Forms of largitio and ‘Denominations’ of Silver Plate in Late Antiquity

Chapter 15 examines new vessel forms in silver plate that appear in the early fourth century, and suggests that they should be viewed as an extension of the late Roman currency system introduced under Diocletian and refined by Constantine. It argues that their production was linked to the operation of the late Roman mints and the office of the comes sacrarum largitionum , responsible for the distribution of imperial largesse. It explores new approaches to addressing questions about the manufacture of silver plate, and the balance between ‘official’ and ‘private’ production. The use of silver plate by the ‘new aristocracy’ of the later Roman Empire for elite display and the maintenance of complex networks of social relations is discussed, examining what hoards that include silver plate can indicate about wider macro-economic trends during a period of history recently characterized by Jairus Banaji as the ‘rampant stratification of society’

Ancient history · Aristocracy (class) · Art · Currency · Economics · Elite · Political science · Politics · Roman Empire · Social stratification · Byzantine Studies and History · Classical Antiquity Studies · Historical and Religious Studies of Rome · History · Law

• Beaded Rims on Silver Plate Vessels in Late Roman Britain and Beyond

  Open Access•Richard Hobbs, R W Hobbs et al.•Britannia•2022

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