Larry,
The mints were
part of the regional governance and finance system of the late
Roman Empire. Each
mint produced coinage, based in
part on revenue intake, for a specific
part of the Empire. The coins they produced went primarily as
part of
military and civil service pay chests to
military units and administrative centres in the
area that the
mint was responsible for. Sometimes they would be tasked to send shipments further away than usual, for example if there was a troop concentration in a particular
area for a particular purpose.
The coinage would then circulate slowly through the wider Empire due to the movement of troops and individuals and the trade in goods.
Large numbers of uncleaned coins that have come to the collector market over the last 20 years come from the Balkans. They come primarily from northern
Serbia and northern
Bulgaria. We know from documented excavations and
hoards that the coins found in these areas come from (pretty much in order):
Siscia,
Thessalonica,
Aquileia,
Constantinople, the other Pontic mints (
Heraclea,
Nicomedia and
Cyzicus).
If you
handle uncleaned lots from different places (i.e.
Spain or
Israel) you will see different mixes of mints from the Balkan ones.
SC
