The Roman coins from the province of Zeeland / Joh. S. Boersma

8/9/2019 The Roman coins from the province of Zeeland / Joh. S. Boersma

1/42

Berichten van de Rijksdienst voor

het

Oudheidkundig Bodemonderzoek


2/42

Unless otherwise stated,

the

pottery

is

drawn

to a

scale

of

1 : 4 ;

th e

profile

of

hand-made pottery

is

represented

in

white, of

wheel-made pottery

in

black.

Het

aardewerk

is op

schaal i

: 4 afgebeeld,

tenzij

anders

aangegeven; de profielen van het handgevormde aarde-

werk

zijn wit,

die van

gedraaid aardewerk zijn zwart ge-

tekend.

Cover drawing: Late-Roman hairpins from Xanten/Dode-

waard, Asselt and Ommeren.

Omslagtekening: Laat-Romeinse haarpennen van Xanten/

Dodewaard, Asselt

en

Ommeren.


3/42

B E R I C H T E N V A N D E R I J K S D I E N S T V O O R H E T

O U D H E I D K U N D I G

B O D E M O N D E R Z O E K


4/42

Staatsuitgeverij

—

s-Gravenhage — 1968


5/42

Berichten

van de

Rijksdienst

voor

het

Oudheidkundig

Bodemonderzoek

Proceedings of the state service

for archaeological

investigations

in

the Netherlands

Jaargang17,1967


6/42

REDACTIE

W.A.

van Es, H.

Halbertsma, J.F.

van

Regteren Altena

en W . C . M an k

Adres: Rijksdienst voor

he t

Oudheidkundig Bodemonder-

zoek, Kleine Haag 2, Amersfoort, Nederland

Grafische verzorging:

Aart Verhoeven, s-Gravenhage, en

H.J. Bloklander, ROB Amersfoort


7/42

INHOUD

KORTE

BERICHTEN

A.V.

Munaut, Etude paleo-ecologique d un gisement

tourbeux situe a Terneuzen (Pays-Bas) 7

J.A. Brongers, Protohistoric worked human skull bone

in the Netherlands 29

W. van

Zeist, Palynologisch onderzoek

van een

ring-

walheuvel

bij

Eersel

5 3

P.J.R. Modderman,

The

Kattenberg

and the De Paal

urnfield

near Bergeyk (North Brabant) 59

Joh.S. Boersma,

The

romans coins

f rom th e

province

ofZee land 65

J.E. B ogaers, Enige op merkin gen over he t Neder-

landse gedeelte van de limes van Germania Inferior

(Germania Secunda)

99

Maria H.P. den Boesterd, Rom an bronze vessels from

rivers

115

W.A.

van Es,

Late-roman pins

from

Xanten/Dode-

waard an d Asselt 121

A.

Bruijn 8c

W.A. va n Es,

Early

medieval settlement

near Sleen (Drenthe) 129

J.W. Boersma, Oudh eidkun dig bodem onderzoek

in de

Ned.-Herv. kerk

te

Helium (Groningen) 141

L.Th.

Lehmann,

Unusual beaker pottery

f rom th e

Veluwe

159

L.Th. Lehmann, New pot beakers from the Veluwe 162

R.S. Hulst. Two pottery groups from th e

P re -roman

J.A.

Trimpe

Burger, Opgravingen inde oude stad v an iron ag e

Axel (Steentijd,

Romeinse tijd,

Middeleeuwen) 3 5

16

J.H.F.

Bloemers,

E in

romisches Vorratgefass

au s

s-Hertogenbosch 17


8/42

AUTEURS

J.H.F. Bloemers, Rijksdienst voor he t Oudheidkundig Bo-

demonderzoek,

Kleine

Haag

2, Amers foort

J.S. Boersma, Archaeologisch-Historisch In stituut

der

Uni-

versiteit van Amsterdam, Weesperzijde 33, Amsterdam

J.W. Boersma, Biologisch-Archaeologisch Instituut, Post-

straat 6, Groningen

Maria H.P. de n Boesterd, Rijksmuseum G.M. Kam, Mu-

seum Kamstraat 4 5 Nijmegen

J.E. Bogaers, Instituut voor Oude Geschiedenis

en Arche-

ologie,

Begijnenstraat

29,

Nijmegen

J.A. Brongers,

Rijksdienst

voor het O udheid kundig Bodem-

onderzoek, Kleine

Haag

2, A mersfoort

A.

Bruijn, Rijksdienst voor

he t

Oudheidkundig Bodemon-

derzoek, Kleine

Haag 2,

m ers foort

W.A. van Es, Rijksdienst voor he t Oudheidkundig Bodem-

onderzoek, Kleine

Haag

2 , Amersfoort

R.S. Hulst, Rijksdienst voor het Oudheidkundig Bodemon-

derzoek, Kleine Haag

2 ,

Am ersfoort

L. Th.

Lehmann, Amstel

9 ,

Amsterdam.

P.J.R. Modderman, Instituut voor Prehistoric, Breestraat

87,

Leiden

A.V. Munaut ,

Laboratoire de

Palynologie, Universite

de

Louvain,

42 ,

avenue

G. de

Croy, Heverle-Louvain,

Bel-

gique

J.A. Trimpe Burger, R ijksdienst voor

he t

Oudheidkundig

Bodemonderzoek, Kleine Haag 2, Am ersfoort

W. van

Zeist,

Biologisch-Archaeologisch Instituut., Post-

straat

6

Groningen


9/42

J O H . S . B O E R S M A

The roman

coins

from

the

province

of Zeeland

(with plate

xxi)

Fig. i T he posit ion of

Z e e l a n d

in relation to the rest of the

Netherlands

O f

a ll

Ronjan coins that have been found,

and

that

are

still

continually being

f ou nd

in the Netherland s, surveys hav e

so fa r only been published

of

those

f ou nd in the

three north-

er n

provinces, Groningen, Friesland,

and

Drenthe,

and in

the province of North Brabant within the limes. These sur-

veys cover hoards as well as stray coins. Studies have also

been made of the coin series from the castella of Vechten

and

Valkenburg

on the Old

Rh ine ,

f rom the

castellum

o

A re nt s b u rg on the Corb u lo Canal ne ar T he Hague, a n

f rom th e late Roman castel lum of Ciiijk on the river

M a a s

1

This

art icle is a survey of al l Roman coins

from

the prov

ince o f Zeeland known up to t he end of

1966.

Zeeland lies in the south-west of the Netherlands (se

fig.

i ) . Except for the part of it to the south the provinc

today consists of a nu m b e r of is lands separated by rivers , o

which

the East and West

Scheldt

are the most important

It is not easy to visualize the geographical situation of the

country

in Roman t imes. A f t e r a p re -Rom an p e r iod (a ls o

known as D u nk irk i period) during which the sea invaded

th e

interior, Roman pottery finds show that habitat ion

ha d

become possible

at the end of the is t a nd

during

the 2n

century A . D . A t that time th e interior consisted of pe

moors protected b y a coastal barrier. T he latter w as als

inhabited

2

.

The map ( f i g . 2) representing th e p r e - R o m a

period shows the S cheldt still follo w ing the eastern

course

wh ich at that t ime w a s navigable b u t which w as later a ban

doned

3

. Fou r of the seven stray coins f rom th e interior o

the province have been

f ou nd

along the eastern branch o

th e

Scheldt, thus con fir m ing that this m ust really hav e bee

the more important course during the Roman period also

(fig.

3 ) . T h e existence

of the

western course

of the

Scheld

in Roman t imes has not yet been c o n f i rmed

4

. T he E a s

Scheldt gave access

to

G a u l

via the

Scheldt

a nd

M a a s

and

1 T he

coins from

th e three

northern provinces

ha v e

been

studie

b y W . A .

v a n E s

( V a n

Es 19 6 0 );

t h ose f r om Nor t h Br abant

by th

present

w r i t e r

( Boer sma

19 6 3);

those f rom

th e

castella

of

Vech

ten and Arentsburg by J.H. Jongkees (Jongkees 1950); those f rom

th e castel lum of V a l k e nb u r g b y J . Gerr i tsen (Gerr i tsen 1948-53)

fo r t h ose f r om t h e cas t el lum of Cui jk see Bogaer s 1966 and Boer s

m a 1 963 ,

33-8.

2

Van der

Sluijs a.o. 1 965,

6 a n d 56;

B e n ne m a

& V a n d er

M e e

1952, 30-2.

3 Pons a.o.

1963, pi . 8 and

2 0 5 .

4 S teur &

Ovaa

1960,671ff .


10/42

jo

H . s . B O E R S M A / T h e roman coins f ro m th e p r o v in c e o f Zeeland

Fig. 2

Zeela nd

in E a r l y Subatlantic times 2300-2000 B . C . A f t e r

Pons

a.o.

1963, pi. 8

Contour on the top of the Pleistocene, depth in

m etr es b e l o w m ea n

se a

level

C o n t o u r

on the top of the

Pleistocene, s i mp l i f i e d

fo r

presumed

Tidal a n d f l u v ia l deposi ts , c l a y ey

Tidal a n d f l u v ia l d ep o si ts , sa n d y

F e n p ea t , l a n d w a r d b o u n d ed b y t h e

i

m etr e c o n to u r

Coastal barrier

C o a sta l b a r r ie r , p r esu m ed

Str a y c o ins ( l a r g e n u m b er s)

H o a r d s

Stray coins (sma l l numbers)

Fig.

3

Lo c a t io n

of

coin f inds

• St ra y coins ( large numbers)

1

A a r d e n b u r g

2

D o m b u r g

3 W ester sc ho u w en

8 Stray coins (small num bers)

1

Breskens

2

H a a m s t e d e

3 K o u d e k e r k e

4

Lig htho u se

5 N e h a l e n n i a Sa n c tu a r y

6 Fa rmhou se 'De O r a n j ez o n '

7

D r o w n e d la nd of R e i m e r s w a a l

8 Renesse

9

Westerschouwen

10 Westkapelle

11 Yersekendam

Tholen

( f i n d -s p o t

u n k n o w n )

A H o a r d s

i A a r d e n b u r g

to

Germany

via the Rhine. Architectural and

numismatic

evidence show

that the

region

to the

south

of the

East

Scheldt, afterwards

to become the c o a s t of the island of

Walcheren, and the part of the interior to the north of the

river, which

afterwards

became

the

coast

of the

island

of

Schouwen-Duiveland, were accessible in Roman

times.

About 300 A . D . a new transgression per iod set in

that

made

habitation

of the interior of Zeeland i m p o s s ib l e for the next

f e w centuries

3

.

The

f i r s t

comprehensive

survey

of

Roman

coins foun

Zeeland was

published

in

1 9 4 7

in the

third volume

o

cerpta

Romana by

A.W.

Byvanck. In addition toother

numismatic material, Byvanck deals

with the

Roman

5 Van der Sluijs o.a . 1965, 6 ; B en n em a & Van der M e e r

32-4.

6 6


11/42

jo U . S .

B O E R S M A / The r o m a n c o in s f r o m th e p r o v in c e o f Z eeland

f o u n d in the Nether lands known f r o m l i terar y sources and

also cites several specimens of which he has personal know-

l e d g e

6

.

A l though in a wor k of this kind the descript ion

of

the coins could hard ly be other

t h an

s u p e r f i c i a l , h i s p u b l i -

cation

ha s

p r ov e d e x t r e me l y

useful

b e c a u s e

it

includes

a ll

ear l ier l i terary references t o R o m a n coin-f inds .

U nt i l

then

th e

only coins subjected

to a

more intensive

study were those f rom Domburg on the is land of Walcheren

in the col lection of the Zeeuw s M useum a t M iddelburg .

These were described b y A.H.G. Fok k e r in the f i r s t mu s e u m

c a t a l og u e

of

i 8 6 9

7

a nd

la ter

b y

M is s

M .G .A . de M an in the

second edit ion publ ished in i907

8

. A p a r t

f r o m

the coins

f r o m

W alcheren, the Zeeuw s M useum Coin Cab inet a lso

contains coins fou nd

on the

is land

of

S c h ou w e n- D u i v e l a nd ,

north

of

Walcheren. These coins have

not yet

been pu bl ish-

ed ,

a l though Byvanck referred br ief ly to some of them when

they were stil l

in a

private collection. Beside these coins

f r o m Wa l c h e r e n a nd S c h ou w e n- D u i v e l a nd in the Zeeuws

M u s e u m ,

a

coin complex

has now

b e c ome available con-

sisting

of the

Roma n c oi ns r e c e nt l y e x c a v a t e d

in A a r d e n -

bur g in Zeeuw s-Vla anderen, the p a r t of the province on

the mainland

adjoining

Flanders. Ex cav at ions have been

going on there since 1961 a nd have revealed a r o m a n i z e d

set t lement .

Up to the end of 1966 severa l hundreds of s tray

coins and two h oa r d s h a v e c o m e to light. These coins ca n

n o w b e

added

to the

tota l

of

Roma n c oi ns f ou nd

in the

province. Fina l ly , a smal l num ber of stray coins f ro m v a r i -

ous places throughou t the pro vince

h a v e

been included,

most

of

which

are only known from literary sources (fig. 3).

Al l the

coins

h a v e

been included

in a

coin list

a s

a p p e nd i x

to the text. Graphs have a lso been made of the three im -

portant coin series

in

or d e r

to

i l lustra te their composit ion

and to

help

in

r e c ons t r u c t i ng

t he

h i s t or y

of the

sites. These

graphs show

th e

rela t ion between

th e

length

of a

part icular

period and the numbers of

coins

then issued. A t the time of

th e

Rom an R epubl ic these period s com prise twenty years

each, during

th e

E m pire they coincide w ith

th e

length

of

the reign of the Roman emperors

9

. It must be stressed that

these

g rap h s

only give

a n

estimate

of the

mone t a r y s i t u a -

tion.

They

do not show th e length of t ime th e coins were in

circula t ion before they got lost . Consequently the curve o

the rela t ive coin numbers may

of ten

not agree with th

actua l coin c ircula t ion

in a

given place

a t a

given time

This

is pa r t icular ly im por tant when considering the dat

a t

which activity

on a

site began,

f or

g r a p h s

a nd

activit

ra rely begin a t the same t ime. M oreov er , the size of s ingl

issues

var ied

g re at ly

over

th e

years , a l though

ho w

m u c

we can only guess. This may account for the prese nce o

large

p e a k s

in the

graphs, which,

of

course, need

not

neces

sarily

b e

considered

as an

indication

of

increased activi t

on the si te . Last ly , in view of the smal l coin numbers pres

ent,

no

d ist inction could

b e

made between si lver

a nd

c op p e

coins.

Yet if the

g r a p h s

a re

read proper ly they convey

relatively reliable picture of the coin circulation on the sit

or within th e

settlement,

th e

m o r e

so

when they

a re

c om

p a r e d w i t h s i mi l a r g r a p h s ma d e of the coin series from

other sites.

D O M B U R G

Introduction

Th e b e s t - k now n Roma n c oi ns f r o m Zeeland were

f o u n d

o

the west coast of the island of W alcheren. The

f i rs t

coin

w e r e f ou nd ne a r D omb u r g i n 1647, w h e n t h e f a mou s a l t a r

dedicated to the goddess Nehalennia were discovered to

gether w ith rema ins of her temple

10

. S ince then R om an coin

have

regular ly come

to

light

on the

coast,

not

only from

th

site

of the

t e m p l e

b u t

a lso f rom

a

wider a rea .

This

are

stretches

f r o m

t h e s o- c a l l ed ' Br e e z a nd ' ne ar t h e f a r m- h ou s

'De O r a n j e z o n '

and the

fort ress 'Den Haak'

in the

f o r m e

municipa l i ty of Vrouwenpolder in the north to the beac

beyond

th e

vi l lage

of

W e s tk a p e l l e

in the south

11

.

Since

th

si te of Domburg has a lways remained by fa r the most im

p or t a nt f i nd - s p ot ,

a l l

coins f rom

th e

coast acquired

by th

Z e e u w s M u s e u m w e r e c a t a l og u e d a s c omi ng f r om D om

b u r g . Be c a u s e

it is now

quite impossible

to

i d e nt i f y

th

origina l f ind -sp ots of the single specimens, the museum tra

dition in this respect has been followed in this paper.

6 B y v a n c k 1931-47, in, 153-4.

7

F o k k e r

1 869, 58-60.

8 D e M a n

19 0 7 ,

213-8.

9

The length of the reign of the va riou s em pero rs has been cal-

c u l a ted

a s

f o l l o w s : A u g u s t u s

4 0

y e a r s , T i b e r i u s

2 4 ,

C a l i g u l a

5,

C l a u d iu s 1 4 ,

N er o

15 . G a l b a i , V i t e l l i u s i, V esp a sia n u s

10,

D o-

m i t i a n u s 16 , N e r v a i'/.,

T r a i a n u s 2 0 ,

H a d r i a n u s 21 ,

A n t o n i n u s

P iu s 23 , M a r c u s A u r e l iu s 1 9 , C o m m o d u s 1 3 , Sep t im iu s Sev er u s

18, Caracalla 6 ^ 2 , M a c r in u s

i,

E l a g a b a l u s 4 , S e v e r u s A l e x a n

de r

13 ,

G o r d i a n u s m 6 ,

M a x i m i nu s

I

3 , T r a i a n u s

D ec iu s

2 , T r e

b o n ia n u s G a l l u s 2 , V o l u s i a n u s 2 , V a l er ia n u s- G a l l ien u s ( jo in

reign) 7, Gall ienus ( joint and sole reign)

16 ,

P o s t u m u s 9 , C l a u

di us

n 2, Victorinus 2. Tetricus I and n 3 , D io c le t ia n u s 20/ 2 , C o n

s t ant i us

C h l o r u s

14 ,

C o n s t a n t i n u s

i

30 , lu l ianus 3 . G r a t ia n u s

16

1 0 H o n d i u s - C r o n e

1 9 5 5 , 7

f f . ; B o g a e r s

1 955,

n

f f .

11 R e t h a a n M a c a r e 1 85 6 , 6-7; D e M a n 1 93 6 ,

i.


12/42

jo H . S .

B O E R S M A /

Th e r o m a n coins

from

th e province of Zeeland

T he

earliest f inds

in the

v icinity

of the

t e m p l e

h a v e

a l rea d y

been described by 17 th-century a u t h or s

1 2

, and coins f o un d u p

to the year 1854

h a v e

been discussed, and part ly described,

in two lectures by

C . A .

d e R eth a a n

M a c a re

13

.

However, i f

a check is made on the coins mentioned in these lectures

a nd those listed in the museum c a ta l o gues it a p p e a r s that

only a rather smal l percentage of the coins discovered in

the course of the past three centuries ever reached the

m u s e u m . M o reo ver,

th e

col lection

ha s

a c q ui red a d d i t io n a l

coins since th e a ppea ra n c e of the second edition of the mu-

seum c a ta l o gue in 1907.

T he

D o mburg ser ies

a s

presented

in the

list

is

m a d e

up a s

fol lows:

a

Coins

in the

Z eeuw s M useum rec o rd ed

in the

m u s e u m

catalogues,

b Co in s in th e Z eeuw s M useum rec o rd ed in th e c a ta l o gues

but imp ossible to trace in the

collection,

c Coins in the Zeeuws M useum which, according to notes

on their cardboard holders,

h a v e

been f o un d a t D o m -

bu rg b ut n o t in c l ud ed in th e c a ta l o gues .

d

Coins

in the

Z e e u w s M u s e u m f o u nd

on the

D o m b u r g

beach

by th e

late

M r

H . J . B o o ga er t

of

D o m b u r g .

e Coins f r o m D o mb urg in the po ssessio n o f M r A . M in -

d erh o ut of M id d el burg , w h ich w ere sa ved f r o m M i ss D e

M a n 's p r iv a te c o l lec t io n d estro yed d ur in g

th e

last war.

f Coins know n only f r o m textua l so urc es rec o rd ed a s h a v-

in g been fo un d a t D o mburg , w h ic h w ere suffic ient ly

well described.

g Coins in the Z eeuw s M useum w h ic h , in view of their

appearance a nd state o f p reserva t io n , c a n be rega rd ed

with certainty a s finds. They have been included in a

separate

list.

Th e coins

T he to ta l n umber of available coins is 186, in c l ud in g th e

86 coins th a t h a ve been a t t r ibuted

to

D o m b u r g

on the

g r o u n d s of th ei r a ppea ra n c e a nd state of preserva t io n . D is-

counting

th e

presen c e

of a few

4 t h - c e n t u r y

coins, th e

per io d

covered

is f rom

12 5

B . C .

to 273

A . D .

W h e n

this series

i s

con-

sidered as a w hole the f i r s t thing to note is the low inciden-

ce

of

is t -

a nd

2 n d -c en tury c o pper

coins. For the

p e r i o d

u p

to

193 ,

the end of the

re ign

of

C o m m o d us, o n l y e l even c o p-

per coins are pres ent as against fo rty -n ine si lver ones. A

12 H o n d i u s - C r o n e 1 955, 92 f f .

13 R e t h a a n M a c a r e 1 83 8,

2-14; 1856,

5-10.

14 B o e r s m a 1 9 6 3 ,

12 an d

15.

A R

argentum) m eans s i lver ,

A E

aes) copper

coins.

similar ,

b u t

less dramatic, si tuation

c a n be

seen

a t

W

schouwen,

where f ive copper and sixteen si lver coi

present for the same period. This rema rka ble composi

th e numismatic evidence

f r o m

both sites is h a rd l y

w h

would have expected

in

view

of the

situation

in

othe

of the Netherlands. For the neighbouring province of

Brabant th e n u m b e r s of stray copper and silver coins

th e y e a r 19 3 a r e AE 1 31 a nd AR 51 , while th e privat

lection

of the late M r F .H . M . de

B ekk er (R o m a n c o in s

in the sa me pro vin c e in the area between 's-Hertogen

and the r iver M a a s) y ie ld s A E 2 9 7 a n d A R

109

f ro m the

period. For the three northern provinces th e coin n u

f rom the sa m e per io d a r e A E 1 47 a n d A R 9 5

14

. T he ev

f rom the various Roman castel la ful ly agrees with

data-copper coins fa r o u t n u m b e r th e silver ones

15

. O

other hand the hoards

f r o m

this period are chiefly co

ed of silver coins

16

. The p icture presented by the hoard

th e

stra y coins together

is

that copper coins must have

used prim ari ly for dom estic expenses, whereas si lver

were reserved for more important transactions or

h o a r d e d

a s

sa vin gs . T h erefo re

a n

explanation

of the

d

ent composition of the Dom bu rg a nd W esterschouwen

series m us t be sought.

The first possib i l i ty to be considered is whether ph

circumstances could have caused the disappearance

many copper coins and the preservation of si lver one

could have b een due to corros ion throug h the action

sea,

since copper is af fected mo re ra pid l y than silve

consequently the copp er coins m ight have either disap

ed entirely or at least have been so severely damaged

b e

no

longer attractive

a s

collector's pieces. M iss

D e

indeed observed

that

many smal l copper coins wer

uncollected on the beach because they w e r e to o ba d l y

ag e d

17

. However, the presence of many copper anton

f rom

th e yea rs 2 6 8 -2 7 3

anc

4th-century copper coins a

against this supposition. If the h ea vier a nd thicker

ist

2 n d -c en tury c o pper

coins

had been destroyed by corro

o n e w o u l d h a ve expec ted that these much smal ler and

f r a g i l e

coins would have s u f f e r e d the same fate. It is

that M iss De M an wa s referring to these late copper

fo r

m ost of the specimens prese rved in the Zeeuws M u

are indeed in a very poor state. In our opinion, there

the survival of

m a n y

3r d- and 4 th-century coins make

f i r s t po ssib i l i ty , d isa ppea ra n c e

b y

corrosion

of the

e

ones,

un a c c epta b l e .

15 F or Vech ten an d A r e n t s b u r g se e Jongkees 1950, 1 2 —

V a l k e n b u r g

se e Gerr i tsen

1 9 48 — 5 3 .

178.

1 6 R o b e r t s o n 1 956,

2 6 5 — 7 .

17 D e M an 19 36 , 2 .

68


13/42

J O H . S . B O E R S M A

/ The r o m a n coins

f r om

th e p rov i nc e of Zeeland

DOMBURG

WESTERSCHOUWEN

•

Fig. 4 G r a p h s of the coin series

f r om

D o m b u r g a nd W e s te r -

schouwen;

s ee

general note

on p. 97


14/42

J O H . S . B O E R S M A / The r o m a n coins from the

province

of Zeeland

T he

graph

of the

D o m b u r g c o i n s ( f i g - .

4 )

shows that

th e

coin

series d i f f e r s f rom those in others par ts of the Nether lands

not only in com posi t ion but a lso in i ts curve. Tw o p er iods of

activity

can be

dis t inguished:

the

y e a r s

69-238

wi t h

a

p e a k

in

180-218, af ter which there

is a

sudden decline,

and the

yea r s

2 6 0 — 2 7 3

wi t h a n exc ept i o n a l pea k d ur i n g 2 6 8 - 2 7 3 . I f

this graph is c o m p a r e d with th e g r a p h s of the North B r a b a nt

coins

18

,

i.e.

the one of the

coins

in the

pr o vi n c e

and the one

of th e coins in the De B ekker c o l lec t i o n , i t a p p e a r s that th e

No r t h B r a ba n t g r a ph s s h o w th e la r ges t r e la t i ve c o i n n um -

ber s in the y e a r s 54-180 (68-180 for the De B ekker c o l lec -

tion).

In contrast to the Domburg

graph

the

coin nu mb ers

f a l l s h a r p ly af te r 180, only

to

r i s e a ga i n a f t e r

2 3 5 . T he

graphs of the coins f ro m the nor thern prov inces show mu ch

th e same character is t ics a s those of North Brabant": they

s h o w la r ge c o i n n um ber s

in the

years 100-180, af ter which

th e n um ber s d r o p s h a r p ly . A t th e s a m e t i m e a decline also

occurs in the coin series

f r o m

th e va r i ous R o m a n c a s te l la .

T he

expla n a t i o n

of

this deviat ion

of the

D o m b u r g c o i n

se -

r i es c a n per h a p s b e f o un d by r ec o n s i d er i n g t h e s i tua t i o n o n

th e

site.

To

r e t u r n

to the

graph:

a s

said above,

it

r ea c h es

i ts f i rs t peak between 18 0 and 218.This is a lso the per iod

d ur i n g w h i ch a l t a r s i n t h e N e h a l e nni a s a n c t u a r y w e r e b e i n g

dedicated in la r ge n um ber s , ev i d en c e of a l ively interest

that exis ted in the c u l t a t this t i m e

2 0

. These d ed i c a t i o n s w er e

not

m a d e

by the

nat ives

of the

i s la n d

b u t b y

t r a d er s ,

w ho

m a d e t h ei r

sea

j o u r n e y s

to

E n g l a n d u s in g D o m b u r g

a s a

haven

21

.

O u r

theory

is

that

th e

coins

of

this per iod that h a ve

been found along the coast ought a lso to be considered as

pa r t o f t r a d i n g a c t iv i t y . M o r eo ver , th e gr a d u a l i n cr ea s e o f

th e c o i n n um ber s d ur i n g the 2nd c e n t u r y m a k e s it clear that

the coins issued b e f o r e 18 0 m a y a ls o be r ega r d ed a s be lo n g-

in g

p r i m a r i l y

to the

s a m e a c t i v i t y , h a vi n g a r r i ve d

a nd g ot

lost on the coast only after that date. Were this not so, the

gr a ph wo uld h a ve s h o wn

a

s t r a i gh t c ur ve t h r o ugh o ut

the

2 n d c en t ur y r a t h er than

a

r is ing one,

as in the

g r a p h s

of

coins i n N o r t h B r a b a n t . The B a r g e r c om p a s c u u m h oa r d f r o m

t h e pr o vi n c e o f Dr en t h e d a t i n g f r o m a b o u t

19 0

and con-

sis t ing of denar i i , which were

f o u n d

i n a lea t h er ba g h i d d en

b y a

m er c h a n t , s h o ws that d en a r i i m a d e

u p t h e

c a pi t a l

of

m er c h a n t s

a nd

t r a d er s .

Th e

c o m p o s i t i o n

of the

D o m b u r g

coin ser ies , consis t ing chief ly of denar i i , is in c o m p l e t e

a gr eem en t wi t h

th e

supposi t ion that

th e

c o i n s we

behind b y t raders .

The y e a r s 69-96 are r epr es en t ed in the graph by an

t i o n a l ly

large

p e a k .

T he

s a m e, h o wever , a l s o o c c ur s

grap hs of the coin ser ies of N orth B rab ant and the no

pr o vi n c es ,

th e

r ea s o n a ppa r en t ly bei n g

th e

extensive

of

Flavian coins .

In

relating

the

ist-

and

2 n d - c e n t u r y D o m b u r g c o

closely

to the

Nehalennia s a n c t ua r y

on the one

h a n d

c o m m er c i a l

t r a f f i c

on the

o t h er ,

th e

question then

wh et h er any relat ion might exis t between the n um i

and the ceramic finds from

Walcheren.

The

Roma

sherds that h a ve been f o u n d along

th e

w e s t

a nd

north

of

th e

island

a t

D o m b u r g - , W es tka pel le ,

a nd

V r o u w

d er c o ver a per i o d f r o m a bo ut 10 0 A . D . u n t i l well

third

c en t ur y .

T he

ea r l ies t R o m a n s h er d c om es f r o m K

ker ke on the south coast and dates

f r o m

a b o u t 7 0 A . D

tw o tiles of the Classis Germanica f o u n d on the nort

c a n b e

dated

to

a f t e r 9 6

2 2

.

In

view

of

this evidence

th

s i b i l it y m us t

b e

lef t open that some

of the

c o i n s f r o m

burg, especial ly th e copper ones , ha d already ar r ived

in the f i r s t half of the second century. On t h e other

th e coin finds

f r o m

th e interior of Walcheren and th

i s la n d s , f r o m Z eeuws - Vla a n d er en , a nd f r o m th e w

part

of

N o r t h B r a b a n t

a re

ver y few

in

n u m b e r .

O ne

of

c o ur s e ,

b e

c a r ef u l

not to

r e g a r d this

a s

m o r e tha

plem entary evidence, s ince info rm ation about this co

egory is sti ll very scanty. Y et this conf i rms th e con

reached above

that

the

coastal coins f ro m W alcheren

b e c o n s i d er ed pr i m a r i ly as an independent complex

history of i ts own.

The second peak in the

graph

cover ing the years 2

occurs a lso at W es t er s c h o uwen and A a r d e n b u r g , an

w a s obviously caused b y a n increased act ivi ty in the

dis t r ict , which, however , subsided suddenly af ter 27

a p p e a r a n c e of this activity a ll over Zeeland shows tha

c i r c um s t a n c es wer e not solely responsible. This r e

interest in the Zeeland coast wi l l b e discussed mor

in the examinat ion of the coin complex of A a r d e n b u

There

are too few 4th-century coins to

allow

a ny c

sions to be d r a wn a bo u t c o m m un i t y l i fe on the

site

a f t

b u t

act ivi ty seems

to

hav e been sporadic.

18 Boersma

1963, 62.

19

V a n Es 1960,

f i g .

2.

2 0

For the

da t i ng

of the

N e h a l e n n i a a l t a r s

se e Hahl

1 937,

53 ;

c f

B e n n e m a

& Van der

M e er

1 952, 151;

H o n d i u s - C r o n e 19 5 5 ,

i o i ; B o g a e r s 1 955, 12.

21

B y v a n c k 1 9 4 3 , ii , 432-3 a nd

561-3;

B e n n e m a & V a n d

M e er 1 9 5 2 , 152; T r i m p e B u r g e r i 9 6 6 b ,

7 3 ;

cf . H o n d i u s - C r o n

9 5 5 , 101,

w ho

b elieves that

th e

a l ta rs were dedi c a ted

b y

ized

i nha b i ta nts

of the

reg ion also.

22

B e n n e m a

& V a n der

M e er

19 5 2 . 149 and 151.

70


15/42

J O H . S .

B O E R S M A / T h e

r o m a n c o in s f r o m

t h e

p r o v in c e

o f Zeela nd

W E S T E R S C H O U W E N

Introduction

The

coin series

of

Westerschouwen consists

of

coins found

in the western part of the island of Schouwen-Duiveland,

n o r th

of

Wa l c h eren .

To be

a c c ura te ,

th e

coins come f r o m

the beach a nd dunes near the

village

of Westerschouwen

a nd f rom th e

shore stretching past

th e

lighthouse going

towards the vi l lage of Renesse in the north

2 3

. From this

coastal area

100

R o m a n c oi n s

a re

known, most

of

them

no w

in the

Z e e u w s M u s e u m ; n e a rl y

a ll

w ere col lected

by the

late

M r H . J .

Hubregtse,

w ho

l ived

in the

v i l l a g e

o f

B u r g n e a r b y .

J u s t

as in case of the Domburg

coins,

the detailed find cir-

cumstances h a v e

not

surviv ed. A ccordingly they h a v e

a l l

been classif ied under the heading of Westerschouwen. In

c o n tra s t to th e D o mburg coins the Westerschouwen coins

have never been catalogued; they were

not

a c q ui red

by the

m u s e u m

un t i l a f ter 1907.

The Westerschouwen series as presented in the l ist is made

up as fol lows:

a

Coins

in the

Z eeuw s M useum th a t

ha d

be l o n ged

to the

H ubregtse c o l l ec t ion .

b

Coins in the Zeeuw s M useum that according to accom-

panying notes were found at Westerschouwen.

c Coins f r o m W esterschouwen m entioned in the inventory

of the Zeeuws M useum but not traced in the

collection,

d

Coins only know n

f r o m

l i te ra ture .

As will be seen f r o m the appended list it is due exclusively

to the Hub regtse col lection that so m any coins f r o m W e s -

terschouwen

h a ve survived . O ver

th e

yea rs

M r

H u b r e g t s e

buil t up a la r ge c o l l ec t io n o f R o m a n , M ero vin gia n , a n d

m edieval coins, which

he

picked

u p f r o m th e

beach

or f o u n d

in the dunes. It is also known that he

f o un d

coins near Dom-

burg as wel l , and some coins

f r o m that area

in the Zeeuws

M u s e u m are attr ib uted to him. His col lection, howev er, a lso

includes some coins that obviously cannot

h a v e

been

f o un d

on the

beach, either because

of the

fine state

of

p r e s e r v a -

tion or bec a use c i rc u l a t io n h ere of such coins must be re-

garded as ab norm al . These coins have b een om itted

f r o m

the l ist proper but, for completeness' sake, they have been

given as an

a ppen di x un d er

a separate heading at the

end.

The general ap pea rance of the col lection as a whole m akes

it clear that M r H ub regtse col lected every thing, not only

well - preser ved coins but a lso very p oor specimens. H is

col-

lection,

th erefo re ,

can be

considered

to

give

a

fa i r l y exa c t

impression of the

variety

of Roman coins

that

wer e to be

f o un d on the coast. This is particularly interesting in view

of

the numbers of

ist-

and 2nd-century si lver and copper

coins,

thus con firm ing the composition of the Dom bu rg coin

series.

T h e

In a nalysing the graph of the W esterschou w en coins (fig. 4)

th e f irst thing to note is that its curv e covers almost the same

per io d

a s

th a t

of

D o m b u r g .

T he

m a j o r i t y

of the

coins fall

betw een 54 -2 7 3 ,

a nd

only

a few

R e p u b l i c a n

and

4th-cen-

tury coins appear .

T he

gra ph sh o w s, h o w ever ,

a fa r

m o r e

i r r e g u l a r

and

interrupted curve than that

of

D o m b u r g ,

and

th e

a ccents fa l l somew hat differently. Instead

of the

pea k

d u r i n g

th e

years 180-218 which

w e

observed

a t

D o m b u r g

and

which

is

preceded there

b y a

gradual increase

in

coin

n u m b e r s

during the 2nd century, Westerschouwen has a

b l a n k

for

these years, except

for

some coins

of

C o m m o d u s.

At Westerschouwen also coin numbers increase after 117,

but the top is a l ready reached with M arcus Au rel ius, a f t er

whom a decline sets in . Unlike th e years 180-218, th e yea rs

268-273 show

th e

same tendency

as in the

D o m b u r g g r a p h ,

but with an even larger number of coins than in Domburg.

A ny

conclusions from

th e Westersc h o uw en gra ph must be

made with great care in view of the smal l coin numbers

involved. I t is imp ossible to date the arriva l of the f irst

coins with any accu rac y. The com position of the coin series,

which

up to the end of the 2nd

c en tury

consists

m a i n l y

of

silver instead of copper coins, suggests that th e coins, just

as a t

D o m burg , a r r ived th ere mo stl y

v ia

trading ships.

This

hypothesis is confirm ed by the evidence f r o m a smal l ro-

ma n iz ed

sett lement

a t

' B ra bers ' n ea r

th e

vi l lage

of Haam-

stede

a b o u t f ive k i l o metres f r o m th e west

coast

24

.

R o m a n

pottery that has been found there shows that Roman influ-

ence ma nifested i tself certainly as early as the 2nd century .

Yet no coins hav e b een f o un d during the excavations and,

mor e ov e r ,

only

on e

2nd-century copper coin

is

k n o w n

f rom

n ea rby Haam s t e de . This su ggests

that

th e coins apparently

stayed

in the

coastal region

a nd

hardly ever penetrated

th e

h in ter l a n d ,

a

situation that corresponds

to the one on

W a l -

cheren. Although

it is

impossible

to establish a n

exact

date

fo r the arrival of the f i r s t R om an coins, i t ma y b e assumed

that traders began to frequent the coast in the course of the

2 n d c en tury , p ro ba bl y

in

increasing num bers. These were

the same people who visited Domburg, the merchants who

23 D e M a n

1936, i. 24

B r a a t 1957,

84

f f . ;

Tr impe

Burger

1958,

72-4 .

71


16/42

J O H . S .

B O E R S M A

/ The

r o m a n

coins from

the

province

o f

Zeeland

started their sea voyages

f r o m

this coast . Yet W esterschou-

wen ap pears to have had no share in D om bu rg's excessive

activity a f ter 180.

Perhaps

Domburg had at this t ime, for

some reason or another, taken over th e role of W estersc h o u-

wen with the resul t that ships stopped anchoring along the

coast of the northern island.

T he

years 260-273 show

a

s t r ik in g resembl a n c e

on the

gra ph s

of the

series both f r o m D o m b u r g

a nd

Westersc h o u-

w en a n d m a ke i t c lea r th a t, to geth er w i th D o m burg a n d

A a rd en burg , W estersch o uw en w a s a l so in f l uen c ed by th e

s a m e

extern a l ci rc umsta n c es .

A l s o

in the

case

of

Westersc h o uw en n umisma t ic evid en c e

f rom the 4th c en tury is too l imi ted to w a r r a nt a ny d ef in i te

conclusions as to the

history

of the

site during that period.

AARDENBURG

Inroduction

T h e to w n o f A a rd en bu rg i s s i tua ted in Z eeuw s-V l a a n d e-

ren, only a few k i l o metres f r o m th e D utc h -B el gia n f r o n t i e r .

Since 1961, M r J.A. T r impe B urg er o f th e S ta te A rc h a eo -

logica l

Service in the Netherlands, has been directing ex-

cavations

of the

r e m a i n s

of a

set t l emen t

f r o m

th e

R o m a n

per io d . A l th o ugh exc a va t io n is still in pro gress , w e h a ve

been given permission to publish the

coins

that have been

f o u n d

up to the end of 1966. B ecause, with very few ex cep-

tions,

these come f r o m a ll over th e expl o red a rea , i t ma y b e

said that

al l of

them must have circulated within

th e

sett-

l e me nt ,

where they were f inal ly lost

or

p u r p o s e l y b u r i ed .

Thus they

m a y b e

assumed

to

presen t

a

fa i r l y a c c ura te p ic -

ture of the coin circulation within th e set t l emen t .

A s

p r e f a c e

to the

discussion

of the

coin complex

a

br ief

s u m m a r y i s

given

of the

resul ts

of the

exc a va t io n s

up to

now; these have been published by Mr Trimpe B u r g e r in

severa l p re l imin a ry r e p or t s

2 5

. First a nd f o r e m o s t , vestiges

of

a

large building, with stones

a nd

f r a g m e n t s

of

pa in ted

plaster belonging to it, have been f o u n d . T he w a l l s w ere of

stone and s to o d upo n fo u n d a t io n s o f w o o d en pi les

26

. V ery

close

to th is a pp a ren t l y im po r ta n t bu i l d in g th e r e m a i n s

were discovered

of a

sq ua re bui l d in g , ident if ied

a s

b e l o n g -

ing to a

G a l lo - R o m a n t e m p l e

2 7

; t races were a lso unc

of

som e rectangular struc tures , but i t is not clear wh

pose they

served

2 8

.

Parts of a cobbled street and a w

well were a lso found

in

this area

2 9

.

A t a

distance

of

1

metres f r o m this

area

another well has been

excav

and yet another important building with stone wall

f ou nd a t i ons

of w o o d en piles

3 1

. D u r i n g th e campa

1966, excavations were started

in an

area adjoining

t

explored in 1961-1962. Although excavations have

carried out at v arious points within th e sett lement,

li

emerged

as yet to

indicate

it s

actual extent

or its

f o r m . Trim pe B urg er has, however, tentatively sug

that th e p l a c e m a y have h ad a

connection

with t h e

Apart from the architectural remains, many stray f

po t tery

and

coins have been made.

T he

pottery c

mos t l y of local terra

nig ra- l ik e

ware, but a lso include

R o m a n terra sigi l lata sherds

33

, which appear to ra

date chiefly between

170

and 270

A . D .

3 4

.The

earlies

sigillata sherd hitherto found

a t

A a r d e n b u r g

is

dated

end of the is t century A . D .

33

.

It is the

third category

of

finds,

th e

coins, that clai

prim ary interest. Single coins of stratigraphical imp o

will not be discu ssed in this paper-that is more s

left to the f in a l pub l ic a t io n, w h en th e stratigraphy o

fe w

coins can be handled with the other finds. Ther

reason, however, for supposing that the evidence from

coins will greatly affect the conclusions based on th

alone. For the

mo men t

it is

enough

to say that

mos

were found in the Roman level . Apart f r o m these

w ere fo un d in d is turbed gro un d o r w ere fo un d a f te

in the

excavated earth.

T he

coins, therefore,

a re stu

one complex and as such will be used to reconstruct t

tory

of the

site.

In

principle there

is no

di f ference between

th e

coi

plex of A ardenb urg and the stray coins f r o m D o m b u

W esterschouw en. A lthough th e latter do not com

closed-off settlements, they also represent the mo

si tuation

on the

sites.

This

m a k e s

it

possible

to

c o m p

A ard enb ur g coin series with the other ones. Up to t

of

1966 a total of 4 6 2 coins ha d been f ou nd. These

of

26 4 stray coins and two hoards, called resp ectively

A (146 coins)

and

Hoard

B ( 5 2

coins).

These tw o

25 Trimpe

B u r g e r

19 6 1, 1 9 6 2 , 1965, i966a,

I 9 6 6 b , 1 9 6 6 0 ,

1 9 6 7 .

26 Trimpe B u r g er 1961, 94, 128.

2 7 T r i m p e B u r g e r 1961, 2 4 4 .

2 8

Trimpe B u r g e r

1961, 1 47; 1 962, 1 97 .

2 9 Trimpe B u r g e r

19 6 1,

94 , 1 28 .

3 0

Trimpe B u r g e r I 9 6 6 c , 2 2 8 , afb.

8.

31

Trimpe B u r g e r

1 9 6 5 .

3 2 Trimpe B u r g e r 1961,

7 4 ,

147; I 9 6 6 c , 2 2 7 ,

3 3

Trimpe

Burger

1 9 6 2 ,

8 2 .

3 4 Trimpe B u r g - er 1961, 7 4 , 9 4 ,

1 4 7 ;

I 9 6 6 b , 7 3 .

3 5

Trimpe

B u r g e r

1 9 6 2 ,

102.


17/42

J O H . S .

B O E R S M A / The

roman coins f r o m

th e

province

of

Zeeland

m ust , of course, be dis t ing uished f r o m the s t ray coins and

be s tudied a s separate ent it ies . M ost of the coins were very

ba d ly p r es er v ed , wh i c h

of ten

m a d e exa c t i d en t i f i c a t i o n i m -

possible,

so that we have had to be

content with

an

a p p r o x -

imate dat ing.

This

a p p l i es p a r t i c u l a r l y

to the

coins struck

i n

the yea r s 2 6 8 - 2 7 3

> '

m a n y c o in s of t h a t per i o d h a ve been

corroded to such an extent that it is now impossible to attri-

bute them

to any specific

e m p e r o r .

Of the

b a r b a r o u s c oi ns

a s

m a n y a s po s s i b le a r e i l lus t r a t ed to per m i t c o m pa r i s o n

w i th o t h er ba r b a r o us t ypes e ls ewh er e .

Stray coins

When the composition of the Aardenburg coin complex is

examined, one sees a s t r iking d i f f e r e n c e between i t and the

pr evi o us ly discussed coin series f r o m Zeeland, a l though

a l l

of

them cover th e s a m e per i o d . W h er ea s a t D o m b u r g a nd

W es t er s c h o uwen ist- and 2nd-century s i lver coins far out-

n um ber ed c o pper o n es , t h e A a r d en b ur g c o m p lex i s m a d e

u p almost exclusively of c o p p e r coins. There is only one

plated denar ius present dat ing f r o m a b o u t 100 A . D . , f o u r

Severan denar i i , and thi r teen antoniniani containing a high

per c en t a ge o f s i lver f r o m t h e yea r s 2 3 5 - 2 6 0 . O n c e a ga i n

it is interesting to m a k e a compar ison with evidence from

t h e va r i o us R o m a n c a s t e l la f r o m which coin ser ies have

been pub l i s h ed , n a m ely , Vec h t en c a s t e llum , a ba n d o n ed

a b o u t 2 4 0 :

A E

2 2 2 9

a n d A R i 6 4

3 6

;

V a l k e n b u r g , c h i e f l y

a c-

t ive dur ing

th e

ist c e n t u r y :

A E 84 a nd A R

2

3 7

; A r e n t s b u r g ,

a lso

a ba n d o n ed a bo ut 2 4 0 :

A E 146 a n d A R 6 3

3 8

;

N i j m e g e n :

A E

1 74 a n d A R 9

f r o m s ever a l c a m pa i gn s bet ween 1951-

I 9 6 3

3 9

.

As seen from the discussion of the Do m bur g c oi n

series,

this evidence agrees wi th that presented by the s t ray

c o i n s f r o m No r t h B r a ba n t and the n o r t h er n pr o vi n c es . T he

conclusion m a y b e d r a w n , t h e r e f o r e , that the coin complex

f r o m A a r d en b ur g r epr es en ts n o r m a l ever yd a y c o i n c i r c u-

lat ion. If the gr a ph of the coin ser ies ( f ig. 5) is now c o m -

pared with those of the coins

f r o m

other regions , one might

expec t that, the s im i lar i t ies and di f feren ces exis t ing between

t hem wo u ld lea d t o s om e c o n c lus i o n s r ega r d i n g t h e i n ter n a l

his tory

of the

set t lement .

It is a

p i t y t h a t

insuff icient

data

are

available

for the

area

around Aardenburg and the ad-

jacent countryside of

West

Flanders , wi th which the set -

t lement must have been in close contact ; on the other hand

w e a r e f o r t u n a t e in h a vi n g evi d en c e f a i r ly near a t h a n d in

North

B r a ba n t .

Just

as a t

D o m b u r g ,

tw o

p e a k s

ca n

also

b e

dis t inguished

in

th e

g r a p h

of

A a r d e n b u r g ,

th e

yea r s 6 9 — 2 1 1

a nd

2 5 3 — 2 7 3

In the f i r s t p er iod the bu lk of the coins is concentrated in

117-180, while in the

second

one the really large

n u m b e r s

of coins only app ear a f ter 260. The y ears 211-2 53 present a

r a t h er i r r egula r

a n d

i n t er r upt ed p i c t ur e , wh i le t ho s e bef o r e

6 9 and

a f t er

273

show

hardly any

coins

at

all.The

years 69-

2 11 wi l l

b e

discussed

f i rs t .

C o m p a r i s o n

of the

A a r d e n b u r g

grap h w i th that of N orth B rab ant shows that in the lat ter

t h e yea r s 5 4 - 1 8 0 a r e c lea r ly m a r k ed by o n e b lo c k o f

coins wh i c h

ha s

a lm o s t

th e

s a m e d en s i t y t h r o ugh o ut

th e

enti re per iod. Only in 161—180 is a peak reached which sur -

passes the level of the previous years.The yea r s bef o r e 5 4

are less well represented, although they still show a con-

s i d er a b le n um ber

of

A u g u s t a n

and a

s m a l ler n um ber

of

R epubl i c a n c o i n s , t ypes ext r em ely r a r e at A a r d e n b u r g . An

almost ident ical t rend is shown by the graph of the De Bek-

ker collect ion, in which the yea rs

68-180

f o r m one block of

coins pr ec ed ed by s m a l ler n um ber s i n t h e yea r s

14-68.

In

th e

c o i n gr a ph

for the

n o r t h er n pr o vi n c es l a r ge c o i n n um -

bers occur in the yea r s i o o ~ i 8 o . T h e p r o v i n c e of Fr ies land

p a r t i c u l a r l y p r o d u c e s a peak in 161-180, a nd this is r epea t -

ed

in the

g r a p h s

for

Gr o n i n gen

a nd

Drenthe.

I t has

been

argued

by Van Es

that most

of the

coins

did

not,

in

fact

ar r ive in the nor th before the second half of the 2nd cen-

t u r y

4 0

. I n No r t h B r a ba n t , o n t h e o t h er h a n d , R o m a n c o i n s

ha d c er t a i n ly begun to a r r i v e a t a n ear l ier date a nd l a r g e

quant i t ies can be a s s u m e d t o h a ve c i r c u la t ed t h er e a s ea r ly

as the end of the f i r s t

c en t ur y

A . D .

T he dif fe rences

b e t w e e n

th e

gr a ph s

of the

coin series

f r o m

North

Brabant and Aardenburg are obvious. The

Aarden-

bu r g gr a p h a ls o sh o ws la r ge c o i n n um ber s a t a ppr o xi m a t e ly

t h e sa m e per i o d a s a t No r t h B r a b a n t , bu t t h e c ur ve , p a r t i cu-

la r ly a f t e r

117,

indica tes a cont inuou s increase. I t i s eviden

that the absence of large coin numbers

b e f o r e

that d a t e

m ust have b een caused by local ci rcum stances; this can

pr o ba bly be expla i n ed by t h e f a c t t h a t t h e s e t t lem en t wa s

then

not yet in a

p osi t ion

to

take

an

active part

in the

kind

of coin ci rculat ion that exis ted

in

N o r t h B r a b a n t .

I t

seems

t h e r e f o r e , t h a t th e set t lement w a s ei ther newly established

at a cer tain moment or suddenly inhabi ted by people who

u s e d

m o n e y .

A c c o r d i n g to the s t a n d a r d a r t i c le b y Gebh a r d t

a.o. ,

in

which the interpreta t ion of R om an hoard s and coin com-

plexes f rom set t lements is dis cus s ed, i t m a y be a s s um ed a s

36 Jongkees 1950, 6, 10 and l a ,

37

Ge rr i t s e n 1948-53, 166.

3 8

Jong'kees

1 9 5 0,

13 .

3 9 A c c o rd i n g t o o u r o wn c o u n t .

40 Van Es

1960,

49.

73


18/42

J O H . S .

B O E R S M A /

T h e

r o m a n coins from

th e

p r o v i n c e

o f

Zeel a n d

AARDENBURG

Fig. 5 Gra ph of the coin series f r o m A a r d en b u r g ; see g en er a l n o te o n p . 97

74


19/42

J O H . S ,

B O E R S M A

/ The

roman coins

f r o m

th e

p r o v in c e

o f

Zeelan

a w or k i ng h y p ot h e s i s that the foundation of a sett lement

m ore or less coincide s w ith a peak in the grap h of its coin

series

4 1

.

This is due to the slow spread of the coins retard-

ing-

th e a r r i v a l on the spot of newly issued coins in any

c ons i d e r a b l e nu mb e r s .

This

theory

ha s

b e e n a p p l i e d

b y

Christ to the coin series f r o m the R om an castella in the

state of

B a d e n - W u r t t e m b e r g

i n s ou t h - w e s t e r n G e r ma ny

4 2

.

The gra phs of the coin series of two of them, the cas tella of

Jagsthausen and O sterbu rken, show in the beginning of

their c u r v e a r e ma r k a b l e s i m i l a r i t y t o that o f A a r d e n b u r g ,

a nd th e conclusions that Christ ha s d r a w n f r o m them a re

therefore of particular interest

4 3

.

In the

graph

of Jagsthausen ( f ig . 6) the years

68-211 f o r m

a n enti ty , preceded a nd f o l l ow e d onl y b y insignif icant re l -

ative coin

n u m b e r s . W i t h i n

this period 138-180 present

a

peak with a co nsidera ble increase of coins during the fore-

going years . The

graph

of O s t e r b u r k e n ( f i g . 7 )

f o l l o w s

a

v e r y s i mi l a r p a t t e r n .

Here

also

th e

rela t ive coin numbers

r ise a f ter 117, but the peak is confined to 161-180.

Ch r is t

is of the opinion

that both castella were f o un d ed a b ou t 15 5

as part of the frontier defences

4 4

. They were, therefore,

occupied when their graphs ha d ei ther reached a top as at

J a g s t h a u s e n

o r w a s

i mme d i a t e l y f o l l ow e d

by a top as at

O sterburken. The presence of large nu mb e r s of Ha d r i a ni c

coins in both castel la is expla ined by the fact that these

coins only became completely integrated into

th e

coin

c i r c u la t i o n during the reign of A ntoninus Pius, a l though

Christ leaves the possibi l i ty open that these la rge num bers

may part ly have been due a lso to some activi ty in the camps

b e f o r e th e coins w ere in f u l l u se

4 5

.

It is

interesting

to

look

for a

m o m e n t

at the

Roma n c a s t e l l a

in the Nether land s in order to com pa re the fou nda tion dates

establ ished by means of the a rchitectura l and ceramic evi-

dence with their coin series. The gra ph of

Vec h t en

4 6

shows

large

relative coin numbers between 27 B.C.-177 A . D . with a

p e a k

in 68-98.The

y e a r s b e f or e

a nd a f t e r

that peak

a r e f a r

less wel l rep resented. The coin num bers f r o m t h e Au g u s t a n

and Tiberian periods show only s l ight differences. J o n g -

kees

4 7

gives

th e

c a m p a i g n

of

D r u s u s

in

12 B . C .

as the

d a t e

at

w h i c h t h e c a s t e ll u m w a s f ou n d e d , w h ic h me a ns that h a b i t a -

tion of the pla ce coincid es with the increa se of the coin

n u m b e r s .

T he g r a p h of A rentsbu rg shows la rge rela t ive coin num

bers between

96-180.

A n o th e r peak occurs in

69-79,

how

e v e r . Hol w e r d a

4 8

puts the foundation about 84 and base

this date on the presence of tiles that w e r e ma d e , a c c or d i n

to their s tam ps, bef ore 89, but Jongkees p roposes an ea r l ie

date of between

6 9 - 7 9

4 9

. This

is not quite

w h a t

one w ou l

have expected f r o m the coin series taken alone, which sug

gests rather that

th e

castel lum

w a s n o t

f ou nd e d

unt il th

a p p e a r a n c e of the l a r g e r e l a t i v e nu mb e r s at the beginnin

of the 2nd c e nt u r y . A solution is p e r ha p s p r ov i d e d b y Ho

werda's

assumption that

the castellum was founded by B a

tavian cohorts; this would explain the many coins of Ves

pa s i a n us , but the decl ine in coin numbers a f ter 79 woul

indicate that

th e

place

w a s n o t

ful ly occupied unti l

the be

ginning

of the

next

ce nt u ry .T h e

V a l k e nb u r g

g r a p h

50

show

a

p e a k

in

37-68

and a

foundation date

in 42 has

recentl

been proposed

b y

Glasbergen

51

.

I t

r e ma i ns

to be

seen, how

ever , whether

th e

coins indeed admit such

a n a c c ura te

da

in g

52

.

None of

these

castella ca n help in establishing th e f o u n

dation da te of A arde nbu rg, and the only evidence is to b

f o u n d

in the two castella in G e r m a n y . A comparison show

clear ly that

th e

A a r d e n b u r g settlement cannot have bee

f o un d ed or b e g u n t o b e r om a ni z e d b e f or e a b ou t 155. M o r e

over , th e d i f f e r e nc e b e t w e e n th e coin numbers before a n

a f t e r

117

is

even more marked here than

in the Germa

castel la

a nd

suggests

a

stil l later date; this would

be i

a c c o r d a n c e

with th e ceramic evidence, which, as has bee

seen,

chiefly

covers

th e

p e r i od

170-270. It is

tempting

t

look f o r some historical event to which th e activity a t A a r

d e n b u r g

could be a t t r ibuted. A nd indeed textua l source

p r od u c e one :

th e Historia Augusta

tells

ho w

Didius Julia

n u s , during his gov ernorship of the prov incia Belgica f rom

172-174,

repelled

the Chauci with the aid of

native

auxil

a ry

t r o o p s

5 3

.

The tribe of the Chauci l ived between the river

E l b e a n d E ms in nor t h e r n G e r ma ny , but it is genera l ly a s

s u m e d

that it

must have invaded

th e

Scheldt district

f r o m

the sea at t h a t

t i m e

5 4

. T h e

v a r i ou s h oa r d s f r om t h i s p e r i o

that have been found a long th e r ivers Scheldt a n d Lys a n

th e

ma ny v i l l a s

that

have been sacked throughout Belgium

41 Gebhardt a .o. 1956, 51 ff.

42

Christ 1960, i,

39 ff .

4 3

C h r i s t

19 6 0 ,1 ,

12 6

ff .

44 C hr ist 1 960,1 ,

122,

45 C hrist 1960, i ,

128,

46 Jo n g k ees 19 5 0 , 1 4 — 5 .

47 Jongkees

1950, 16,

4 8

H o l w e r d a

1 9 2 3 ,

153-4.This date

ha s

also been accepted

b y

B o g a e r s

1960-1, 303 n o te

2 3 1.

4 9

Jongkees

1950, 25.

50

G er r i tsen

1948-53,

f i g .

5 8.

51

G l a s b e r g e n 1965-6.

52 Cf . V a n Es 1 967, Stelling xi.

53

Historia Aiigusta,Vita

D i d i i lu l i a ni i, 6-9 ( B y v a n c k

I93

1

4 7 , 1 , no. 365).

54 B y v a n c k 1 943 , i , 29 4; l a te ly V a n Es 1 967, 536- 7 .

7


20/42

J O H . S . B O E R S M A /

Th e roman coins

from

th e

province

o f Zeeland

a re

evidence that

th e

C h a u c i p e ne t r a t e d

fa r

i n l a nd

55

.

T he

fact that

th e

e mp e r or a f t e r w a r d s r e c omm e nd e d D i d i u s

Juli-

anus for the consulate is another indication that th e invasion

m u s t

have

constituted a rea l danger . A ll this strongly sug-

gests that

th e

sudden activi ty

a t

A a r d e nb u r g

w a s

connected

w i t h

th e

mi l i t a r y op e r a t i ons

in the

a r e a . Tr i mp e B u r g e r

himself expresses th e v i e w th a t A a r d e n b u r g w a s p r o b a b l y

part

of the coastal defence system set up at this time to cope

with th e b a r b a r i a n i nv a s i ons

56

, a n opinion ful ly c o n f i r m e d

by the numismatic evidence. Even i f the sett lement was not

f o u n d e d a t that t ime i t must a t least have been an important

m i l i t a r y

sta t ion having both a p r ot e c t i v e and a p r e v e nt i v e

function. A ardenb urg 's posi tion

not fa r

from

th e

sea , with

which

it

d i r e c t l y c ommu ni c a t e d

b y

m e a n s

of a

s ma l l r i v e r ,

gave

i t command of the sea-roads and the r iver

t r a f f i c .

No very c lear picture emerges of the history of the sett le-

ment during the next decades. Coin numbers

f a l l

sharply in

180,

and again in

193.Then,

a p a r t from a c omp l e t e b l a n k

in 211-218,

they remain constant unti l

2 3 5 . T he

y e a r s

235-

25 3 present a v e r y i r r e g u l a r p i c t u r e . In th e N o r t h B r a b a n t

coin

graph

coin numbers fa l l sharply af ter 180 as wel l , af ter

which

it remains the

same unti l 235,

and

again

a

break

occurs between 2 1 1 — 2 1 8 .T h e l a r g e r nu mb e r of copper coins

present in the De B ekker col lection causes i ts grap hs to ex -

pand again as early as 218. Also the coin graphs for the

northern prov inces show a strong d ecl ine in 180, and again

in

193.

M or e ov e r, a nu m b e r of h oa r d s

f r o m

the end of the

2nd century are known, most of them found in the north.

A ll this is witness of a decl ine in the coin circula t ion

af ter

180,

which may have been part ly due to unrest a long the

frontiers

of the

Empire

at that

time.

The Aardenburg

coin

series can be said to follow the conditions of the period and,

accordingly ,

it s

s ma l l r e l a t i v e c oi n nu mb e r s

for

180-235

should not be

explained

as having

been caused

by

p u r e l y

local c i rcum stances. How ever , the low num bers in the years

2

3 5 ~

2

5 3

ma

y

p e r h a p s

b e

seen

a s

indicating less activi ty

there than elsewhere; th e North B r a b a nt g r a p h s h ow s a

p e a k

in

2 3 5 - 2 4 9 ( 2 3 5 - 2 5 3

for the De

B ekker col lection).

Neither should one reach the hasty

conclusion

f r o m th e

A a r d e n b u r g

graph that th e

coin circulation there between

19 3

and 253 consisted exclusively of la te denari i and anto-

niniani . Beside these coins many 2nd-century copper coins

m u s t have been

in

use,

as is

shown

b y

their presence

in the

two sett lement hoards dated to about 2 7 3 , the second hoar d

especia l ly conta ining a considerable number of them.

T he y e a r s 25 3 - 273 r e p r e s e nt a second peak in the coin

55

V a n

Gansbeke 19 5

5,

11, f i g - 4 -

56 Trimpe Burger 1960-1,

201; i966b,

73-4.

57

Van

Gansbeke 1 9 5 2 ,

7

f f . ; 1 9 5 5 , ii f f . , fig s. 5-8.

g r a p h of A a r d e n b u r g . This same peak occurs a t D o m

and Westerschouwen,

while

this period is also well r

sented

in the graphs of the North Brabant coins.

S o m e

differences,

however ,

can

b e noticed. T he N or t h

bant graphs expand m ore gradua l ly a f ter 2 53 , wherea

Zeeland ones suddenly show large relative c oi n nu m

a f t er 26 0 . Onl y

a t

Westerschouwen does

th e

expansio

in as

soon

as

2 5 3 . M o r eo v e r,

th e

N or t h Br a b a nt g r a p h

not produce such an enormous peak as is character ist i

those of Zeeland. In other words, the pattern of the

c ircula t ion

on the

coast must have

differed

f r om that

i

inter ior ;

it

appears

that

af ter

2 6 0

there

w a s

greater act

in the

coastal area than

in

N or t h Br a b a nt .

T he

reaso

this can perhaps be found by exam ining the evidence o

hoards of this period discovered in Belgium, which

b e e n s t u d i e d b y V a n G a ns b e k e

57

.

T he presence of severa l hoa rds dated to

2 5 8 - 2 6 2

in the

of the rivers Scheldt and Lys shows that the coast of

Fl a nd e r s had been invaded at that t ime and that th

vaders , probably Frankish pira tes, penetra ted

th e

int

b y w a y o f

th e

rivers.

Hoard

finds stop in

F l a n d ers f r o m

unti l Postumus'

death in

269, when they begin again

58

.

p a r e nt l y a f t e r Pos t u mu s

ha d

been accla imed empero

26 0

he

took immediate steps

to

b u i l d

a

defensive sea- l i

order to prevent the

enemy

from

overrunning

the cou

T he absence of hoards a f ter 2 6 2 supports this. T he sp

attention given to the expansion of the fleet is reflecte

the

reverse representations

of

several coins issued d

th e f i rst years of his reign

59

. In

this

historical setting

sudden increase of coins a t A ard enb urg a f ter 2 60 ca

just i f iably explained: the settlement was incorporate

P o stumus ' coastal defence system a nd garr isoned by

troops.

With

this

in

mi nd

it is

reasonable

to

assume

tha

increased

activity

at Domburg and

Westerschouwen

also have

had its

origin

in the

measures taken

b y

P o s t u

The presence of his f leet in those

waters

could well

accounted

for it. The

coin series f rom

all

three sites

that Roma n a c t i v i t y

did not end

i mme d i a t e l y

on

Pos t u

death b u t continued under hi s successors until 273,

Roman contacts

with

Zeeland ceased abruptly.

There

is a r e m a r k a b l e parallel b e t w e e n P o stumus ' de

policy and the one f o l l ow e d by the e m p e r o rs M a x i m

Hercul ius and Constantius Chlorus at the end of the

century

-

they, too, were comp elled

to

develop

a

co

defence system.

This

system, known

as the Litus

Sax

cum, consisted

of a

chain

of

castella

along th e

coast.

O

58

Van

Gansbeke

1955,13.

59

Van

Gansbeke

1952,

n ff.


21/42

J O H . S .

B O E R S M A /

T he roman coins from the

p r o v i n c e

o f Zeeland

3

2

1 -

EXEMPLARE

PRO

REGIERUNGSJAHR

JAGSTHAUSEN

-i—,—,—, .. . i -

i

-n — l 1-1

n p

r

.

14 37415468 7996 117 138 161 180192 211 217 235 268 284 306 324 337360378

n.Ch

r

Fig. 6 Graph of the

coin

series f r o m th e castellum o f Jagsthau-

sen.

A f te r

Ch r i s t 19 6 0 , v ,

graph

no. 8; see

general note

on p . 9 7

4-

3-

EXEMPLARE PRO

REGIERUNGSJAHR

OSTERBURKEN

1

1 14 54 68

96

117 138 161180192211217235244268

6

360n.Chr.

Fig. 7 Graph of the coin series from the castellum of Oster-

b u r k e n ,

A f t e r Ch r i s t 1960, v,

graph

no.

ii;

see

general note

on

p. 9 7


22/42

jo H , S . B O E R S M A / T he roman coins from the province of Zeeland

them was t h e c a s t e l l u m a t O u d e n b u r g in

West

Flanders ,

not far f r o m A a r d e n b u r g

6 0

. T h e complete absence of any

coins f rom this period a t A a r d e n b u r g l e a d s to the a s s u m p -

tion that a decision w a s t a k e n at the t i me not to rebui ld th e

violently destroyed camp on the same si te , but to abandon

it and w i t h d r a w th e f r ont i e r s ome w h a t f u r t h e r to the south .

A l s o th e initial stages of the sea transgression m a y h a v e

ha d

something

to do

with this decision. A ccordingly A ar-

d e nb u r g ' s r o l e w a s ta k e n ov er b y O u d e nb u r g .

B e f o r e d iscussing the events leading to the disap peara nce

of

Roman inf luence in Zeeland, the two hoards that were

found

a t A a r d e n b u r g will b e d iscussed; together w ith th e

stray coins there and on the coast they give a c lear picture

of

the si tua tion in Zeeland a t that t ime.

The

hoards

Hoard A w a s f ou nd in 1962 a m i d th e t r a c e s of the r e c t a n-

g u l a r s t r u c t u r e s

n e a r th e

la rge stone establ ishment

and the

G a l l o - R o m a n temple. Al though th e coins h a d been scatter-

ed and

were found dispersed over

a

s ma l l area, they

ha d

undoubtedly belonged together or igina l ly .

N o

conta iner

h a s

been found which could have contained the coins of either

h oa r d . H oa r d A i s c omp os e d a s fol lows:

M .

Au r e l i u s

B e f o r e 2 3 8

G or d i a nu s ill

B ef o r e

2 50

B ef o r e 2 6 0

G a l l i e nu s

A f t e r

2 6 0

B e f o r e

2 6 8

P o s t u m u s

C l a u d i u s ii

D i v o C l a u d i o

Tetricus i-n

Victorinus or T etr icus

sest.

dup.

den.

d u p . /a s

ant .

Documents

The Roman coins from the province of Zeeland / Joh. S. Boersma