Description

• Citizens of the Byzantine empire would have recognised themselves as "Roman". The Byzantine Empire was a medieval and early modern state that existed in southeastern Europe between the 4th and 15th centuries. It was a successor state of the Roman Empire, it was founded by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in 324 AD at Constantinople (now Istanbul) and lasted until 1453. During most of its existence, it was the most powerful economic, cultural, and military force in Europe in parallel with the growing power of the Frankish and Holy Roman Empire. As a continuation of the Roman Empire, it is also conventionally referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium.
• The term "Follis" is typically used to refer to a large bronze coin of the late Roman Empire introduced in about 294 AD, during the reign of Emperor Diocletian and then revalued under Constantine's monetary reforms. It weighed some 10 grams and had a small percentage of silver. The term is often used interchangeably with the terms AE and Nummus. Later research suggests that Nummus is the correct term used at the time. At the end of the 5th century, the Byzantine Empire (eastern Roman Empire) introduced a copper Follis coin worth 40 nummi. It soon became the standard coin used for trade and commerce. The follis continued to be minted until the 5th century AD.