When did Romans first use coins?

The Romans began using coins at the end of the fourth century B.C. Prior to this, a rough system of bronze weights called the aes rude was used as currency. The first Roman coins were primarily bronze, but silver began to replace bronze as the Roman Empire expanded.

The first Roman coins were minted in Italy but were eventually produced throughout the Roman Empire. Julius Caesar was the first Roman emperor to use his own profile on coins. Subsequent emperors like Brutus and Augustus followed suit. Some Roman coins contain the only record of lost or ruined monuments and help historians in establishing a chronology of early Rome.