Ritual Use of Coins in Late Antique and Early Medieval Tombs in Verona (Italy) and Its Hinterland

Located in the eastern part of northern Italy, Verona is one of the best excavated Roman towns in this territory, and the funerary dimension of the ancient and medieval period is one of the best known. This paper systematically examines the ritual use of coins in late antique and early medieval burials documented in the city and its hinterland and links this situation to those observed in other contemporary cases in northern Italy. The analysis focuses on the position of the coinage in the tomb, the sex and age of those buried, and the types of coins used. For this purpose, forty-three burials from between the third and seventh centuries were selected, yielding a total of eighty-four coins minted between the first and fifth centuries. The cases are documented in excavations carried out with the stratigraphic method in the city and its hinterland in recent decades, although some chance finds (unexcavated) were considered due to the quality of the data. By illuminating the ritual use of coins in the Veneto during this barely studied period, this study provides a reference for the analysis of contemporary cases in other areas.

Ritual Use of Coins in Late Antique and Early Medieval Tombs in Verona (Italy) and Its Hinterland Articles