Dirhams of the Samanid period with Graffiti found on the territory of Georgia

Abstract

Graffiti as a form of socio-cultural expression has existed since the time immemorial. Many of its examples have survived from ancient Greece and especially from the period of the ancient Roman Empire[1]. The practice of using graffiti was not limited to wall pain­tings, inscriptions or scrawls, but also to small but common objects such as coins. Money is a public use symbol of any state (especially the small denominations) which was available and intended for any social class.

In the history of Georgia, money has always had an important symbolic load and was used not only in the form intended for trading, but later acquired different functions and carried both ethnographic, propaganda and cultural load. Very often high-quality silver coins of low denomination were used as part of the decoration of a garment or to carry a specific function of the garment[2].

[1] For Example, the city of Pompeii that was covered in ash by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.

[2] Very often, a coin of a standard round form was used as a button of clothes.