Argenteus, minted by Diocletian at the mint of Heraclea in Thrace, between 294/6-298 AD. The obverse depicts the emperor’s head crowned with laurel. On the reverse, the two Emperors and the two Caesars, the rulers of the Tetrarchy, in robes, sacrifice on a tripod altar in front of a camp with an arched gate and six turrets. An inscription commemorating the victories over the Sarmatians, VICTORIAE SARMATICAE, surrounds the representation.
Pure silver coins such as the argentei issued under Diocletian are a landmark in the history of the Roman economy of the 3rd century AD. The systematic devaluation of the weight and content of the denarius, as well as the antoninian (=2 denarii), a coin first minted by Caracalla, rapidly deteriorated in the last decades of the 3rd century. The valiant attempt to reissue a silver coin equal to the denarius is indicated in other series of argentei by the eloquent inscription XCVI, which stated that the weight corresponded to 1/96 of the Roman pound.
Diocletian (284-305 AD)
A distinguished military man from Dalmatia, of humble origin, Diocletian implemented the Tetrarchy system and decisively reorganized the exhausted empire. His ambitious reform work, reorganization of the provinces, the army, taxation, and the economy, proved to be a lifesaver for regaining control of the empire and strengthening the state apparatus. With Diocletian’s reform program, all provincial mints that were not under the direct control of the central authority were abolished and new ones were put into operation, which minted a single currency for the entire empire. The fifteen mints were largely related to the new administrative division of the state into twelve administrations. His monetary reform is also mentioned in the famous decree on prices, Edictum de pretiis rerum venalium, in 301 AD. This law was part of the emperor’s efforts to limit uncontrolled inflation, imposing the highest possible prices on goods and services under the threat of severe penalties. The law also explicitly defined the equivalents of currencies based on the Roman pound.
With the collapse of the first Tetrarchy, Diocletian permanently retired to his birthplace until his death in 311/2 AD.
Tetrarchy
Four rulers, two Augusti and two Caesars, their successors, assumed the governance of the empire, which was administratively divided into two parts, the western and the eastern. The Tetrarchy was inaugurated in 293 AD. Diocletian, the initiator of the system, retained the right to legislate and apply veto, so he remained the main ruler.
The set of reforms implemented by the Tetrarchy sought to combat the mismanagement that plagued the state. At the same time, it limited individual freedoms, increased taxes and strengthened the government. Bureaucracy was a necessary condition for the consolidation of the new administrative character of the state.
The tetrarchy system was destined to collapse completely in 311 AD, with the death of Galerius. The civil conflict, which had already begun, ended with the neutralization of Licinius I by Constantine the Great.