64 pages, 28 illustrations, University of California Press/British Museum, 1991, Paperback, ISBN 0520076281, NEW.
Coins
are an unrivaled source of information about the past. They survive in
large numbers, and unlike most other artifacts they are often stamped
with words, images, and dates. In this generously illustrated book, a
recognized authority on ancient coins offers a cogent lesson in how to
evaluate the evidence that coins provide. With examples from antiquity
through the seventeenth century, Burnett explains how we can establish
when and where a coin was made, and what a coin's function as a piece of
money tells us about the economy in which it participates. Finally, he
asks how we can use the designs of coins to throw light on the
political, religious, and cultural life of the past.
About the Author
Andrew
Burnett is a curator in the Department of Coins and Medals at the
British Museum and the author of many books and articles on the coinage
of the ancient world.
From the Back Cover
"Should be assigned
in any seminar on numismatics as required reading." (Kenneth W. Harl,
author of Civic Coins & Civic Politics in the Roman East, a.d.
180-275)
In this book Andrew Burnett writes that there is the
wealth of information that coins can contribute to our understanding of
the past. For example, the coins minted by Richard the Lionhearted and
his brother John all carried the name of their father Henry II because
public confidence was based upon an unchanging design. Or for another
example, the coins minted by Caesar Augustus phased out the use of
divine symbols when depicting the emperor. The political message sent by
the coins was that Augustus was "first among equals." Not surprisingly,
Nero reinstated the use of divine symbols on his coins. The political
message here is that Nero was "first without equals." As historical
sources coins have a couple of advantages. One is that they were
officially produced. And the second is that they were massed produced.