A complete dictionary of the Greek and Roman antiquities explaining the obscure places in classic authors and ancient historians relating to the religion, mythology, history, geography and chronology of the ancient Greeks and Romans, their ... rites and customs, laws, polity, arts and engines of war : also an account of their navigations, arts and sciences and the inventors of them : with the lives and opinions of their philosophers / compiled originally in French ... by Monsieur Danet ; made English, with the addition of very useful mapps.

MONETA;

Money; a Piece of Money marked for the Coin, and with the Arms of a Prince, or State, who make it to circulate and pass at a common Rate for Things of different

Value: Paulus the Lawyer defines Money to be a Thing stamped with a publick Coin: Josephus seems to attribute the Invention of Money to Cain, because he had found out Weights and Measures, Money must have been comprehended therein, which at first was nothing else. The holy Scripture makes no mention of any till the Year of the World 2110. when it speaks of a 1000 Pieces of Silver given by Abimelech to Sarah Abraham's Wife, of 400 Shekels of Silver which Abraham gave by Weight to the Children of Ephron, and of the 100 Lambs, that is, the 100 Pieces of Silver Money, which Jacob gave to the Sons of Hemor.

The first Mark put upon Money consisted of Points to denote the Value thereof, and because that in the Time when one Thing was given in Exchange for another, Mens greatest Wealth consisted in Cattle: The Shapes of them, or of their Heads only were stamped upon the first Moneys that were made: And Cassiodorus takes Notice that the Latins called Money Pecunia, which was derived from the Word Pecus, that signified any kind of Beast; it was a Name they borrowed from the Gauls: Afterwards they stamped on their Money the Heads and Arms of Princes, or some Mark or other that intimated the Origin of States: Julius Caesar was the first whose Head was stamped upon Money by the Order of the Senate.

The Jewish Moneys were the great Cicar, or Talent of the Sanctuary which weighed 100 Mi∣na's, or 250 Roman Librae; the little Cicar or common Talent, called that of the Assembly, which weighed 50 Minae, or 125 Roman Librae. The Maneth or Mina, which was Two Libra's and an Half, or 30 Ounces. The Shekel or Sicle of of the Sanctuary, half an Ounce or 20 Gerahs, or Oboli. The little Shekel consisting of Two Drachma's, worth near 32 Pence of our Money, and the Gerah or Obolus which consisted of be∣tween 14 and 15 Grains.

As for the Grecians, Herodotus in his Clio writes, That the Lydians a People of Asia were the first that made hammer'd Pieces of Gold and Silver: Others attribute the first Invention thereof to Erichthonius the fourth King of Athens: Plutarch assures us, that Theseus coined Pieces of Silver weighing Two Drachma's, which on the one Side had the Picture of a Ox, in Memory of the Marathonian Bull or Captain Taurus, and on the other Jupiter or an Owl. He also made some that weighed half an Ounce whereon Minerva and Two Owls were stamped, and these were called Stateres.

The Money in Peloponesus was stamped with a Tortoise, from whence came this figurative Way of Speaking 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉; The Tortoise exceeds both Vertue and Wisdom, that is, that with Money all Things are com∣passed. The Cizycenians coined Money, on one Side whereof was the Goddess Cybele, and a Lyon on the other. The Obolus of the Greeks was a∣bout Five Farthings English: The Drachma was worth about Seven Pence English: The Mina a∣bout Three Pounds: The Talent was in Value about 203 l. 13 s. And the Shekel about Half a Crown.

As for the Romans, 'tis thought that Janus was the first who made Brass Money, on one Side of Which stood a Head with Two Faces, and on the other a Ship, as Athenaeus informs us: Janus was the first, as they say, who invented Garlands, and coined Copper-money; and Pliny says, nota aeris ex alterâ parte fuit Janus geminus, ex alterâ rostrum navis. Numa Pompilius made Wooden and Leather Money and afterwards e∣stablish'd a Company of Brasiers called Aerarii, who were the Monyers of those Times, for the Romans at first made use of unwrought Brass for Money, from whence came those Forms of Speech oes alienum, a Debt, and per oes & Libram, because they were put into the Scales to be weighed. Servius Tullius made Brass Money weighing 12 Ounces, and the same had the Figure of a Sheep upon them; and this lasted till the first Punick War: They began to ham∣mer Pieces of Silver 485 Years after the Building of Rome, I mean the Denarius which was worth 10 Asses. They had Half a Denarius called Qui∣narius, the Quarter Part of a Denarius named Sestertius, and the Teruncius which was the Fourth of an As. All these were Silver Moneys, marked on the one Side with a Woman's-Head, which represented Rome, and an X to shew the Value to be 10 Asses, and upon the Reverse were Castor and Pollux: They had Quinarii whereon Victory was pictured, and these were called Victo∣riati, and others on which there was a Charriot drawn by Two or Four Horses, which for the said Reason were called Bigati, Quadrigati: More∣over some of these Silver Pieces have been met with, on which instead of Rome, was stamped the Figure of some Genius or Tutelary God, which upon that Account were called Geniati.

Gold Coin came not in Use till about 62 Years after Silver Money, in the Year of Rome 546, in the Consulship of Nero and Livius Salinator: They were Pieces whereof 38 went to a Pound, and came near to 2 Drachma's and an Half, being worth commonly about 23 Shillings.

A RECAPITULATION of ROMAN MONEYS.

Copper Moneys.

As, Assis, or Assipondium, weighing 12 Ounces, amounted to above a Half Penny English.

The Third of an As or Triens, weighing 4 Ounces, was worth a Double: The Quarter Part or Quadrans, weighed 3 Ounces: The Sixth Part or Sextans, consisted of 2 Ounces: The Ʋncial weighed 1 Ounce.

Silver Moneys.

The Denarius weighing 1 Drahm, was marked with an X that signified 10 as being 10 Asses, in Value about 7 d. English: The Quinarius, worth 5 Asses: The Sestercius, or Quarter Part of a Denarius, worth 2 Assès and an Half: The great Sestercius or Sestercium, worth 1000 small Sester∣ces, that is about 8 l. 6 s. The Teruncium, weighed the 40th Part of a Silver Denarius, and is in Value one 4th of an As.

Gold Moneys.

Their Gold Money weighed 2 Drams and an Half: All these Words I shall explain again in their proper Alphabetical Order.