Aes rude
Encyclopedia
Aes rude was an ingot
of bronze
used as a sort of proto-currency
in ancient Italy during the gradual transition from bartering to the use of round coinage made from precious metals.
The Italian economy of the time (late middle first millennium BC) was based on a bronze standard (unlike the silver standard
s in use in contemporary Greece
, the Aeginetan standard and its competitor the Attic standard). Consequently, unworked lumps of bronze were used as both primitive ingot
s and as primitive coins, facilitating trade across the peninsula and paving the way for the first true Roman
ingots, the aes signatum
, which, in turn, was the precursor of the first Roman true coinage, the aes grave
.
The earliest surviving piece of aes rude dates from the early 8th century BC and as late as the late 4th century BC, and was cast in central Italy. It is, simply, bronze, shaped vaguely like a lumpy ingot. Only later on did it become usual to mark these lumps and, eventually, make them into a standard shape (the round, thin disk-shape still in use today). The aes rude, being inorganic and unworked, is notoriously difficult to authenticate; forgery
is absurdly easy and only a very few pieces are known to be genuine, making numismatic research difficult (though not quite impossible) for this period of Italian history
.
Ingot
An ingot is a material, usually metal, that is cast into a shape suitable for further processing. Non-metallic and semiconductor materials prepared in bulk form may also be referred to as ingots, particularly when cast by mold based methods.-Uses:...
of bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
used as a sort of proto-currency
Currency
In economics, currency refers to a generally accepted medium of exchange. These are usually the coins and banknotes of a particular government, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation's money supply...
in ancient Italy during the gradual transition from bartering to the use of round coinage made from precious metals.
The Italian economy of the time (late middle first millennium BC) was based on a bronze standard (unlike the silver standard
Silver standard
The silver standard is a monetary system in which the standard economic unit of account is a fixed weight of silver. The silver specie standard was widespread from the fall of the Byzantine Empire until the 19th century...
s in use in contemporary Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, the Aeginetan standard and its competitor the Attic standard). Consequently, unworked lumps of bronze were used as both primitive ingot
Ingot
An ingot is a material, usually metal, that is cast into a shape suitable for further processing. Non-metallic and semiconductor materials prepared in bulk form may also be referred to as ingots, particularly when cast by mold based methods.-Uses:...
s and as primitive coins, facilitating trade across the peninsula and paving the way for the first true Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
ingots, the aes signatum
Aes signatum
Aes signatum consisted of cast lumps of bronze of measured quality and weight, embossed with a government stamp, used as currency in Rome and central Italy before the introduction of the aes grave in the mid 4th century BC. When exactly they were first made is uncertain...
, which, in turn, was the precursor of the first Roman true coinage, the aes grave
Aes grave
Aes grave is a term in numismatics indicating bronze cast coins used in central Italy during the 4th and 5th centuries BC, whose value was generally indicated by signs: I for the as, S for semis and pellets for unciae...
.
The earliest surviving piece of aes rude dates from the early 8th century BC and as late as the late 4th century BC, and was cast in central Italy. It is, simply, bronze, shaped vaguely like a lumpy ingot. Only later on did it become usual to mark these lumps and, eventually, make them into a standard shape (the round, thin disk-shape still in use today). The aes rude, being inorganic and unworked, is notoriously difficult to authenticate; forgery
Forgery
Forgery is the process of making, adapting, or imitating objects, statistics, or documents with the intent to deceive. Copies, studio replicas, and reproductions are not considered forgeries, though they may later become forgeries through knowing and willful misrepresentations. Forging money or...
is absurdly easy and only a very few pieces are known to be genuine, making numismatic research difficult (though not quite impossible) for this period of Italian history
History of Italy
Italy, united in 1861, has significantly contributed to the political, cultural and social development of the entire Mediterranean region. Many cultures and civilizations have existed there since prehistoric times....
.
Sources
- http://dougsmith.ancients.info/feac56cas.html
- Lloyd, J. (trans.), Orrieux, C. & Schmitt Pantel, P., A History of Ancient Greece, Oxford, 1999, Blackwell Publishers, Ltd.
- Haeberlin E.: Aes Grave, Das Schwergeld Roms und Mittelitaliens einschließlich der ihm vorausgehenden Rohbronzewährung, Halle 1910
- Sydenham, Edward A.: Aes Grave A Study of the Cast Coinages of Rome and Central Italy. London, Spink, 1926
- Head Barclay V. Historia Nummorum, a Manual of Greek Numismatic, London, 1911
- Gaius Plinius Secundus (Pliny the Elder): Naturalis Historia, XXXIII, XIII, 43 (antea rudi usos Romae Timaeus tradit).