Denarius of Antoninus Pius c. 2th century

Curator: This is a Denarius, attributed to Antoninus Pius, residing here at the Harvard Art Museums. The coin weighs approximately 2.86 grams. Editor: It looks like it's lived a life, hasn't it? I feel like I can almost smell the Roman forum just looking at the texture of the metal. Curator: Indeed. Coinage like this was fundamental to Roman society. The materiality of the denarius—likely silver—and its production reveals much about the Roman economy and its far-reaching networks of trade and control. Editor: To think, a tiny object like this, passing through so many hands. I wonder who held it last, and what they bought. Maybe a loaf of bread, or a ticket to the games. Curator: The circulation of these coins not only facilitated commerce, but also disseminated political imagery and imperial power throughout the Roman world. Each transaction reinforced Roman authority. Editor: It’s funny how something so mundane becomes a portal to another time. You know, holding this coin, I don't just see money, I see a story. Curator: A story etched in material and shaped by social forces. It highlights the inherent link between art, economy, and power. Editor: It makes you consider our current, equally mundane objects, and what stories they might eventually tell. Curator: Precisely.