By the end of the Second Punic War Roman coinage had as sumed its lasting form. The denarius was without question the master coin. Second to it in importance came a second silver piece, three-fourths of it in weight, the "Victoriate" or "Victory coin," struck for foreign trade in the Western Mediterranean, South Italy and the Adriatic. It may only have been introduced just before or during, the Second Punic War. The As, now reduced to one ounce, was a tenth of the denarius in value. Pliny has recorded a change of tariff to sixteen to the denarius in the Second Punic War, while admitting that the value of ten to one still held in the pay of the soldiers. As the coins themselves only show the new value much later, we are uncertain how far Pliny can be trusted. There was no gold coinage except in case of emergency.
The political supremacy of Rome in Italy afterward found ex pression in the supersession of all other Italian coinages, except a few of token copper in the South, by the Romans. This change did not take place very early or all at once—and favoured allies, such as Naples or Velia, probably coined in their own name longer than the Latin allies, with their closer bond with Rome : it was probably hardly complete before the end of the Second Punic War.
In the great period of expansion after 200 B.C., denarius and vic toriate went out to conquer the markets of the world. In the West progress was rapid, but the East, with its abundance of coinage, offered a successful resistance. Rome in her Eastern wars learned to use Eastern currencies, gold staters of Macedon and silver tetradrachms of Athens or Asia, and brought them into her own service : it was thus that she could dispense with any gold coinage and be content with a silver piece of less value than a shilling. About 135-13o B.C. the value of the denarius was raised to 16 asses, in place of 10, and, after a period in which the two values conflicted, that of 16 won the day (c. loo B.c.). The great Social War of 91-89 B.C., when the Italian allies almost overthrew Rome in their eagerness to share her citizenship, led to confusion and inflation. The policy of the Gracchi, with its demands for land settlement and foreign colonies, had necessitated great issues of money, and, as early as 122 B.C. the senate had begun to inflate, by issuing base, plated denarii among the good ones. This policy was now vastly extended : the silver became so mixed and impure, that no one could tell what he really possessed. To add to the confusion the As was reduced from 1 oz. to 4 oz. ; and, finally, in 87 B.C., the state declared itself bankrupt by ordering that all debts should be cleared at five shillings in the pound (quadrans for As). A praetor, M. Marius Gratidianus, attempted to find a remedy by sorting out the good denarii from the bad : at the same time, a new coinage of pure silver (theoretically pure, at least) was issued. Sulla, however, on his return and triumph,
butchered M. Marius and annulled his policy, insisting that the money of the state must be accepted at its issue value: but, in future, the senate used its powers with strict moderation. The bronze coinage was allowed to sink into the background. The only further development of the Republic was the introduction of a permanent gold coinage by Julius Caesar, after previous experiments by Sulla.
The control of the coinage was in the hands of the senate, acting for the sovereign people; major changes had to be sanc tioned by the passing of special laws. The responsibility for the striking of coins was normally entrusted to a special commission of three, "tresviri aere argento auro flando feriundo," but also, if less commonly, to other officials, such as quaestors or curule aediles. Roman coins were issued not only at Rome, but also at other mints in Italy and, later, in the provinces. But it is prob able that these outside coinages were not at first administered in any way differently from the home and that issues outside Italy oc cur but rarely until the time of Sulla. In the period after Sullathese provincial issues became more and more important and less and less dependent on the senate. The generals abroad assumed the right to issue money to their troops in their own name and the senate raised no objection. In the end this military coinage of the provinces gave birth to the imperial coinage.
Roman coinage was historical in a sense in which modern coin age is not, but it is only late in the Republic that this element becomes strong. Rome began by placing on the obverse of her denarius the helmeted head of Roma, the protectress of the city and on the reverse, the Heavenly Twins, Castor and Pollux, who "fought so well for Rome" at the battle of Lake Regillus in 494 B.C. These types, with their somewhat general reference to Rome's divine protectors, remained in vogue for more than a hundred years. Variety first began in the reverse types, when figures of deities driving chariots began to replace the Dioscuri—Diana or Victory driving a biga or Jupiter or Apollo driving a quadriga. From about the time of the Gracchi an even greater freedom begins to prevail, and, extends to the obverse as well. In the succeeding period the types vary from issue to issue, with rare and passing revivals of traditional types. The choice is dictated by two considerations (I) the family pride of the moneyer, who selected incidents of interest from his family history (2) a natural interest in current politics, which leads the moneyer to select such types as can be brought into relation with current events.