Damnatio ad bestias: Roman counterfeiters

A type of Roman execution called damnatio ad bestias was reserved for the most serious offences to society: deserters, poisoners, sorcerers, kidnappers of children, leaders of rebellions and – last but not least – counterfeiters. Roman law viewed the creation of fake currency not just as theft, but as an act of treason and an attack on the emperor’s authority.

Convicted counterfeiters were designated as noxii (condemned criminals).

They were brought into the arena unarmed and defenseless to be mauled by imported predators like lions, bears, or leopards. A sentence of damnatio ad bestias stripped a Roman citizen of all rights. They were legally barred from writing a will, and the state confiscated their remaining property.

Even the earliest Lydian coins were counterfeited. Silver coinage was an idea that the Romans adopted from the Greeks, beginning about 290 BCE. Counterfeiting inevitably came along with the innovation. A handful of ancient counterfeiters’ dies used to strike denarii have survived to command high prices on the antiquities market and even some fakes from the era are collectible.