Roman Aureus Detail

About Roman Aureus Detail

See Roman Aureus entry. The aureus was minted at 40 to the Roman pound under Augustus, weighing about 7.8 grams. Nero reduced it to 45 to the pound. By the time of Caracalla it was 50 to the pound. The decline in weight reflected fiscal pressures. Diocletian replaced the aureus with the solidus in his reform of 294 AD. The aureus of Tiberius is known as the tribute penny mentioned in the Bible.