The coin hoards of Roman Egypt in context

Journal article

The coin hoards of Roman Egypt have been the subject of considerable research, notably by Milne and Christiansen, to the point where Faucher has felt the need to ask «What next?» This paper suggests that one productive way forward is by setting the evidence from Egypt in a wider context.
It has long been understood that one can properly understand regional patterns of coin finds only by comparing them with other regions. Curiously, that understanding has been less frequently applied to hoard evidence. The comparative study of hoards is now made much easier by the Coin Hoards of the Roman Empire project (CHRE: https://chre.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/), which aims to collect information about hoards of all coinages in use in the Roman Empire from 30 BCE to 518 CE. By way of example of the benefits of comparative study, this paper looks at the hoard evidence from Egypt for the use of gold, the mixing of denominations, and reactions to changes in the coinage up to the time of Diocletian.

Authors: Howgego, C

• Publication status: Accepted
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Quaderni Ticinesi
• Journal: Numismatica e Antichita Classiche: Quaderni Ticinesi
• Volume: 54
• Pages: 25-43
• Acceptance date: 2026-02-06
• ISSN: 1420-1739
• Language: English