Note 507 — Chapter IV · THE CENTURIES AND THE CLASSES

As silver is at present worth 51¼ cents an ounce (so quoted in New York, Sept. 5, 1908), a denarius (= ⅟₇₂ lb. Troy) of the coinage preceding 217 is worth by weight today 8½ cents. A more just comparison would be based on the present coined values. As a dollar contains 371¼ grains of silver, a denarius would be worth 21½ cents; or with a liberal allowance for the alloy, we might say about 20 cents. The sesterce, ¼ denarius, would therefore be equivalent to five cents. An estate of 100,000 asses of heavy weight (sesterces) would be worth about $5000, of the sextantarian standard $2000. It is hardly possible that so large a proportion of the population as was contained in the first class should average the former amount of wealth to the family. In fact the purchasing power of money was enormously higher than these equivalents indicate. In 430 the value of an ox or cow was legally set at 100 libral asses and of a sheep at ten. Reckoning a beef at the low modern value of $45, and a sheep at $4.50, we obtain a value of 45 cents for the libral as, or 22½ cents for one of 5 oz. weight (sesterce), which would give the denarius a purchasing power of 90 cents.