What Could You Buy with a Silver Quinarius?

A Silver Quinarius is shown obverse facing against a patterned background.

When it was issued, a Quinarius could buy enough food to last one adult 10 days. This was little more than a soldier’s daily wages.

What is a Silver Quinarius?

A Quinarius (Plural: Quinarii) was a Roman coin worth half of a Denarius. It was struck for a brief time along with the Silver Sesterius, after the introduction of the Denarius in 211, BCE.

What was a Quinarius worth?

To assess the buying power a Roman Silver Quinarius afforded a citizen, historians look first at the cost of bread. The Roman diet was heavily dependent on grain.

The Silver Quinarius was Worth Five Asses

The As, sometimes called an Assarius, was a coin used in the Roman Republic. It was first made from Bronze, and later from Copper. The As was worth about 1/5 of the Quinarius. Let’s find some context for that.

Soldiers Earned Three Asses Per Day

Records show that legionary soldiers in the Roman Republic, circa 200-150, B.C.E., were paid 3 asses per day. Wheat sold for 4 Asses per modius.

A modius of wheat measured around 8.7 liters, or just under 2 gallons and an As was worth one fifth the value of a Quinarius. A Modius of wheat supplied enough bread to bake 20, one-pound loaves of bread. Feeding one man, who eats no other food requires about 2 pounds of bread per day.

Quick Guides to Investing

Step 1:

Why Buy Physical Gold and Silver?

If you are concerned about the volatility of the stock market, you’re not alone. The extreme highs and lows of the stock market often lead investors towards safe-haven assets, like bullion. Historically, the Precious Metals market has an inverse relationship with the stock market, meaning that when stocks are up, bullion is down and vice versa.

Step 2:

How Much Gold and Silver Should You Have?

This question is one of the most important for investors to answer. After all, experts suggest limits on how much of any types of investments should go into a portfolio. After deciding to purchase and own Precious Metals and considering how much money to allocate, one can then think about how much and what to buy at any point in time.

Step 3:

Which Precious Metals Should I Buy?

With the frequent changes in the market and countless Precious Metal products available, choosing investments can be difficult. Some want Gold or Silver coins, rounds or bars while others want products that are valuable because of their design, mintage or other collectible qualities. Also, collectors may shop for unique sets and individual pieces for their collections.

Step 4:

When to Buy Gold & Silver

After considering why, how much, and what Precious Metals products to buy, an investor’s next step is when to buy them. This decision requires an understanding of market trends and the impact of economic factors on precious metal prices.

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