Denarius Debasement of the coin's silver content continued after Nero. Later Roman emperors reduced its content to 3 grams around the late 3rd century. The value at its introduction was 10 asses, giving the denarius its name, which translates as "containing ten". In about 141 BC, it was re-tariffed at 16 asses, to reflect the decrease in weight of the as. The denarius continued to be the main coin of the Roman Empire until it was replaced by the antoninianus in the middle of the 3rd century. The coin was last issued, in bronze, under Aurelian between AD 270 and 275,
Denarius Denarius The denarius (, dēnāriī, ) was the standard Roman silver coin from its introduction in the Second Punic War c. 211 BC to the reign of Gordian III (AD 238–244), when it was gradually replaced by the Antoninianus. It continued to be minted in very small quantities, likely for ceremonial purposes, until and through the tetrarchy (293–313). The word "dēnārius" is derived from the Latin "dēnī" "containing ten", as its value was originally of 10 assēs. The word for "money" descends from it in Italian ("denaro"), Slovene ("denar"), Portuguese ("dinheiro"), and Spanish ("dinero"). Its name also survives in the