WORLD CIVILIZATION

Detailed explanation-1: -How did coins lose their oridinal value? The government did not have a large supply of gold and silver. As a result, the new coins had less of these precious metals in them, which reduced their value.

Detailed explanation-2: -Overtime, the coinage of the Roman Empire became debased, with coins containing less precious metal than their nominal value would indicate. This has been linked to problems with inflation in the third and fourth centuries AD, and to the eventual replacement of the older currency system with a new one.

Detailed explanation-3: -Early Roman coins (from the 200s BCE) were made in bronze, but they later evolved to include silver, gold and copper in the coin-making process. The most popular and prevalent coin of the Roman Empire was the denarius, made from pressed silver; it remained in circulation for an astonishing five centuries.

Detailed explanation-4: -Roman emperors chose to stretch the money supply to help pay for these obligations by debasing their coins with cheaper metals, such as copper, while keeping the face value of the coins constant. Debase-ment increased the money supply and thus the government’s spending power.