The TOK project dealt with the tokens (tesserae) produced in late antiquity as objects embodying a plurality of religious experiences in late Roman society. Tokens in classical antiquity are mainly monetiform objects, but not coins, which played a role in forming social relations, communities and identity in ancient world. This project fit into the broader interest in ancient tokens arising out of an ERC-funded Starting Grant at the University of Warwick, ‘Token Communities in the Ancient Mediterranean’ (TCAM).
This project catalogued and analysed token specimens belonging to two late antique issues from the fourth and fifth centuries AD, which are respectively named the ‘Vota Publica’ series (also known as the ‘Festival of Isis’ coinage) (AD 294-378 or 394) and the ‘Asina’ series (c. AD 404-423).
The objectives (O1-O2) achieved by the project are as follows:
- O1: Analysis of typological, morphological, and functional aspects of late antique tokens, which was carried out through museum and library research, including photography, measurements and cataloguing of late antique tokens. This task led to the classification and publication of 289 ‘types’ and 1,010 ‘specimens’ of the considered material.
- O2: Interpretation of the cultural and historical significance of late antique tokens and examination of their informative potential to disclose key aspects of religious ‘conflict’ and coexistence in late antiquity. This task was carried out through the analysis of literary sources and of a comparative material including tokens and coin-like objects from the Hellenistic and Roman ages (using data gathered by TCAM) as well as contemporary official Roman coinages.
The project highlighted how late antique tokens, as material manifestations of particular religious expressions and identities, contributed to the formation of social and religious communities in fourth and fifth century Rome. Late antique tokens were examined in connection to their use, authority, and distribution context, allowing us to document and define the ideologies and dynamics that shaped - in a delicate balance - religious dialogue and coexistence between pagans and Christians in the late Roman Empire.
