The Real Reason Rome Collapsed — It Stopped Trusting Its Own Coins

The Real Reason Rome Collapsed — It Stopped Trusting Its Own Coins Rome never ran out of silver. The mines were still producing, and the empire still held more precious metal than any state on earth. What it ran out of was people who believed what the coin said, and the state was the last to admit it. The proof is in the tax records. The government that minted the coins began refusing them, and collected in grain instead. This is the story of two coins from the same treasury under the same emperors, and why one collapsed while the other lasted seven hundred years. The Exchequer covers the financial history behind events everyone thinks they already understand.