W.A. van Es (ROB) for their critical reading and improvements to the text, which have
contributed to its clarity and readability. In particular I
am indebted to Professor E.H.P. Cordfunke of the
Netherlands Energy Research Foundation at Petten.
Due to his research it transpired that the denarii from
Uitgeest were not plated at all, but had undergone an
amazing metamorphosis.47
Thanks are also due to Dr J.A. Brongers (ROB), G.J.
Rombout (ROB), and to Dr. J. Umans of the Central

Laboratory of the Foundry and Steelworks at IJmuiden, for their efforts to simplify the time-consuming
work of splitting the corrosion layers from the cores.
The drawings were made by H.S. Simon (ROB);
V.V.M. Stroscia typed the manuscript and the text was
translated by Alexandra Bardet.
Any errors or misconceptions are, as usual, solely the
author's responsibility.
47 Cordfunke 1983; Vons 1983.
REFERENCES
Bolin, St., 1926: Tynden av romerska mynt i det fna Germanien, Lund.
Metcalf, Wr.E., 1979: A Roman Hoard of Cyprus, Numismatic

Chronicle 139, 26-36.
Bolin, St., 1929: Die Funde romischer und byzantinischer

Miinzen im freien Germanien, BRGK 19, 86-145.
Robertson, A.S., 1956: The Numismatic Evidence of Romano-British Coin Hoards, in: Essays in Roman Coinage presented to Harold Mattingly, London, 262-85.
Bolin, St., 1958: State and Currency in the Roman Empire to

300 AD, Uppsala.
Christ, K., 1960: Antike Mimzfunde
Heidelberg (Vestigia, 3).
Siidwestdeutschlands,
Cordfunke, E.H.P., 1983: Physico-chemical Investigations of

Roman Coins, Helinium 23, 40-2.
Es, W.A. van, 1960: De Romeinse muntvondsten uit de drie
noordelijke provincies: een periodisering der relaties, Groningen.
Es, W.A. van, 1967: Wijster, a Native Village beyond the Imperial Frontier, Groningen. Also in: Palaeohistoria ii, 1965.
Es, W.A. van, 1980: De Romeinen in Nederland, 3rd ed., Bussum.
Gansebeke, P. van, 1955: Les tresors monetaires d'epoque romsine en Belgique, Revue beige de numismatique 101, 1-44.
Robertson, A.S., 1971: Roman Imperial Coinage in the Hunter

Cabinet, II, Oxford.
Sutherland, C.H.V., 1937: Coinage and Currency in Roman
Britain, Oxford.
Vons, P., 1977: The Identification of Heavily Corroded
Roman Coins found at Velsen, BROB 27, 139-63.
Vons, P., 1983: Metamorphosed Roman Denarii from Velsen
(N.H.), Helinium 23, 13-45.
Wroltering, P.J., 1982: Archeologische kroniek van Hollsnd
over 1981, I: Noord-Holland, Holland 14, 193-228.
Woltering, P.J., 1983: Archeologische kroniek van Holland
over 1982, I: Noord-Holland, Holland 15, 199-239.
Gelder, H.E. van/J.S. Boersma 1967: Munten in muntvondsten, Bussum (Fibulareeks, 35)
Zadoks-Josephus Jitta, A.N., 1956: The Roman Hoard from

Bargercomp3scuum (Drenthe), Palaeohistoria 5, 89-91.
Haalebos, J.K., 1976: Munten uit Maurik, OML 57, 197-226.
Zedelius, V., 1974: Spdtkaiserzeitlich-volkerwanderungszeitliche Keramik und romische Miinzen von Laatzen, Ldkr. Hannover, Hildesheim (Miinstersche Beitrage zur Vor- und Friihgeschichte, 8/Materialhefte zur Ur- und Friihgeschichte
Niedersachsens, 8).
Jongkees, J.H., 1950: Romeinse muntvondsten van Vechten

en Arentsburg, JMP 37, 1-26.
Laser, R., 1980: Die romischen und fruhbyzantimschen Fundmiinzen auf dem Gebiet der DDR, Berlin (Schriften zur Urund Friihgeschichte, 28).
Mattingly, H., 1923-40: Coins of the Roman Empire in the
British Museum, I-IV, London.
Mattingly, H./E.A. Sydenham 1923-62: The Roman Imperial
Coinage, I-111, London.
152
Zedelius, V., 1982: Der grosse rornische Denarschstz von

Jever (1850), Niedersschsen, Studien zur Sachsenforschung 3,
315-55.
Zwikker, W., 1941: Studien zur Markussdule, I, Amsterdsm
(Archaeologisch historische bijdragen Allard Pierson Stichting, i).

A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii From Uitgeest / P. Vons

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I

Annales de la Societe royale d'archeologie de

Rijksdienst voor de Monumentcnzorg, Zeist

BERICHTEN VAN DE RIJKSDIENST

Berichten van de Rijksdienst

Proceedings of the State Service

jaargang 37, 1987

ROB, afdeling Grafische Productie

J.H. van der Werff, Roman Anaphoras at

W. J.H. Verwers, North Brabant in Roman and

H.F. Hamerow, Anglo-Saxon Settlement

Hemmy Clevis, Nijmegen: Investigations into

H.M. Zijlstra-Zweens, The Sword of the Voorst:

A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded

Keywords: excavation, hoard, heavily corroded, new

Fig. i Situation of Uitgeest and the Roman Limes,

p. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest

Summary of Roman denarii from Uitgeest 1981/83

Antoninus Pius (138-161)

Marcus Aurelius (161-180)

287 (Divus Antoninus

Antoninus Pius or Marcus

* Latest dated coin: Commodus RIC 135, AD 186.

Fig. 2 Uitgeest; i. Calais IV sandy beach deposit; 2. peat; 3.

All of the denarii were severely corroded (fig. 4) and

plied successfully both to denarii and Roman asses.

4 A plated denarius has a base-metal core (mostly copper or

CONDITION OF THE COINS

p. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest

Fig. 3 Number of specimens averaged per reign year.

Fig. 5 ... stuck together in some cases ...

Fig. 4 ... severely corroded ...

Fig. 6 After splitting: ... two 'corrosion plaques' and the

p. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest

Fig. 7 'Core' (ref. no. 1073, J?/C M.A. 677).

Fig. 8 Inside of corrosion plaque from core fig. 7 (negative

p. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest

Identification from the core (ref.no. 376, RIC A.P.

Fig. lob (Ref. no. 376, RIC A.P. 177).

ANTONINVS A V G . PIVS.P .P.TR.P.XII

Ref.no. 1115, RIC M.A. 711 (obverse).

Ref.no. 1115, RIC M.A. 711 (reverse).

p. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest

CLEANING THE COINS

As mentioned earlier, the method developed for the

... wafer-thin platelets ... (ref.no. 515, RIC A.P.

>. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest

Fig. 13 Ref.no. 615, RIC A.P. 300.

Ref.no. 613, RIC A.P. 360.

p. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest

Ref.no. 759, RIC A.P. 4293.

AVRELIVS CAESAR AUG.P. II F.

corroded denarii will also come to light (corroded coins

being kept under water, while only a small proportion

A NEW CLEANING METHOD

In cleaning the denarii and asses from Velsen it had

Fig. 16 Section of a corroded denarius.

A Top layer: the thick outer layer of corrosion (fig. 17).

p. VONS / A Second-Century Roman Hoard of Corroded Denarii from Uitgeest

Fig. 17 Corrosion layer A, thick outer layer.

coin's core, and mostly had to be broken away forcibly, in

'Pock-marked' Ref.no. 983, RIC M.A. 436.

never amounted to more than a few tenths of a millimetre.