ABSTRACT
The money economy in the Roman empire rested on the maintenance of good and plentiful currency, and on the reputation of the Roman merchant for good, honest dealing. It should be noticed that economic historians so far used the phrases ‘money economy’ and ‘food and services economy’ as self-explanatory, and the transition from one to the other as the root cause of much social change. Working largely upon archaeological material, and the papyrus records, M. Rostovtzeff made a distinguished contribution to the social and economic history of the Roman empire, and others followed him. The barbarism of their social institutions was suggested by the violence of these kings: a rural society was held to have replaced civilized Roman institutions and to have been in the main Germanic. The money economy in the Roman empire rested on the maintenance of good and plentiful currency, and on the reputation of the Roman merchant for good, honest dealing.
