Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Toolkit for Finds Reporting: Roman Coinage a training guide for identifying Roman coins?


No. The Toolkit for Finds Reporting: Roman Coinage is a guide to the reliable and consistent reporting of archaeologically-recovered Roman coins.

  • The identification and reporting of Roman coins are specialist tasks that should be undertaken, or overseen, by an experienced archaeological numismatist (see Introduction).
  • The Template is a technical document that needs to be completed, saved and archived with care.
Why can’t I download the Roman Coin Recording Template?
  • The Roman Coin Identification Template and its linked resources are provided as a Microsoft Excel workbook in the Downloads section of this Toolkit. The Template is a macro-enabled spreadsheet, where the macros relate to the 3 dropdown lists and improve the Template’s functionality. The Template is saved as a .xlsm file, which is safe to download and save.
  • When downloading and opening the Template file from the Downloads section of this Toolkit, some users might see a security warnings from Microsoft. These warnings are caused by the enhanced security protection related to macros included in recent updated versions of Microsoft Excel, which by default block macros in documents received from the internet. These updates are meant to protect unsuspecting Excel users from downloading files containing malware, but they also have the unintended consequence of making using any downloaded macro-enabled files more awkward that was the case previously.
    • If you do see one of these warnings, please be assured that the Template’s macros do NOT contain any malicious code and that CIfA’s website IS trustworthy.
  • The Roman Coin Identification Template and its linked resources will not function without enabled macros. The macros must be enabled in order to use the Template properly.
  • Guidance on how to avoid the Template file being blocked by Microsoft’s security is available in the Toolkit’s help document (see Downloads).
What information should I enter on the Roman Coin Recording Template?
  • The Roman Coin Recording Template is divided into 15 Primary fields and a further 6 Secondary fields.
  • The Glossary contains explanations of the Roman Coin Recording Template’s Primary and Secondary fields.
  • Primary fields indicate information that is considered essential for most coin lists and reports (although it might not be possible, or necessary, to fill in every field).
    • 7 of the Template’s 15 Primary Fields are populated from 3 dropdown lists (DENOMINATION; EMPEROR / ISSUER; MINT), 4 of which are linked to the EMPEROR / ISSUER dropdown list (ie DATE; DATE FROM; DATE TO; IP).
  • Secondary fields include additional data that are considered non-essential for most archaeological projects.
    • The archaeological numismatist, in consultation with the project team, will be responsible for determining which of the Secondary fields are completed for some, or all coins (likely to depend on the contribution recording these data will make to the project’s aims and objectives).
  • It might be useful to temporarily append extra columns for the recording of additional information that is likely to be generated during the assessment and analysis of a Roman coin assemblage (for example, conservation / cleaning requirements, or stratigraphic information). If so, any extra columns should be appended after all Primary and Secondary fields on the Template (ie column V onwards), not between the existing Primary and Secondary fields (ie columns A to U), as to do so will affect the Template's dropdown lists and disrupt its functionality.
How do I add new rows on the Roman Coin Recording Template for additional coins?
  • A new row is added to the bottom of the Roman Coin Recording Template (ie, in the spreadsheet above the instruction beginning 'Add coin data above this row'), each time an entry is completed.
  • The Template is configured so that the SITE CODE column must be filled before other information can be entered on to the spreadsheet. Failure to fill in the SITE CODE will produce a dialog box with the reminder ‘Please set a SITE CODE before progressing’.
  • The SITE CODE, COIN ID and CONTEXT columns also can be populated by copying and pasting this information from another spreadsheet. 
Why can’t I enter data on the Roman Coin Recording Template?
  • Please see the How to use the Roman Coin Recording Template section before using the Template.
  • The Roman Coin Recording Template is provided as an .xlsm file – a macro-enabled spreadsheet created by Microsoft Excel. The embedded macros relate to the 3 dropdown lists (DENOMINATION; EMPEROR / ISSUER; MINT) and improve the Template’s functionality. The Template is saved as a .xlsm file, which is safe to download and save on other computers.
    • The dropdown lists will only function if the Template being worked on is saved as an .xlsm file.
    • Changing the Template to another file type – including .xlsx, .xls, or .csv formats – will disable the dropdown lists. Saving the Template as a .xlsx, .xls, or .csv file should only be done after all the coins have been recorded.
  • Users can only enter data on the Roman Coin Recording Template (second sheet in the Roman Coin Recording Template Excel workbook) and on Row 3 of the ADS_spreadsheet_metadata coversheet.
    • The Roman Coin Recording Template is for the recording of Roman coin identifications.
    • The ADS_spreadsheet_metadata coversheet contains the file-level metadata required by the Archaeology Data Service to archive and disseminate data (following the Microsoft Excel template and examples provided on the ADS Guidelines for Depositors webpages). The metadata part of the coversheet is pre-populated and the user just needs to complete Row 3, which contains the information related to the newly created file.
  • 7 of the Template’s 15 Primary Fields are populated from 3 dropdown lists (DENOMINATION; EMPEROR / ISSUER; MINT), 4 of which are linked to the EMPEROR / ISSUER dropdown list (ie, DATE; DATE FROM; DATE TO; IP).
    • Entries for the DENOMINATION, EMPEROR / ISSUER and MINT columns can only be made by selecting from the dropdown lists ( the DATE, DATE FROM, DATE TO and IP columns can be amended manually).
  • The remaining Primary and Secondary fields in the Template are completed manually - those such as COIN ID and CONTEXT will be mainly numeric values, while others such as REVERSE will consist of text entries.
  • Some users report that the Roman Coin Recording Template loses functionality when used on a second screen. In this case, the dropdown lists and other features should work when the Template is moved to the main work screen.
Why are the Roman Coin Recording Template’s dropdown lists not working?
  • The Roman Coin Recording Template is provided as an .xlsm file – a macro-enabled spreadsheet created by Microsoft Excel. The embedded macros relate to the 3 dropdown lists (DENOMINATION; EMPEROR / ISSUER; MINT) and improve the Template’s functionality. The Template is saved as a .xlsm file, which is safe to download and save on other computers.
    • The dropdown lists will only function if the Template being worked on is saved as an .xlsm file.
    • Changing the Template to another file type – including .xlsx, .xls, or .csv formats – will disable the dropdown lists. Saving the Template as a .xlsx, .xls, or .csv file should only be done after all the coins have been recorded.
  • To enable macros and use the Template, make sure the downloaded Template file is moved from the computer’s Downloads folder to another folder on the internal drive, network share, or cloud share drive. You might want to change the file’s name at this stage too (it must remain a .xlsm file).
  • Some users report that the Roman Coin Recording Template loses functionality when used on a second screen. In this case, the dropdown lists and other features should work when the Template is moved to the main work screen.
How do I save the Roman Coin Recording Template?
  • The Roman Coin Recording Template can be saved as an .xlsm file by using the standard ‘Save’ functions in Microsoft Excel.
    • The macro-enabled dropdown lists will continue to function.
  • The Roman Coin Recording Template can be saved as an .xlsx file by using the blue button on the Template’s coversheet (ADS_spreadsheet_metadata), which includes the file-level metadata required by the Archaeology Data Service (ADS) to archive and disseminate data.
    • Note: the ADS does not recognise .xlsm files among the preferred or accepted file formats for archiving, and the file should be saved as an .xlsx, .xls, or .csv file before it is submitted to the project archive.
  • The Template can be saved as other file types (eg, .csv or .pdf) using the ‘Save As’ functions in Microsoft Excel and selecting the required file type.