DOI issue:
Artikuły / Articles
DOI article:Sidarovich, Vital': Barbarian imitations of ancient coins in the territory of Belarus
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.43282#0134
VITAL’ SIDAROVICH
the village of Marozavichy, Brest Raion, Brest Voblast’.35 The obverse imitates
a coin struck at the Serdica mint (RIC 831 or 833). The reverse bears an image of
a goddess or personification sitting left, holding a sceptre or a spear in her left hand
(PL 2, Fig. 5).
Regardless of the fact that the coin is severely damaged, traces of a hole are
recognisable above the emperor’s head. This is quite natural for Barbarian imitations
of gold Roman coins, destined for use as pendants. According to O. Anokhin, 99%
of similar imitations have perforations, ears, or traces from soldered ears.36
The imitation from near the village of Marozavichy belongs to the ones that
are most widely distributed, i.e. to the group of 31 specimens of bronze imitations
of Probus’ aurei plated with gold, which are known from the territories of present-
day Moldova and Ukraine. O. Anokhin considers all of them as having been struck
with the same die.37 The specimen from near Marozavichy also seems to belong to
this group of imitations.
Most Belarusian finds of imitations of Roman coins come from the basin of
the Bug River (Map 2), occupied in Roman times by the Wielbark culture, and from
the interfluves of the Mukhavets River (atributary of the Bug) and the Yaselda River
(a tributary of the Pripyat), an areathrough which many of the Wielbark population’s
migration routes ran.38 This region features the greatest concentration of Roman coins
in Belarus.39 The population of the Wielbark culture, which was well acquainted
with Roman coins, preferred denarii, which were likely accompanied by imitations.
Bierastavica Raion, Grodna Voblast’, which is where the Aleksycy hoard
with its imitation comes from, apparently also belonged to the periphery of
the Wielbark culture. However, we can only consider this as being a possibility
based on investigations from adjacent parts of Poland.40 No full-scale archaeological
investigations have been conducted in Bierastavica Raion and the adjacent raions
of Grodna Voblast’; hence, the cultural affinity of the region’s population in Roman
times and at the beginning of the Migration Period remains unknown. The fact
that the Aleksy cy hoard is dated no earlier than the 5* Century makes its cultural
attribution still more puzzling: did it belong to the local population or to refugees,
saving themselves in remote thickets from the calamities of war? Were its holders
migrants from regions on the Danube? No answers to these questions are possible
based on the sources hitherto known.
35 This coin is stored in the collection of A. Karach. It weighs 1.33g and has a diaineter of 16 nun.
36 ANOKHIN 2015: 23-24.
37 http://barbarous-imitations.narod.ru/index/l_58/0-114; ANOKHIN 2015: 24-25.
38 BELIAVETS 2016: Fig. 1-3.
39 SIDOROVICH 2013: 21.
40 See, e.g.: ANDRZEJOWSKI 1995: 35-46; IDEM 2007: 229-258.
the village of Marozavichy, Brest Raion, Brest Voblast’.35 The obverse imitates
a coin struck at the Serdica mint (RIC 831 or 833). The reverse bears an image of
a goddess or personification sitting left, holding a sceptre or a spear in her left hand
(PL 2, Fig. 5).
Regardless of the fact that the coin is severely damaged, traces of a hole are
recognisable above the emperor’s head. This is quite natural for Barbarian imitations
of gold Roman coins, destined for use as pendants. According to O. Anokhin, 99%
of similar imitations have perforations, ears, or traces from soldered ears.36
The imitation from near the village of Marozavichy belongs to the ones that
are most widely distributed, i.e. to the group of 31 specimens of bronze imitations
of Probus’ aurei plated with gold, which are known from the territories of present-
day Moldova and Ukraine. O. Anokhin considers all of them as having been struck
with the same die.37 The specimen from near Marozavichy also seems to belong to
this group of imitations.
Most Belarusian finds of imitations of Roman coins come from the basin of
the Bug River (Map 2), occupied in Roman times by the Wielbark culture, and from
the interfluves of the Mukhavets River (atributary of the Bug) and the Yaselda River
(a tributary of the Pripyat), an areathrough which many of the Wielbark population’s
migration routes ran.38 This region features the greatest concentration of Roman coins
in Belarus.39 The population of the Wielbark culture, which was well acquainted
with Roman coins, preferred denarii, which were likely accompanied by imitations.
Bierastavica Raion, Grodna Voblast’, which is where the Aleksycy hoard
with its imitation comes from, apparently also belonged to the periphery of
the Wielbark culture. However, we can only consider this as being a possibility
based on investigations from adjacent parts of Poland.40 No full-scale archaeological
investigations have been conducted in Bierastavica Raion and the adjacent raions
of Grodna Voblast’; hence, the cultural affinity of the region’s population in Roman
times and at the beginning of the Migration Period remains unknown. The fact
that the Aleksy cy hoard is dated no earlier than the 5* Century makes its cultural
attribution still more puzzling: did it belong to the local population or to refugees,
saving themselves in remote thickets from the calamities of war? Were its holders
migrants from regions on the Danube? No answers to these questions are possible
based on the sources hitherto known.
35 This coin is stored in the collection of A. Karach. It weighs 1.33g and has a diaineter of 16 nun.
36 ANOKHIN 2015: 23-24.
37 http://barbarous-imitations.narod.ru/index/l_58/0-114; ANOKHIN 2015: 24-25.
38 BELIAVETS 2016: Fig. 1-3.
39 SIDOROVICH 2013: 21.
40 See, e.g.: ANDRZEJOWSKI 1995: 35-46; IDEM 2007: 229-258.