ABSTRACT
A DETAILED EXAMINATION OF THE reigns of Carausius and Allectus can only be undertaken within the framework of the abundant coinage which is, after the contemporary or near-contemporary literary material, the principal source of evidence for the period. The coinage can be studied in a number of ways. In the first instance the individual coins and their inscriptions can be studied for direct or oblique allusion to events or, as in the previous chapter, they may be examined in a programmatic manner by their choice of types. Secondly, by studying the spatial distribution of types and issues and their occurrence on sites and in hoards, we may determine sources of production, their circulation pattern and, perhaps, their date of issue.
