The identification of heavily corroded Roman coins found at Velsen: an attempt at a closer dating of the early Roman settlement 'Velsen I' / P. Vons

8/9/2019 The identification of heavily corroded Roman coins found at Velsen: an attempt at a closer dating of the early Rom…

1/34

Berichljen van de

Rijksdienst

voor

het

Oudheidkundig odemonderzoek


2/34


3/34

A F K O R T I N G E N / A B B R E V I A T I O N S

AW N Archeologische Werkgem eenschapvoor

Nederland (Archaeological Work Group of the

Netherlands)

BABesch. Bulletin van

d e

V ereeniging

tot

bevorderingder

kennis van de) antieke beschaving

BAI Biologisch-Archaeologisch

Instituut

Groningen

BH Brabantsheem

j

Banner

Jahrbiicher,

BfKjNOB

Bulletin van deln

Koninklijke)

Nederland s ch)efn) Oudheidkundige fn) Bond

BRGK Bericht der Romisch-Germanischen Kommission

BROB

Berichten van de Rijksdienst voor het Oudheidkun-

dig Bodemonderzoek

IPP Albert Egges van Giffen Instituut voor Pre- en

Protohistorie

Amsterdam

JMP Jaarboek voor Munt-

en Penningkunde

JNG Jahrbuchfur Numismatik

und Geldgeschichte

JRGZM

Jahrbuch des Romisch-Germamschen

Zentralmu-

seums Mainz

NAFN Neue A usgrabungen und

Forschungen

in

Niedersachsen

NAP Nieuw Amsterdams Peil (Dutch D atum L evel)

NKNOB Nieuwsbulletin van de Koninklijke Nederlandse

Oudheidkundige Bond

NN U

Nachrichtenaus

Niedersachsens Urgeschichte

OML Oudheidkundige medede

e)

lingen

uit het

Rijksrftu-

seum van Oudheden te Leiden

RMO

Rijksmuseum

van

Oudheden Leiden

ROB Rijksdienst voor het Oudheidkundig Bodemon-

derzoek, Amersfoort

VORG

Verslagen en mededeelingen van de Vereeniging tot

beoefeningvan Overijsselschreglengeschiedenis

N O O T

Het aardewerk is op schaal

1:4

afgebeeld, tenzij anders aan-

gegeven; de profielen van het handgevormde aardewerk zijn

wit, die van gedraaid aardewerk

zijn

zwart getekend.

Unle ss otherwise stated, the po ttery is drawn to a scale of

1:4;

th e

profiles

of

hand-made pottery

ar e

represented

in

white,

of

wheel-thrown pottery

in

black.


4/34

Staatsuitgeverij- s-Gravenhag e ISBN 9 0

12

0


5/34

Berichten van de R ijksdien st

voor het

O udheidkundig

Bodem onderzoek

Proceedings of the State Service

for Archaeological Investigations

in the Netherlands

jaargang

27,

1977


6/34

REDACTIE

W.A. van Es,

J.F.

va n

Regteren Altena,

P. J.

Woltering

e n W . C . Mank

Adres

:

Rijksdienst voor

h et

Oudheidkundig

Bodemon derzoek, Kleine Haag

2,

3811

HE Amersfoort,

Nederland


7/34

I N H O U D W.J.H.

Verwers

North

Brabant

in

Roman

and

Early-Medieval

Times II: The

Merovingian

Cemetery of

Alphen

Reconsidered 165

W.A. van Es and A.D. Verlinde Overijssel in

Roman

and

Early Medieval

Times 7

Richard Hodges

Trade and

Urban Origins

in

Dark Age England: An Archaeological Critique

LJ.A.M.

van den

Hurk

The Tumuli

from

the of the

Evidence 191

Roman Period

of

Esch Province

of North

Bra-

bant III 91 H. Stoepker Medieval Parish Churches in

North-

eastern North

Brabant

and

Limburg

I 217

P. Vons The Identification of Heavily Corroded

Roman Coins

Found at

Velsen 139

H.J.M.

Burgers

A

Pottery-Drawing Device

237


8/34


9/34

P. VONS

The

Identif ication

of

H eavily Corroded Ro m an

Coins

Found

at

V elsen:

An

attempt

at a closer dating of the early Roman settlement 'Velsen I'*

I N T R O D U C T I O N

During 1972 members

of the

AW N Velsen group

1

discov-

ered

a new

site

of

Roman archaeological

finds in

Velsen

(fig. i),

i

km

southeast

of the

known site

of

Roman

refuse

near

the

Velsen tunnel under

the

North

Sea

Canal. The ter ra sigillata foun d there might date the

beginning

of

this

ne w

site

to the

time

of Tiberius;

potters'

stamps w ere found from the region of Arezzo

2

of Cn.

Ateius, Xanthus,

and

others. Originally

th e

site

was dated c. AD 15-30, bu t some later pieces of terra

sigillata pointed

to the

possibility

of

Roman presence

between AD

20-5

5.

3

The above-mentioned new site is called Velsen I in

order to distinguish it chronologically from the more

northw estern site Velsen II, which, also on the grounds

of terra

sigillata,

4

dates from the Claudian period. Since

1972 the AW N Velsen group, together with

th e

IFF,

5

have

undertaken excavations

on the new

site Velsen

I. Abun-

dant finds have appeared and many rows of wooden

posts and post-discolorations have been unearthed.

Until

now no

castellum

h as

been located

but a

configu-

ration of row s of posts has been exposed wh ich in dicate

that a

Roman harbour

had

existed

on the

bank

of the

ancient cou rse of the R iver

IJ.

Roman water-wells found

in

the vicinity of the harbour strengthened the suspicion

that

a Roman settlement could not be very far away.

6

C O I N S

From

time

to

time bronze

and

copper coins were foun

among other Roman finds. These coins

are so

corrode

that they h ave become

'lumps'

of corrosion, and

'lump

was a word commonly used by members of the work

group. A few denarii, also heavily corroded, came

light.

Excavations near Velsen

II in

1964

and

1970

in the

sam

way produced heavily oxidized coins.

In

1972, whe

th e

first

coin 'lumps' made their appearance and arretin

sigillata also appeared, it was of especial importan ce

know in which period to place the coins to support and

complete the data based upon the finds of terra sigillat

Perhaps a more accurate dating might be made a

Velsen I. The

first coin

'lumps'

found

in

1972 were sen

to the

Royal Coin Cabinet,

The Hague, for

identific

tion. Unfortun ately,

th e

answer

w as

negative. Corrosio

had damaged t he coins so badly

that

they were unident

fiable. It w as

assumed

that

they were Roman asses fro

th e

first

or second century.

7

I D E N T I F I A B L E COINS

The disappointment of

failing

to

identify

these coi

faded

after some years. In 1973, however a perfect u nd

maged aureus was found,

8

struck under Augustus 14-1

* The R oma n coins foun d at Velsen II are discussed in an

Appendix (pp . 158 ff. ) .

1 Archeologische W erkgemeenschap voor Nederland

(Archaeological W ork Group

for the

Netherlands) .

2 From Arezzo

or a

Gallic branch.

3 Glasbergen/Van Lith 1977,

14.

4 Glasbergen/Van Lith

1977, 5;

Glasbergen a.o. 1974;

Bogaers/Riiger 1974, 30 ff . ; Vons 1974, 64, 68 (Appendix II

5 Albe rt Egges va n Giffen Institute fo r Pre- an d Protohi

tory, University

o f

Amsterdam.

6

Schimmer 1977.

7

Information provided

by the

Royal Coin Cabinet,

12.7.

and 21.8.72.

8

No. 7 on the coin list.

139


10/34

B C in Lyon

( L u g d u n u m ; R I C

327). Bu t such coins

remained in circulation throughout th e Roman Empire,

so

that this find, in spite of its magnificence, cannot

help

to

date Velsen

I.

Depending upon

th e

site

and the

sort of metal, less corroded coins sometimes appea red,

an d

thus research

w as

undertaken

on 9

September

1973

on a corroded plated denarius; it was identified during

research but it

disintegrated

after th e

investigations

had

been carried out.

9

A small, barely corroded coin, found

in

1976,

was

identi-

fied by the Royal Coin Cabinet as Celtic, possibly

minted in England, and dated pre-first century

A D

1 0

(photographs

la

and ib) .

N E W M E T H O D S O F

R E S E A R C H

As said above,

at the

Velsen

II

excavations

in 1964 and

1970

'lumps'

of corrosion were

also

found. W ith some

luck, two or three coins were separated from the

ing of corrosion and this layer was partly instr

in

identifying

the

find.

A

successful method s

be to

immerse

th e

coin

'lump'

in hot

water a

expansion had taken place, to

open

it. In th

of 1975

this method was applied to a lightly

plated denarius.

The

result

w as

startling (ph

2) .

11

The denarius was minted in the reign of

c. AD

13 (RIC

355 ) . As a result of this succe

that had been discarded because research w as

to be fruitless were examined once again.

The corroded 'lumps' were to be cut open and

was

to be

extracted from between

th e

front

layers of corrosion, even at the risk of sacrific

remained of the coin.

A coin

'lump '

consists of two parts:

a a coin or the rem ains of one.

b the coating, sometimes thick, of oxide in w

coin rests.

9 No. 6 on the

coin list.

10 No. 61 on the coin list.

n No. n on the

coin list.

140


11/34

P.

V O N S /

The Identification of Heavily

Corroded

Roman

Coins

Found at Vels

Experience, an d the research already undertaken by the

Royal Coin Cabinet c onfirmed it, shows that with some

exceptions the remains of a coin almost never show

traces of relief, whilst the chance that the inside of the

corrosion

will

show traces

of

relief

is not

only greater,

but in

terms

of the

quality

of

those traces,

is far

better.

The

coin 'lump ' has, therefore,

to be

opened

in

such

a

way

that

th e

obverse

an d

reverse layers

of

corrosion

can

be

removed

in

their entirety.

Together

they form

one whole, for the edge of the coin is also covered by

a thick layer of corrosion. The first task is to split the

corrosion arou nd the edge of the coin by using a de ntist's

diamond-pow dered drill, cutting

one or two

millimetres

into the corro sion, not too deeply for fear of damaging

an y

letters

still

present

on the

edge

of the

corrosion layer.

W hen this has been

successfully

completed and after

much experimentation a good method w as found, the

coin

is

sometimes immersed

in hot

water

to

which

a

synthetic washing-lotion is added to remove one layer

of

corrosion.

There

was often little or nothing visible on the corrosion

layer because parts of the decomposed coin adhered to

it. Extremely careful and rigorously carried out cleaning

took place using dental equipment, a small bellows, and

a large magnifying glass

on a

stand, which left both

hands free. The layer of corrosion was laid upon a disc

covered with black velvet and illuminated with raked

lighting. Continuous turn ing and observatio n of the cor-

rosion layer resulted in distinguishing a certain

relief.

One disadvantage of this kind of observation occurred

in connection with letters which they appeared on the

corrosion, they did so in mirror image. Recognition of

the text was made easier by using the reverse lens from

the view finde r of a camera . The observation of a layer

of corrosion

is

time-consuming

an d

some remains were

often put to one side to be looked at a few days later

and then, suddenly, identified, in some cases by a small

relief.

F o u r

possibilities can now be con sidered:

1

The

coins seem

to

have been heated

by fire and

there

ar e neither

visible

traces on the corrosion layer s nor on

th e

coins

them selves; but a

countermark

ca n

sometimes

be detected.

2 W h e n

th e

corrosion layers were forming,

th e

coin

was

already worn and there was therefore little or no

relief

to

imprint

into th e

oxide.

3 There are clear visible traces of relief but the coin

cannot (as yet) be identified.

4 The often indistin ct traces of relief of an image and/

or text are recognizable and the coin can be identified.

W h en the coin can be identified (po int 4) it is im porta

to photograph it immediately because it is very brittle

and storage can damage an already vague image, and

identification becomes impossible. Photography requir

es the combination of a good lighting technique an

th e

correct placing

of the

corrosion layer.

In

order

reproduce

the

relief legibly

on the print -

for

the

mirr

image

is

photographed

- the

negative

is

reversed

at th

printing stage, thus producing a

print

which looks

though

th e

coin itself

had

been photographed.

Photographs 3a, 3b, and 3c are good examples of thi

technique. Photograph 33

is of a

layer

of

corrosion wit

out

raking

an d

little

or

nothing

is

visible. However, ph

tograph

3 b has

been taken with raked lighting;

the

neg

tive

was

reversed

and the

word

C A E S A R on one

side

an

an X on the other are now visible, whilst the head o

Emperor Augustus

is

jus t perceptible (first Altar Seri

R IC no. 36o).

12

Photographs 3b and 3c are the same print , but 3b h

black

lines drawn in to indicate the v isible traces

relief.

COIN

INDEX

In this way more than sixty Roman coin

'lumps'

ha

been identified and photographed. Each identified coin

has

been filed

in a

loose-leaf index w here

a ll

informatio

regarding location of site, references, and photograp

are to be found (photograph 4) .

Because of the difficulty in distinguishing uncle

reliefs, the photograph (where necessary) is covered

transparent paper

upon

which the relief of image and/

text has been drawn, so that the

object

as a whole c

be

quickly recognized.

COIN

LIST

A coin list

was

made based

upon th e

coin book.

T

coins are arran ged according to denomination, an

placed in chronological order (date of issue), whe re

th

information was available. Unidentified coins are liste

per denomination, and

their

numbers are recorded

the end of the list.

12 No. 22 on the coin list.

14


12/34

p. VONS

/

The Identification of Heavily Corroded Roman Coins

Found

at Velsen

L I S T

O F

R O M A N

C O I N S

F R O M V E L S E N

I

found in the Spaarndammerpolder during excavations

1972-

1976

The site is

archaeological ly

known as Velsen

I.

13

i

Abbreviations:

BMC H. Mattingly, Coins of the Roman Empire in the British

Museum, I: Augustus

to

Vitellius, London

1923,

repr.

1976.

Cr. M.H. Crawford, Roman Republican Coinage, 2 vols.,

Cambridge 1974.

FMRD H. Gebhart/K. Kraf t (eds.), Fundmunzen der rdmi-

schen Zeit

in

Deutschland,Abt I-VIII, vol.

i-,

Berlin.

RIC H. Mattingly/E.A. Sydenham, The Roman Imperial

Coinage, I: Augustus to Vitellius, London 1923, repr.

2 Concerning the dates of issue in the coin lis t:

a The dates are of the issue period of the coins. A fe

could not be directly identified and the mentioned d

those of the countermarks.

b The

dates

of the

'Lugdunum

(Altar)'

—

an d

'Mon

series

are the

same

as

those given

by

Wells (1972, 276

3 The letter 't' given

after

a refe rence number me

obverse and/or reverse of the coin are almost the sam

reference number,

however, not exactly. For exam

denarius of Marcus Antonius (no. 5 of the coin list) is m

as

RRC

I2i2t, because the number of the legion was

4 The photograph numbers do not necessarily co

with those

in the

coin list.

The

coin list

is in

chron

sequence, whereas the photograph numbers are in

of

the opening of the coins and their identification.

RRC

E.A. Sydenham,

The

Coinage

of the

Roman Republic,

London

1952.

13

For

the list of Roman coins found at Velsen II, see Appen-

di x (pp. 160 ff . ) .

No.

i

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

n

12

13

14

Issued

RE P UBLI C

denarii

80 BC

77 BC

57 BC

56 BC

32/3

I BC

32/31 B C

A U G U S T U S

aureus

I4/I2BC

denarii

30/27

BC

25/22

B C

25/22

BC

2BC-AD 14

2BC-AD 14

2BC-AD

14

2BC-AD 14

Money er/Emperor

L.

Procili

?

C. ConsidiNoniani

Ancus Marcius

Marcus Antonius

Marcus Antonius

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Reference

RRCjji

RRCjSot

RRC8 6

RRCyiy

RRCi2i2l

RRC 12121

RIC

327

RICH

RIC 306

f l /C 239 /265

K/C 355

,R/C350t

.R7C350

.R7C350

Remarks

plated; cmk.

plated

plated

plated

plated

plated

plated

plated; cmk.

plated

plated

plated

plated

plated

1 4 2


13/34

No.

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

4i

42

43

44

45

46

47

48

49

5 0

51

52

53

Issued

asses

p

IOBC

I O B C

I O B C

I O B C

I O B C

I O B C

I O B C

I O B C

AD

1

0-1 1

or

AD

14

A D IO-II

or

AD 14

semis

A D

10

—

rl

or AD 14

asses

AD IO-II

l O B C o r

AD IO-II

or

AD

14

idem

idem

idem

idem

asses

;

money ers

3-2

BC

3-2 BC

3-2

BC

3-2 BC

3-2 BC

3-2

BC

3-2 BC

3-2 BC

3-2 BC

3-2 BC

or

ear l ier

idem

idem

idem

idem

idem

idem

A D

14

or

earlier

idem

idem

idem

idem

Money er ; Emperor

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

series

M. Salvius Otho

P.

Lurius Agrippa

P.

Lurius

Agrippa

M.

Salvius Otho

M.

Maecilius

Tullus

P.

Lurius Agrippa

M. Salvius Otho

?

Otho or Tullus

p

2

p

p

p

p

p

?

5

p

?

?

Reference

RIC?

RIC^6o

RIC

360

7?7C36o

#70360

7?7C36o

RIC 360

7?7C36o

RIC 360

7 ?7 C3 6 8 / 3 7 0

RIC 368/370

7?7C

3

6

7

/37i

RIC 362

RIC 3 6 0/ 3 6 4 / 3 6 8 / 3 7 0

idem

idem

idem

idem

7?7Ci89

7?7Ci86t

R IC 1^ 6

7?7Ci89t

RIC

193/194

7?7Ci86

7?7Ci89

7?7C 1

87; 190/193

7?7C 1 89 /1 9 2 /1 9 3 or

194

7?7Ci86t

7?7Ci86t

RIdS6t

7?7Ci86t

7?7Ci86t

7?7Ci86t

7?7Ci86t

RIC?

RIC?

RIC?

RIC?

RIC?

Remarks

nemausus;half

altar

I

al tar I

altar I ; cmk.

altar I

altar

I

altar I

altar

I

altar

I ; cmk. (2 x )

al tar

li b

or lie

al tar

lib

or He

altar II

altar

Ila;

half

altarl,lla, lib, or lie;

half;

cmk.

al tar

I, Ila,

lib,

or

lie

al tar

I, Ila,

lib,

or

lie

al tar I,

Ila,

lib, or

He ;

cmk.

altar

I, Ila, lib, or lie

Tresviri

IVb

Tresviri IVb ; cmk.

Tresviri IVb; cmk.

Tresviri

IVb

Tresviri

IVb;

cmk.

Tresviri

IVb;

cmk.

Tresviri

IVb

; cmk.

(2 x )

Tresviri

IVb; cmk.

; half

Tresviri

IVb

Tresviri IVb or earlier; cmk.

14

Tresviri IVb or earlier

Tresviri IVb

or

earlier

Tresviri IVb or

earlier

Tresviri IVb or

earlier;

cmk.

Tresviri IVb or earlier; cmk. (2 x )

Tresviri

IVb or earlier

cmk.

:

AVG

cmk. : IM P

cmk.

:

rosette ; half

cmk. :

AVG

c m k , : A V ( ? )

14

Probably Tresviri

IVb,

according

to

C A E S A R countermark.

143


14/34

No. Issued

Moneyer /Emperor Reference

Remarks

A U G U S T U S or T I B E R I U S

asses

54 AD2l(?)

or earlier

55

AD

15-17

A U G U S T U S

quadrantes

56

3-2

BC

57 3-2BC

Augustus

or

early Tiberius

Augustus/Tiberius

RIC?

RIC?

cmk.: TIB in

circle

cmk.:

monogram

Germanicus;

half

G A L L I C IM I T A T I O N

quinarii

58 28-26 BC ?

59 ? ?

60 2BC-ADI4

?

C E L T I C

61

? ?

G A L L I E N U S

antoninianus

62 AD

260/26 8 Gallienus

imitation of

B M C

647? obv. head of

Augustus;

rev. Victory o n cis

6 a a n d 6 b )

imitation of

RIC 3 27

obv.

head

of Augustus; rev. bull

charging

7 a a n d 7 b )

R IC

352/354 obv .

head of Augustus;

rev. Victory figure

(photo

5a

and 5 b)

obv. horse with body of 2 concentric circle

bird with spread wings

or

swastika

(? )

(pho

and

ib)

plated (photo

9 3

and

g b)

U N I D E N T I F I E D C O I N S

I denarius

19

asses

15 half

asses

9

quadrantes

plated with few traces of a quadr iga; Republic or Augu stus

(meant ime

ident i f ied:

See No. 63)

of

which

te n

burned

of

which

tw o

burned;

four

with

no oxide;

plain without text

o r figure

nearly no oxide; three with fe w oxide

of

which

two

burned (poss ibly

i

semis)

one

half

R E C A P I T U L A T I O N

I AUREUS

14

DE NAR I I ,

ALL

PLATED,

TWO

WITH

M A R K S

74

ASSES,

OF WHICH

21HALF

AND

17

WITH

C M K .

I

SE M I S

11 Q U A D R A N T E S ,

OF

W HICH P O S S I B L Y

ONE

S E M I S

AND ONE

H A L F

I A N T O N I N I A N U S

3

GALLIC IM I T A T I O N S

i CELTIC

106 C O I N S

144


15/34

After closing the manuscript the fol lowing rornan 'coin-lumps' of Velsen I are opened and

identified:

No.

63

64

65

Issued

RE P UBLI C

denarii

I 3 8 B C

48 BC

32/31

BC

Money er/Emperor

Cn. Geli

C.VibiusC.F.

C.N.Pansa

Marcus Antonius

Reference

RRC948

RRCi2i2t

Remarks

plated

plated

plated

A U G U S T U S

denarii

6 6 i SB C

67 2 BC-AD 14

68 2 BC-AD

14

69 2 BC-AD 14

dupondii

jo AD

10-14

P. Petronius Turpilianus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

Augustus

RIC

104/107

RIC

3 50

RIC 350

3 5 0 / 3 5 6

7?7C 362 /36 6 /370

plated

plated

plated

asses

71

I O B C

Augustus altar I

RIC 19 7

asses ;

moneyers

series

7 2

6 B C

Volusus

Val e r i us

Messala

73 3-2 BC

M.

Salvius Otho

74

AD 15-17

Augustus/Tiberius

RIC?

75 AD 15-17 Augustus/Tiberius RIC?

Tresviri IVa cmk Caesar?

Tresviri

IVb

cmk.:

monogram

Germanicus

cmk.: monogram Germanicus ?

POSTUMUS

antomnianus

76

AD 259-268 Postumus

SeabyVolIV336at plated

145


16/34

p. V O N S

/ T he

Identification

of

Heavily Corroded Roman Coins Found

at

Velsen

A U R E U S A N D D E N A R I I, V E L S E N

A U R E U S

07 RIC 327

D E N A R I I

0 1 R R C 7 7 1

0 2

R R C 7 8 0

t y p e

0 3

R R C 8 8 6

04 RRC 919

05

R R C 1 2 1 2

t y p e

06 RRC 1212

t y p e

08 RIC 1

t y p e

0 9 R IC 3 0 6

1 0 RIC 239

or 265

11 RIC 355

12 RIC 350

t y p e

13 RIC 350

14

RIC 350

A N T O N I N I A N U S

6 2 R I C 5 7

V o l .

V

80

B C

77

B C

57 56

B C

32 31

BC

30 - 27

BC

25

- 22

BC

14

- 12

BC

2 BC-

AD

14

2

c o i n pos i t i v e l y i den t i f i ed

t y p e i d e n t i f i e d , b u t d i f f e re n t da tes pos s ib le

146


17/34

A E S ,

G A L L I C

A N D

C E L T I C C OI NS, V E L S E N

I

1 5 N e m a u s u s

1 6

A l t a r

I

17

18

19

20

2 1

22

23

2 4 A l t a r II b,c

25

26

2 7

A l t a r

I l a

28 A l t a r I Il a b c

2 9

30

31

32

3 3 T r e s v i r i I V b

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

4 2 T r e s v i r i

43

44

45

46

4 7

48

4 9 c m k . A U G

5 0

c m k .

I M P

5 1

cmk.

rosette

5 2

c m k .

A U G

5 3

c m k .

A V ?

5 4 c m k T I B

5 5

c m k . C A E S A R

5 6 q u a d r a n t e

57

5 8 G a l l i c i m i t a t n .

59

60

6 1

C e l t i c

f

o

r

•••

•

mm

m m m

10

mm

•

mm m

•

m i ma

mt

mm

m mi

8

l

mm

m mm

m

mm

• mm

l mm

• mm

6

mm

mm

mm

m mm

• mm

•

••

4

m m

mm*

•mm

-.

._.

Ml

•

HI

m

m

m

m m

m a m

m M

mi mm

C

2

m M

•

••

•

Ml

•Ml

••*

•

Mi

Mr MI

••

MX

1

0.

A C

2

D

4

6 8 10

m M

M M

Ml Ml

mi M

M

..

MI M

• MJ

Ml Ml

HI

Ml

•

12

14

M

Mi

•

Ml

M •

Ml Ml

_.

--

Ml •

••)

IB

M «H

m m m

m

»•

m

••

•mm

16

•mm

• ••

•

mm

• mm


18/34

C O U N T E R M A R K S O N R O M A N C O I N S , V E L S E N I

obverse :

com type :

23

28

34

35

37

38

39

40

iT B

I

/ /

\'

c

unidentifiable

unidentifiable

Altar

I

Altar

I

Altar

I or II

Altar

I or II

Tresviri

IVb

Agrippa

Tresviri IVb

Agrippa

Tresviri

IVb

Tullus

Tresviri

IVb

Agrippa

Tresviri IVb

Otho

Tresviri IVb

half

148


19/34

C O U N T E R M A R K S O N R O M A N

C O I N S ,

V E L S E N I

obverse:

obverse or reverse:

coin type :

42

46

49

51

52

53

5 4

Tresviri

IVb

15

Tresviri?

unknown

unknown

unknown; half

unknown

unknown

unknown

15 Probably Tresviri

IV

149


20/34

C O U N T E R M A R K S O N R O M A N C O I N S , V E L S E N I

obverse :

obverse or

reverse

: com

type

:

1 8

unidentifiable

unknown

probably

Tresviri;

half

Altar

I

47

2 small cmk's

unidentifiable

Tresviri?

Measurements countermarks

No.

23

23

28

3i

34

35

37

38

39

40

42

46

49

50

51

52

53

54

55

length

9 x

7 x

8 x

10 X

9 x

IO X

10 X

7

x

12

X

II X

18

x


21/34

p. V O N S / Th e Identification of Heavily Corroded Roman Coins Found at Velse

INDIC TION OF D TE FOR VELSEN I

From

a study of the coin list, a number of points can

be made which might indicate th e period in which th e

coins were lost, and thus indicate th e period to which

th e

Roman occupation

of

Velsen

I

belongs. Bearing

in

mind that the number of

identified coins, about sixty,

is quite small, caution is called for when dra win g conclu-

sions; primarily, because there are another forty coins

that cannot

be

identified.

16

However, it will be assumed that the unidentified coins

fi t into the scheme which has emerged from the study

of the identifiable material.

1 M ore than

one

hundred coins have been found

spread among a num ber of trenches and ditches on

terrain measuring c .

200

x

200

m (see fig. 2 Velsen I).

This

distribution demonstrates that

th e find

cannot pos-

sibly

be a treasure

trove.

2 Table II I shows a comparison between denarii

17

found in Velsen I with some other excava tions of sites

of th e

Augustan

age and a

slightly older period.

It is

striking that Velsen I contains a high percen tage of

denarii compared with

the total

number

of

found coins.

If

it is

assumed that, a, Table

III

lists excavations

i

various places where

all the

coins found were actual

handed

in

and,

b , th e

relationship between circulate

denarii and bronze coins in the

first

half of the fir

century AD did not sh arply alter in any one period, th

it

may be assumed

that

relatively more denarii were

circulation in Velsen an d Oberhausen

than

in

othe

places.

3

Table

IV gives an

interesting picture

of a

compar

son between

denarii

24

from

the Republic and from t

Augustan period.

A

third column

has

been added whic

shows whether

or not

denarii were found from

th

Tiberian period or later.

T A B L E I V

denarii

Velsen

I

Oberaden

18

Haltern

19

Oberhausen

20

Neuss-Sels

21

Hof he im

23

Republ ican

5

10

66

43

58

n

Augustan

9

2

43

i

19

-

Tiberian or

later

no

no

no

no

25

ye s

i

T A B L E

I I I

Velsen I

Oberaden

18

Haltern

19

Oberhausen

20

Neuss-Sels

21

Valkenbur g

2 2

03

C

OJ

•a

14

12

109

44

77

-

c

o

tH

86

2IO

2421

301

2718

50

• g

03

I

3

i

i

-

a

o

101

222

2533

346

2796

50

•a

14

5 -4

4-3

13

2.9

o

Hof he im

2 3

ii 688

699

1.6

16

Gebhart

a.o. 1956, 54: 'Nicht genug

kann unterstrichen

werden, dass

die

Berechnungen

nur dann

eine Bew eiskraft

haben

konnen,

wenn

eine

gniigend

grosse Zahl von Miinzen

vorliegt.'

17 Denarii including quinarii of the Republic, Augustan, and

early

Tiberian

periods (AD 14-21).

18 FMRD VI.5

Oberaden

no. 5081.

19 FMRD VI.4 Haltern no. 4057.

From a comparison of the denarii found

from

th

Republic and the Augustan Age (columns i and 2)

th e

places listed

in

Table

IV, it

does

not

follow

th

where more Augustan denarii were found

th e site

necessarily later. Should that have been

th e

case, Ho

heim with 100 denarii of the Republic would be olde

than Haltern with 61 Republican

and 39

Augustan

denarii. The two left-hand columns confirm that denar

from the time of the Republic were still in circulatio

during

the

first century

AD.

The third colum n is of

especial

importance for Velsen

In

view

of the

relatively high p ercentage

of the

circul

te d

denarii

in

Velsen

I

(see point

2) it

might

be

expect

that

had the

site been active during

th e

whole rule

20 FMRD

I. 7

Oberhausen 81

ff .

21

Strack

1904,

421.

22 De Weerd

1977.

23 Ritterling 1912,

113.

24 See note

17.

25

Except

for a denarius of Severus Alexander (FMRD

l.-

Augsburg-Oberhausen

no.

ybn).

15


22/34

p.

V O N S / T he

Ident i f icat ion

of

Heavily Corroded Roman Coins

Found at

Velsen

Tiberius

(AD 14-37),

then

at

least

o ne

Tiberius de narius

would hav e been found.

26

In

Velsen

I the

latest denarii were

of the

Pater Patriae

type (four examples) issued under Augustus

(2

B C - A D

14;

nos.

11-14

°

n

t he

coin

list).

4 Plating

It is noticeable that the percen tage of plated coins found

in

Velsen differs sharply from that

in

other sites.

The

following

comparison can be made:

T A B L E V

Total denarii Total plated

Velsen I

Oberaden

18

Haltern

19

Oberhausen

20

Neuss-Sels

21

Vindonissa

22

Hofheim

23

14

12

109

44

77

154

ii

14

-

15

17

12

23

>I

27

100

0

1 4

39

16

15

>I O

It is unclear why such a high percentage of plated d enarii

was found

at

Velsen. However,

it can be

stated that

some denarii gave

th e

impression

of not

being plated

and

that

a first

attempt

at

cutting open

th e

coins

was

halted

because

it was

thought that

th e

coins were solid.

Subsequently, it appeared that the plated coins had a

much thicker layer

of

silver oxide coating than

was the

case

with other coins,

an d

that coins categorized

as

solid

were

later opened

and all

found

to be

plated.

The question remains how denarii from other sites were

established as indeed being solid.

(The question

of

plating

is

further examined under

point 8 'Denarii ' in the addendum about Roman coins

from

Velsen II) .

5

Com parison with the 'Table of Bronze C oin Finds'

by C. W ells .

28

Table VI gives a concise survey of the

26

Van Es 1960,27:

'The

Tiberian

denarius

R IC 3

with Livia

(? )

as Pax on the reverse was one of the most common types

an d used without a break during th e entire reign of this

emperor . '

27

Ritterling

1912, 113. Of the five

Republican denarii ,

on e

was plated.

There is no

knowledge

of the

other

si x

from

th e

period of the Civi l W ars .

28

W ell s 1972,

268-9, Table

I:

Table

o f bronze coin finds.

'coin-find statistics from various sites' based on

by C.

W ells with which V elsen

I is

compar

regard

to the date of issue of the listed coins

VI, W ells comes to the following

conclusion

29

:

28

BC

: Nemausus la (small local issu

20 or soon after: Nemausus

Ib

19-15: Tresviri I, II

I o: Lugdunum

I

(Altar)

8 o r

soon after: Nem ausus

II

3-2:

Tresviri

IV

A D 10 —ii : Lugdunum

Ila

lib (Altar) ; N

III

14 :

Lugdunum

lie (A ltar)

Table VI

leads

to the

following observatio

Velsen I.

a

Nemau sus coins are rarely found.

b

The first issue of the Altar Series (Lugd

is relatively well represented , as is the Moneye

Tresviri IVb by the moneyers (III viri A.A.A

Lurius Agrippa, M . Salvius Otho, and M. M

Tullus.

The

impression

is

that Velsen

I was

occupie

a

period

when

both

th e

Altar Series

I and the

M

Series IVb were well represented among the

circulation.

Various authors point out that it

borne in mind

that

coins minted in Rome, tha

Moneyer s '

Series, would require a long

penetrate to the

northern outposts

of the

Em

reach

the

climax

of

their

circulation.

3 0

A

p

twenty-five

years

is

suggested.

W hen it can be seen, as at Vindon issa, that o

of 2696 bron ze coins, 4 76 (18 ) are of the Alt

I

and

48 8

(18 )

are of the M oneyers ' Series IV

the figures for Velsen I are respectively 17 an

then it may be assumed that both types of co

29 W el ls

1972,

276.

30

W ells gives

an

example

of Haltern an d

conclud

282) : 'Again we see that Italian issues showed no gre

in reaching Nor th Germany . '

Kraay 1962, 9: 'Es dauerte ungefahr ein

Viertel jah

bis

sie ein

wesentlicher Bestandteil

de s

Geldumlauf

Grenzgebieten wurden.'

152


23/34

p.

V O N S

/ T he Ident i f icat ion of Heavi ly Corroded Roman Coins Found at Velsen

T A B L E V I

Table of bronze coin finds*

Velsen I

Republ ican

Local Gall ic 3

Celtic i

I

II

N E M A U S U S II I

I or II

uncer tain

i

Total

i

I 8

L U G D U N U M

(Altar) Ila i

li b

He

IIb,c

3

uncer tain

5

Total

17

Ia,b

IIa,b

T R E S V I R I

(Moneyer s )

IVa,b 9

uncertain 7

Total

1

6

SC

issues AD 10-

21 other Aug.

incl.

unidentifiable

9

T O T A L S A U G . &

TIB. tOAD2I

46

TIBERIUSAD2I-37 -

Oberaden

I2BC-9/8

I

3

2

III

32

143

I

I

2

6

5

213

Haltern

1 1 BC-AD

9

4

403

5

33

38

> 55

s=2 7

3

328**

10

29

9

48

41 8

-

Oberhausen

1

5

BC-AD

14/17

9

6

10

12

4

26

123

3

I

127

6

42

32

26

1 06

41

301

-

Neuss-Sels

20/I5BC-C.AD35

2

73

660

199

199

9i

8

5

135

239

3

10

25

96

134

96

744

42

Vindonissa

AD - 1

7-1

00

517

47

30

65

44.

26

41

17 6

476

69

47

27 4

250

200

1316

M

185

488

301

988

35

2696

1017

*

Table

I of W e ll s

1972,

268-9

**

W e ll s

1972,

269,

note t: about five-sixths are now lost, the remainder are all Lugd. I

153


24/34

p.

V O N S / T he Identification of Heavily Corroded Roman Coins Found at Velsen

reached their

full

circulation.

3 1

However,

on

both sites

some coins of the Moneyers' Series cannot be specifi-

cally

ascribed to a particular series.

The Mo neyers'

Series

IVb was

issued

at

Rome between

3-2 BC ,

thus,

with the tw enty-five year delay mentioned

above

in

mind,

th e

earliest termin ation

of

Velsen

I

would have to date

from

AD 20 in order to reach th e

full

circulation level of these types of coins.

Velsen clearly comes after Haltern, where almost 10

of

the coins found were of the Nemausus type and

where, above all else, seven times as man y Altar Series

coins appeared than of the M oneyers' Series.

There were also more coins of the old er dated

M oneyers'

Series coins la,

Ib, Ila,

lib, than

of IVa and

IVb, whilst

Velsen

produced only IVb series coins, of those that

were

positively identified

as being

from

th e Moneyers '

Series.

Oberhausen, dated

from

c.

1 5 — I O B C

to

AD

14-17;

18

is

also earlier than Velsen.

At

Oberhausen

th e

Nemausus coins are well represented, moreover there

ar e relatively more Altar Series

I

coins found than

Moneyers '

Series IVa,b coins.

The

latter

clearly had

not then reach ed its full circulation. This would indicate

that

th e

latest date

fo r

Velsen

I,

where

th e

Moneyers '

Series IVa,b

(as has

been shown)

did

reach the ir climax,

must be considerably later than the end of Oberhausen .

On the

other hand , Velsen

I

could

b e

dated ea rlier than,

for

example, Aislingen a nd Augsburg,

3 2

both of which

began to

flourish

in the

late-Tiberian

period. There are

no

traces

of the

Altar Series

I at

these sites,

but the

Moneyers '

Series coins

ar e well

represented.

6

The absence of the

'Provident(ia) '

A s.

According to some w riters

Tiberius

commenced

large issue of bronze coins about AD

2 0 — 2 3

with

vident(ia)

type.

3 3

These hav e been found in la

bers almost

all

over

the

Empire.

Of the

269

Tiberian coins found at Vindonissa, 594 (22

of the

Provident(ia) type,

and at

Hofheim al

percentage (12 ) were

encountered.

34

Ne

occupied between 20-15

BC an

d c . AD 35, pro

bronze Tiberian coins dated between

AD

21—37

21

were of the Provident(ia) type (5 0 ).

Provident(ia) coins are absent among the date

from Velsen

I. It

w ould also appear

that no

Prov

coins were present am ong

the

unidentified bron

These measure less than 30 mm in diameter

according to

BM C

the Provident(ia) had a d

at least 3 2

m m .

35

The

lack

of

this type

of

coin

in

Velsen

I

co

to the

fact that when

th e

Provident(ia) coins c

more general

use and

when they were therefo

larger numbers, Velsen

I had

already been ab

As W ells

36

has observed, the Provident(ia) co

not

only minted

in

Rome

b ut

also

in the

provin

means that t he se coins could reach northern

more speedily than the Moneyers ' Series fro

Therefore less than the suggested twenty-fiv

would be necessary, for them to reach their ful

tion. Should these coins have arrived

at

Vels

have been lost with in ten years (a fairly reason

mate)

3 7

after

the date of their issue, then Vels

31

Kr aay 1962, 8: 'Da de r

Umlauf

an Miinzmeister-Assen

schwerlich

innerhalb von

drei Jahren derart

zunahm,

muss

der

Hohepunkt ihrer Zirkulation in Vindonissa friihestens in die

Zwanzigerjahre

fallen. '

32 Wells

1972,

68-9; Ulbert 1959, 83.

33 Grant 1956, 108: 'Issued at one - probably more than

on e — Gallic or German mint, as well as at Rome, where at

least

420

examples have been found

in the Tiber alone. ' -

Gebhart a.o.

1956:

'...

die

ausserst umfangreiche

Kupfe rpra -

gung

des

Augustus

u n d T i b e r i u s . . . ' Ibid. p . 3 2 ' . . . e r s t

zeit

A.D. 22/23 setzt eine reichere Pragung

des

Tiberius

ein.'

-

W ells 1972, 277: 'The next major (italicized by the present

author) issue was one in honour of Divus Augustus, with the

legend sc and P R O V I D E N T ( IA ) on the reverse, struck not only

in

Italy, bu t also, despite th e legend, in the provinces, an d

dat ing from about

AD

20.' Ibid.

p.

279:

'The

real change

in

the coinage comes, not with

Augustus '

death but

after

AD 20 ,

with

the

closing

of the

Lugdunum series

and the introduction

of

the 'Providentia'

asses

an d

other

ne w

types struc

Rome and in the provinces,

Roman

and provincial i

fering no longer in type, but only in

execution.'

- Kr

10 : 'Den nachsten grosseren Beitrag zu m Geldumla

die Providentia-Asse, deren

Pragung vermutlich

Mitte de r

Zwanzigerjahre

bis zum Tod des Tiberius,

langer, dauert .

D a

Gegenstempel nahezu fehlen, darf

annehmen, dass diese Asse vor

allem

in den Dreiss

umliefen,

als

da s Anbringen vo n Schlagmarken n

iiblich

war . '

34 Ritterling 1912,

104, 112,

and

114.

35 BMC I, p.

141.

36 W ells 1972, 277.

37 It is difficult to imagine

that

an emperor would

with the fact that te n

years w ere necessary

fo r

such

an

i

issue bearing

his own

image

t o

reach

th e

troops

on th

front .

154


25/34

P. V O N S

/

The Identif icat ion of Heavi ly Corroded Roman Coins Found at Velse

have alrea dy been dispersed by c . AD 30. This agrees

with Neuss-Sels that was abandoned in c . AD 35 where

twenty-one Provident(ia) coins were

found.

It is

interesting that of the coin

'lumps'

found at Velsen II

which have been subjected to research, four Provi-

dent( ia) coins have already been identified. (See

appencix for the

identified

coins from Velsen II.)

7 The Closing Coin

The latest Roman coin whic h up till now has been ide nti-

fied at Velsen I, apart from the antoninianus of

Gal-

lienus

(see

paragraph 12),

is the semis no. 26 on the

coin list, which is of the A ltar S eries l ib or c, and was

struck

between AD

10-14.

There is a later 'Gallic copy' (no. 60; photographs 53,

5b) , on

which

th e

head

of

Augustus(? ) appears

on the

obverse

and Victoria seated upon a throne on the

reverse. It

seems

to be a

combination,

th e

throne

resembles

R IC 352 and

Victoria resembles

R IC

354.

The original Roman coin has been issued as a qu inarius

between 2 B C and AD

14.

It may be assumed that the

'Gallic ' copy came into circulation later than this date.

This

'closing coin' does not, however, indicate that th e

occupation

of

Velsen

I

ended shortly after

th e

issue

of

the 'Gallic imitation. '

8 Gallic Copper Quinarii (Kupfer-Quinareri)

Three Gallic copper quinarii were found at Velsen I

(nos.

58-60

on the coin list) (photographs 53, 5b, 6a,

6b,

ja,

and

7b.) Ritterling

38

points

out

that

these small

Gallic

K upfer-Q uinaren

were present in large num bers

in Haltern

but not at all in

Hofheim.

He

comes

to the

conclusion

that

under Tiberius th e Gallic copper coins

were not allowed to be produced any more and were

perhaps even prohibited.

9 Italian issues as a percentage of the total circulation.

(W ell' s Table

II:

'Distribution of Republican, Augus-

tan,

an d

early Tiberian bron ze issues' ) .

In his Table II

3 9

W ells makes a comparison between

Gallic and

Italian bronze asses found

in

several places

and

that date from

th e

Augustan

Age to the

Claudian

period. He attempts, with reservations, on the basis of

the percentage of Italian issues in relation to the whole,

to draw conclusions about the establishment of the set-

tlements mentioned.

He

suggests, moreover, that

the

percentage

of

Italian issu es which ar e found is an indica

tion

of the

lateness

o f

initial occupation.

If

Velsen

I is

added

to

this list, then

the 22

Gallic

an

th e 16 Italian

asses

give 42 to Italian issues. If par

of

W ell' s table

is

used

an d

Velsen

is

added,

th e

result

are :

Oberaden

Haltern

Neuss-Sels

2

6

I I o

Oberhausen

Vindonissa

Velsen

I

42

51

42

Oberhausen

and

Vindonissa, both lying closer

to Rome

would hav e received a higher percentage o f Italian issue

more speedily than

th e

castella

on the

Lower Rhine

The Velsen I percentage compared with that of Vindo

nissa

confirms the idea that Velsen I was established

in

Germanicus ' time.

10 Half-coins

In

Velsen

I 22

half-coins were found, namely 21

AE

and one quadrant . It is striking that among th

undete rmin ed half- coins there are four unoxidized asses

which

ar e

completely smooth

(or

perhaps blanks which

never were struck?) . These four half-c oins (asses) weigh

9.113 gr,

8.994

g r,

5.243

gr, and

3.108

gr .

A comparison with other places whe re bronze half-coin

have been found is given in the ensuing survey:

T A B L E

VII

Percentage of the total

number

of

bronze coins

Oberaden 26 Neuss-Sels

16

Haltern 24% Hof he im n%

Oberhausen 31% Velsen I 24%

11

Countermarks

A survey

of the

Velsen

I

countermarks

can be

foun

on

pages 14810 150. Approxim ately

44 of th e

identified

bronze coins are counterm arked. However, the identifi-

cation of a counterma rk does not a lways lead to the

identification

of the

coin bearing

it .

Although various numismatists question the date of

application

and the purpose of countermarks, in genera

it can be

stated that

the Velsen I

countermarks origina

38 Rit ter l ing 1912,

116,

39

Wells

1972, 280 Table II.

155


26/34

p.

V O N S

/ The Identif ication of Heavilv Corro ded

R o m a n

Coins Found at Velsen

ted in the Augustan and early Tiberian periods, as

will

be

later

specified.

a

The

'Caesar ' Countermark

There

are six

Caesar countermarks

of

which

five appear

in the Moneyers ' Master Series IVb and the sixth on

an unident ifiab le coin. K raay writes about th is kind of

countermark as

follows

40

:

'The monogram C A E S A R nearly always occurs on the

asses

of the

Roman moneyers

of

Augustus,

th e

last

of

whom

may

have minted about BC

3.

This,

at

first sight,

might seem to be the approximate date of the coun-

termark but since occasionally the same cou ntermark

is found on later coins or stamped over later coun-

termarks, the actual date of application must be postpo-

ned at least twenty years. '

Various

numismatis ts

4 1

agree that th e

'Caesar '

coun-

termark

of

Germanicus

is

from

th e

period

of his

mili tary

campaign of AD 14-17 in

North

Germania. Kraay, on

the other hand, wonders whether this 'Caesar' coun-

term ark could refer to Tiberius himself.

42

In connection

with

th e

geographical distribution

of the

'Caesar' coun-

termarks, it is interesting to add Velsen I to Kraay's

Table:

43

T A B L E

VIII

Nijmegen

Neuss-Sels

Neuss-Lager

Vindonissa

Hofheim

Velsen

I

Moneyer

asses

125

129

26

94 5

32

14

C A E S A R

monograms

64

37

8

20

5

c. 6

/(>

50

29

30

2

15

c . 4 0

Kraay writes of this survey:

'The

conclusion is clear

enough. The countermark w as applied in lower

Germany

and

becomes progressively rarer farther

south. '

4 4

In the case of Velsen, the percentage does not

contradict Kra ay's conclusion.

b IMP

The counterm ark IMP is, in general, viewed a

Augustan. Kraay

4 5

observes that in Oberaden

ended in 9/8 B C, a coin w as found with th e cou

I M P .

Later

authors

think

in

terms

of

Claudius

or

c

A V G , A V C ,

and AV.

A number of coins from Haltern (abandoned

which bear

the

countermarks

AV and A V G , ar

These countermarks were manifestly still in us

th e

late Augustan period.

d EUl

an

d

( i ) -

W ith regard to this countermark, Kraay writ

countermarks TIB, TIB-IM and T I B - A V G

diff

Caesar in that they occur both on the issue

moneyers of Augustus and, though less comm

th e

altar coins

of

Lugdunum.

In

addition

to

t

main series, there are, as with Caesar, a few la

which bring the terminal date down to AD 22-2

e

VAR

(photograph 8) .

Coin no. 23 (Altar Series I) came from a Velsen I

well

that

was

constructed

out of

wood from

a

a large wine-barrel. On the obverse o f this coin

A

stamped an d

V A R

on the reverse.

It is

generally accepted

48

that this last-name

belonged to P. Quinctilius Varus, w ho had bee

nor of Lower Germania for some years until A

who in

that year

suffered

a

great defeat

by

A

in

which three Roman legions were lost. Th

te rmark must have been imprinted during o

A D 9. The coin

gives

th e impression of having be

mered flat.

12

A Third- Century Antoninianus

(Photog

and 9b)

After coin 62, thought to be a denarius, was

identification proved to be impossible because t

parative material

h ad

been drawn from

th e

Re

and Julian-Claudian periods. A visit to the Roy

Cabinet surprisin gly resulted in the identificatio

40 Kr aay

1956,

in. 44

41 BMC I, p. XXIX note 4; Kraf t 1950-1, 30: 'So bleibt 45

nur

Germanicus , d.h.

die Zeit 14-17 n. Chr. iibrig.' 46

42

Kraay

1956, 122. 47

43

Kraay 1956,

119. 48

Kr aay 1956, 119.

Kraay

1956, 117.

Haalebos 1977, 205.

Kr aay 1956, 122.

K r a a y

1962,

4 6.

I

5

6


27/34

p.

V O N S

/ The

Identif icat ion

of

Heavily Corroded Roman Coins

Found at

Velse

coin

as an

antoninianus

of the

Emperor Gal l ienus

from

between AD 260-268

(RIC

57 Vol. V) .

49

Although

it is

rem arkable that

a

third-centu ry Gallienic

coin

should be found amongst Augustan and early

Tiberian material , i t is s tr iking that i t was Gallienus

and his successor, Postumus, who w ere responsible for

th e restoration of the neglected Rhine defences.

5 0

In

c .

AD

25 8

Gallienus stationed the Impe rial Head qua rters

and the Mint at Cologne. Moreover , it was Postumus

who mu st have been interested in a we ll-defended de lta

area because

of the

presence

of

large r ivers which served

as

essential lines of communicat ion between Gal l ia an d

England, which were also under

his

command.

In

Boersma's s tudy

'The

Roman Coins

from the

Province

of

Z eelan d' i t is clear that there was an e xception al peak

of

Rom an coins between

A D

268 and 273, and he conclu-

des:

'Apparent ly

after

Postumus had been acclaimed

emperor in 260 he took immediate s teps to build a

defensive sea-line in order to prevent the enemy from

overrunning the country.'

51

Velsen

would perhaps also hav e been involv ed with this

activity or at least w ould ha ve been visited. It is feasible

that remains from Velsen

I

were still present

in the

middle of the third century.

5 2

(In the meantime a plated antoninianus of

Postumus

is found)

C O N C L U S I O N

W i th th e above in mind as a means of establishing th e

approximate

initial and terminal dates, deductions can

be made regarding the durat ion of the Roman occupa-

tion.

Establishment

If i t is assumed that

a

a Roman fortif ication was built at Velsen, and

b that this

fortif ication

played an offensive role in the

Rom an Elbe policy,

53

in the first half of the first cen tury,

then Velsen

I

must have been established during

one

of th e

military campaigns, that

is to say a

punitiv

expedition, against

th e

Frisians

and the

Chauc

under taken dur ing

th e

Augusto-Claudian per iod .

In view of known mili tary campaigns, the possibil i ty

of Velsen I having been established during such a

expedition can be examined . If Velsen I, like Oberaden

Haltern, Neuss-Sels , and to a lesser extent Oberha usen

played a role during the campaigns of Drusus, 12 BC

and Tiberius, AD 4, then more Nemausus coins oug

to have been foun d, for only one half Nemausus-as (no

15) has been identif ied with any certainty.

That Germanicus established Velsen I AD

14-17,

probable .

The

A ltar Series

I is

relatively well represe n

ted. I t is plausible that the six Caesar countermarks

attr ibuted

to

Germanicus

41

might indicate that Velse

I originates from one of his cam paigns.

In Vindonissa, which also dates from

AD

17,

accordin

to Kraay,

5 4

relat ively many Nem ausus

asses

have bee

found, indeed. However , th e supposition

that

Velse

I was e stablished in AD 17 is still credible. K raay explain

why Nem ausus coins stil l we re found at Vindo nissa bu

not in the

more nor thern castella.

5 5

Point

9

suppor

the supposition that Germanicus established Velsen I

If Velsen I was begun after Germanicus' comm and the

the later campaigns along the Elbe, know n from classic

literature, would be acceptable.

A

late campaign took place

in

AD

28

dur ing

th e

Frisi

rebellion, when there was talk of a mysterious camp

called 'Flevum'. Velsen I would have already bee

established, or begun, assisted by troops of the Upper

Rhine sent to

relieve

Flevum.

5 6

These soldiers certain

carried Tiberian coins, and lost them. Given th e lac

of historical informa tion about the period im med iate

after Germanicus , noth ing remains but to suppose th

Velsen I was established

between

AD 14—17 by Germani

cus on one of his

campaigns .

Termination

i W h i ls t a high percentage of denarii circulated

Velsen I, no

Tiberian

denarii were found.

If the

first

Tiberian denarii from Rom e took

fiftee

49 Thanks go to Mr J.P.A. van der

Vin,

who

immediate ly

identif ied the coin as being of the third century and con-

sequently thought of Gall ienus .

50 Van Es

1972, 53;

Byvanck 1943, 573-82.

51

Boer sm a 1967,

76.

5 2

If the

visitors

had

indeed

the

intention

to

check whether

a r enew al and strengthening of Velsen was desirable, one

might

conclude

that

the tr ibutary of the Rhine which passed Velse

w as

not

then silted

up.

53 Van Es 1972, 29.

54 K r a a y

1962, 8.

5 5 Kra ay 1962, 25 .

5 6 Such

a supposition implies

that

Velsen I was not

Flevum.

157


28/34

P. V O N S /

Th e

Identificat ion

of

Heavily Corroded Roman Coins Found

at

Velsen

years

57

to reach Velsen and to be lost, then Velsen I A P P E N D I X

was abandoned in

c.

AD 30 or earlier.

2 No Provident(ia) coins were found.

If the

Provident(ia) coins, which were minted

in

great

quantities in

Lugdunum

(Lyons)

from AD

20-23,

took

eight to ten years to reach Velsen, then Velsen I must

have been abandoned in c. AD 30 or earlier.

3 Table

VI shows a comparison between Velsen I and

Oberhausen

(15

BC-AD 14),

and

Velsen

I and

Neuss-Sels

(20/15 BC-AD 35). Velsen I appears to

fall

between the

two,

that is to say

from

AD 14/17—AD 30.

4

No

countermarks were found from

the

middle

and

late periods

of Tiberius'

reign.

5

It

could

be

assumed that Velsen

I was

evacuated

in AD 2 8

after

the Frisian rebellion of that year was crush-

ed

by L.

Apronius, governor

of Upper

Germania.

If

Velsen I was actually deserted in AD 28, the question

has to be posed as to how the area of the Rhine delta

downstream of Vechten was kept under control between

AD

28 and

40.

5S

It is

possible that

after

the

revolt

of

AD 28 Velsen I was replaced by Velsen II. Subsequent

research on the coins from Velsen II

will

shed more

light on this matter.

(In the meantime this research has been completed and

is to be found in an appendix to this article.)

Given the foregoing points of consideration together

with the warning that only a poor indication can be given

by

c.

60

identifiable coins,

it

seems likely that

the

period

of

occupation of Velsen I began during one of Germani-

cus' campaigns

in AD

14—17

and

ended

in or

about

AD

30 .

The Identification of Coins from Velsen II

1

Twenty-eight Roman coins found

at

Velsen

II in

heavily oxidized as were those coins found during th

tion campaign

at

Velsen

I.

Only

on e

denarius

and tw

were exceptions.

A few coins had already been examined by the Ro

Cabinet

and the

IPP,

1

Amsterdam.

The

research

w as

by the

author using

th e

same methods

as

were appl

coins

from Velsen

I. Of the 28

coins,

25

could

be i

(see Coin List Velsen II, p.

oo).

2

The

coins

had

been lost

on the

reedy bank

of th

course

of the

River IJ, then probably

a northern

tr

the Rhine. They were found distributed over all e

trenches . In one place (less then i m

2

) eight Roman a

found together, which supports th e impression

that

t

were all lost at the same time and that either all

th e

contents

of a

purse

was

lost

(see 3) .

3 The finds from the trenches were assem bled for ea

metre. In trench E, square H

15

a

(=

i m

2

) eight as

found together. They are:

T A B L E

I X

Number E mperor Denom ination

RIC

3

6-9

2

24,25

Augustus

Tiberius

Caligula

Claudius

Moneyer

Tullus

Provident

Germanicus

Minerva

193

p. 95 /96

44/45 o

66

57

It is

difficult

to imagine that it would have taken so long

(fifteen years)

fo r

this coin, minted with

th e

image

o f

Emperor

Tiberius,

to have reached the soldiers of the northern castella

in such considerable numbers that they could have been lost

an d

thus should occur

in the

coin finds.

For it was in the

emperor's own interest that his image and the news of his

accession

-

information

to

which

the

representation

of his

head

an d

the

legends

on the

coins were admirably suited

-

were

soon made known to all the troops.

W h en

the concept of

'coin

drift '

is rejected, the end date has to be placed earlier.

58

It is hardly conceivable that Roman strategists should have

projected a

castellum

at

Vechten instead

of one

somewhere

on

the coastal barriers along the North Sea. By neglecting this

defence the Romans would not be in control of the eminently

easy

route along the barriers, which penetrated behind the

Roman lines.

These

coins could

not

have been lost earlier than

th e

period. Because both Claudian coins found were b

and if coin drift is taken into account, it is plausible

were lost

after

AD 54.

2

It is striking that this coin find (treasure trove) con

of non-countermarked asses, without sestertii

or

dup

4 Three Agrippa asses were fo und (nos. 10-12) whi

ing to many numismatists are from the reign of

Rodewald,

3

echoing the opinion of a large numbe r of

1

Albert Egges va n Giffen Institute fo r Pre- and Pro

Universi ty of Am sterdam.

2 Gebhard t

a.o. 1956,

43 note 57: 'Anderseits ist

ob die barbarisierten Stiicke des Claudius nicht

Geldumlauf nach 54 gehoren . '

3

Rodewald 1976, 143.

I

5

8


29/34

P. V O N S

/

The

Identification

of

Heavilv Corroded Roman Coins

Found at

Velsen

tists, agrees in placing this issue not in Caligula s reign but

in the last years of Tiberius.

5 Countermarks (see coin list

p. 160)

On the

Germanicus

as no.

19

RIC

44) the

letters

.../VIM

( . . .LAVIM) are

legible, preceded

by

space

for two or

three letters.

This is clearly th e countermark T I C L A V I M . I t places this Caligula

as in the Claudian period .

4

On the Germanicus as no. 20 RIC 44) the two letters CA ar e

visible, some more letters possibly being present on the obverse

and

reverse.

6

In Table X the coins are arranged according to the different

possibil i t ies, namely, in column B the two denarii are

omitted,

column C gives the asses

from

the 'treasure trove', in column

D

these

asses are omitted; in

column

E the

Agrippa

asses are

added to those of Caligula cf. paragraph 4) , and,

finally,

in

column

F the

Caligula

as

with

the

Claudian countermark

is

added

to the

Claudian

asses.

7 The Minerva (Pallas) as no. 25 of Claudius, which is barba-

rous

(identified

as

such

by the form of the legend on the

obverse), clearly shows

t he

double edge

of

Minerva s shield.

Banti

and Simonetti write:

'In

the series

with Pallas

advancing

in combat, a part of the British imitation is easily individualized

by the

form

of the

shield, which

in

addition

to the

outer border

also has an

inner

circle.'

5

Did this barbarous coin come from England?

8

Denarii

The

apparently unplated shiny denarius

no. i

from Velsen

II

was already identified in 1964 by the Royal Coin Cabinet, The

Hague (letter dated 28.5.64

no. 722 to the

Institute

of

Pre-

and

Protohistory, Amsterdam).

There

was, therefore,

no

point

in

trying

to

open this denarius

jus t to see

whether

or not it

w as

plated.

After

Professor J.E. Bogaers, University of Nijmegen, pointed

out how light-weight th e denarius w as

(2 .5122

gr.) and asked

if it had

perhaps been plated,

it

appeared,

after a

small hole

had been drilled, that it was not plated. The Central Laboratory

of the Van Gelder Paper Works, Velsen, analysed the metal

borings and determined the specific gravity.

Their report dated

24.10 .77 was

surprising: S.G.

6.61, and

'The

coin is composed mainly of tin.' Thus it was not a silver denarius

but a shiny coun

Documents

The identification of heavily corroded Roman coins found at Velsen: an attempt at a closer dating of the early Roman settlement 'Velsen I' / P. Vons