INTRODUCTION

Roman hoards have usually been seen as cross-sections of coin in ordinary private ownership, either drawn from current circulation (‘circulation’ hoards) or accumulated over an extended period (‘savings’ hoards). Although this dual classification remains widespread, its validity has been questioned, and it does not seem to fit the hundreds of precious-metal hoards from the Principate. Analysis of this evidence instead suggests a specialised and artificial origin.

The present survey uses a very large sample of substantial precious-metal hoards between 31 BC and AD 235. They come from an enormous area, which stretches from Hadrian's Wall to Upper Egypt, and from Portugal to eastern Syria (Table 5.2). Roman hoards survive from an even bigger area, but hoards from beyond the frontier have been considered separately. Any find of more than one or two coins can be called a hoard. But for most serious purposes, a sampling minimum is necessary, and the threshold of 100 denarii adopted here should eliminate some cases of incomplete survival.

SIZE-CLUSTERS

Conclusions about hoard-size cannot always be pressed very far, because recovery may be incomplete, and some reported totals may be inexact. Nevertheless, any large-scale sample is worth examining for signs of patterning. This reveals a number of size-clusters.

At the bottom of the scale, five gold hoards have a face value below HS1400. Four have the identical value of HS500.