Coinage of Specific Emperors

[SVLLAIMP]

Are their any books out their that cover just one emperors coinage?  It would be a far cheaper way for me to purchase references and keep my collection concentrated on a few areas.

[Steve Minnoch]

Short answer: Yes, for some anyway, but often not in English.

Long answer: If you indicated which emperor or emperors you were interested in, and what aspects of their coinage, people might be able to help guide you towards the best reference for you.  But this question is a bit too general, I think.

Steve

[SVLLAIMP]

Well then, to further clarify.  I was looking for anything on Vespasian, Titus, Trajan, Hadrian, or Julian II.  Or I suppose for the Sullan period of the Republic, but I find that somewhat unlikely.

[Steve Minnoch]

Well, in the case of Vespasian and Titus, RIC II.1 is still your best bet, you just have Domitian added. 

Steve

[SVLLAIMP]

I guess so, the books are just so expensive.  You'd think after paying those prices for textbooks I'd pick a cheaper hobby.

[David Atherton]

Steve is correct about RIC II being the definitive book about Flavian coinage. I would also like to add Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum II: Vespasian to Domitian (BMCRE II). While the new RIC is a more thorough and accurate catalog, the BMCRE has a lot of interpretive information about coin types not found anywhere else.

I am also of the opinion you cannot divorce the history from the coinage. Here are a few books that are fundamental in understanding the Flavian era: Vespasian by Barbara Levick, The Emperor Titus by Brian Jones, The Emperor Domitian by Brian Jones, Suetonius: the Flavian Emperors by Brian Jones.

If you are on a tight budget and wish to purchase a fairly inexpensive volume about the coinage of the era, Roman Silver Coins II: Tiberius to Commodus covers the period you are interested in. There isn't much in the way of text, but it does list most of the silver coins minted by each reign.

[SVLLAIMP]

Thanks for the suggestions, I suppose I will have to work on a list of essential references and try to acquire a few of them.

[David Atherton]

The very first purchase I made was the RSC II. It came in very handy because it cross references with the old RIC and the BMCRE.

Numismatic books are not cheap, but neither is the knowledge contained within them.