Coins and Baptism in Late Antiquity. Written Sources and Numismatic Evidence Reconsidered

Risultato della ricerca: Contributo in libroChapter

Abstract

Coins were used in Roman times in widespread rituals as material mediators between people and gods. Some written sources describe these practices, but they do not provide much insight into the deeper reasons behind these uses of money. The aim of the paper is to analyse Canon 48 of the so-called ‘Council of Elvira’, dating sometime between the fourth and sixth centuries AD, which forbids the custom of placing coins in baptismal fonts by those being baptised. Coin finds in some early baptismal structures have confirmed the ritual, but the textual and material sources are not in accordance, and a satisfactory explanation is lacking. While the canon seems to suggest that the coins were perceived as a payment for the bishop, numismatic contexts suggest that coins were placed in the fonts for their symbolic value.
Lingua originaleEnglish
Titolo della pubblicazione ospiteDivina Moneta. Coins in Religion and Ritual
EditorN Myrberg Burström, G Tarnow Ingvardson
Pagine49-67
Numero di pagine19
Stato di pubblicazionePubblicato - 2018

Serie di pubblicazioni

NomeRELIGION AND MONEY IN THE MIDDLE AGES

Keywords

  • Coins and Baptism
  • Coins and ritual

Fingerprint

Entra nei temi di ricerca di 'Coins and Baptism in Late Antiquity. Written Sources and Numismatic Evidence Reconsidered'. Insieme formano una fingerprint unica.

Cita questo