La fabrication de flans monétaires sphériques en alliages cuivreux dans l'Antiquité. Nouvelles données issues des expérimentations.

Abstract

This paper presents the preliminary results of new archaeometallurgical experimentation relating to the use of spherical moulds for the production of ßans in Antiquity. The aim is not to revisit the use of this technique on silver coins, which was the subject of a previous publication, but to highlight its potential use in the production of copper-alloy ßans. First of all, an examination of the technical characteristics and the traces left by the manufacturing process of several ancient coins, especially those produced in Sicily in the 4th-3rd centuries BC, provides clues to this practice. Experiments on the casting, hammering and minting of spherical ßans made from various copper alloys show that such a method of production can be considered for certain ranges of composition.