Is it true that Roman soldiers were paid in salt?

Being so valuable, soldiers in the Roman army were sometimes paid with salt instead of money. Their monthly allowance was called “salarium” (“sal” being the Latin word for salt).

Why was salt important to the Romans?

Salt was a vital commodity to the Roman army and this demand will have been met by establishing military salt works. At the inland sites the nearly saturated natural brine would require much less fuel and time to make salt than from the evaporation of weakly saline sea water.

Did salt used to be a currency?

The word “salary” was derived from the word “salt.” Salt was highly valued and its production was legally restricted in ancient times, so it was historically used as a method of trade and currency.

When were Roman salts paid?

Roman soldiers were paid 900 sestertii (225 denarii) during the time of Augustus. They were also given salt, thus the word “saldare” (give salt), which is the origin of the word, salary.

What was salt used for?

Salt has long been used for flavoring and for preserving food. It has also been used in tanning, dyeing and bleaching, and the production of pottery, soap, and chlorine. Today, it is widely used in the chemical industry.

What were the uses of salt during ancient times?

Salt could be used to preserve foods that otherwise might have rotted: think dried fish and bacon, pickles and olives, and cheese. Salt is also a tool for “controlled rotting” in foods like kimchee, fish sauce, soy sauce, tofu, and sauerkraut.

What did a Roman soldier get paid?

Soldiers’ pay was made in three instalments of 75 denarii in January, May and September. Domitian changed the intervals to three monthly and thus increased pay to 300 denarii. Under Severus he raised pay once more to an estimated 450 denarii. Caracalla gave a substantial increase of 50\% probably to 675 denarii.

What was a common form of payment to Roman Legendaries?

The basic idea is that Roman soldiers were paid in salt, or received an allowance of ‘salt money’.

Were Roman legionaries paid in Salt?

There is no real hard, contemporary evidence they were paid in salt, though that speculation on the obvious meaning of the word is quite ancient. For most of the Republic, legionaries were not paid at all.

Were Roman soldiers paid in coin or specie?

In the late Republican and Imperial period, no, they were paid in specie. However, this was an etymology that the Romans themselves suggested. Pliny suggested that the word salarium (salary) came from salarius (salt), and said this was because in the old days soldiers were paid in salt.

Why are Roman soldiers called sal dares?

Roman soldiers were partly paid in salt. It is said to be from this that we get the word soldier – ‘sal dare’, meaning to give salt. From the same source we get the word salary, ‘salarium’. Salt was a scarce and expensive commodity and its value was legendary.

Why was salt used as a currency in the Roman Empire?

“Ostia like many ports around the Mediterranean made salt for their domestic use and also as a currency. In Latin, the word for salt is Sal-Salis. The Roman legions were paid in salt for it was a precious commodity. The English word “Salary” comes down to us from that practice.