Argenteus

Argenteus is a Latin term meaning "silver" and is used in classical studies both as a general reference to silver coinage and as the name of a specific silver coin of the late Roman Empire. In Roman finance, argenteus denoted money composed of silver, distinguishing it from gold denominations such as the solidus and from copper or bronze coins. The term appears in late antique sources and is used by numismatists to classify certain silver issues minted in the later Roman Empire and into the early Byzantine period.

The Argenteus coin emerged as part of monetary reforms in the 3rd and 4th centuries and continued in use for several decades. Its weight and fineness varied by issue and reign, reflecting broader trends of coinage debasement during the late empire. Typical specimens bear the portrait of the reigning emperor on the obverse and Latin inscriptions on the reverse, sometimes with religious or imperial symbols. The argenteus circulated alongside other silver and copper denominations and gradually declined as political and economic conditions changed in the 5th century, eventually giving way to newer monetary systems in post-Roman territories.

In contemporary scholarship, argenteus remains a descriptive label rather than a single standardized coin type. It is used to identify a family of late antique silver issues rather than one uniform coin, and it helps illuminate the silver economy of the late empire.

See also Denarius, Solidus, Siliqua, Miliarense.