As (coin)
The
as (plural
asses) was a
bronze, and later
copper,
coin used during the
Roman Republic and
Roman Empire, named after the homonymous weight unit (12
unciae = ounces), but not immune to weight depreciation.
The as was introduced in ca.
280 BC as a large
cast bronze coin during the Roman Republic, the word
as meaning unit or unity. In addition to the as, fractions of the as, the
bes (2/3),
semis (1/2),
quincunx (5/12),
triens (1/3),
quadrans (1/4),
sextans (1/6),
uncia (1/12, also a common weight unit), and
semuncia (1/24), as well as multiples of the as, the
dupondius (2),
sestertius (2.5),
tressis (3),
quadrussis (4),
quinquessis (5), and
denarius (10), were produced. During the Republic, the as featured the bust of
Janus on the obverse, and the prow of a
galley on the reverse. The as was originally produced on the libral and then the reduced libral weight standard. The bronze coinage of the Republic switched from being cast to being struck as the weight decreased. During certain periods, no asses were produced at all.
Following the
coinage reform of August in
23 BC, the as was struck in reddish pure copper (instead of bronze), and the
sestertius (2.5 asses) and dupondius (2 asses) were produced in a golden-colored alloy of bronze known by numismatists as
orichalcum. 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 quadrans being produced infrequently, and then not at all by the time of
Marcus Aurelius.
*
Roman currency*
Roman finance
