this post was submitted on 10 Apr 2025
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Rough Roman Memes
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Taxes on transported goods were the most common! Portoria, usually around 2.5% of the value - sometimes cargo was inscribed by local officials to verify that the tax was paid on the object passing through!
Excellent! 👌 that’s the garum I’m talking about ! And did any Roman emperor got taxes crazy?
Btw if you don’t mind me asking, how are you so knowledgeable in the Roman Empire? Are you a time traveler ?
Empire-wide taxes were harder to implement, but there are definite examples of more 'tax-happy' Emperors! In the Late Empire (the 'Dominate') it got particularly bad, but in the Early Empire (the 'Principate', what most people think of when they think 'The Roman Empire'), most new taxes were implemented locally. The Principate, in general, found it easier to make demands of local governments, and then have those local governments do the necessary legwork to figure out how to get the money.
Two of the most hated taxes were actually implemented by the first Emperor, Augustus. One on slave auctions, and one on inheritances. The Emperor Vespasian though, famously, implemented a tax on urine collection in the city of Rome (as it was used in bleaching and leatherworking), to his son's disgust!
Much of the time, Roman Emperors in financial trouble would resort to selling off parts of the imperial household, seizing the property of their political enemies, or debasing the currency over raising new taxes, though. Taxes cause unrest, and unrest can be quite deadly for a ruler!
I sacrificed basic life skills in exchange for an obsession with minute historical trivia.
I can't change the oil on a car, but I can tell you all about Ancient Rome!
You rock 🤘
@PugJesus randomly giving high-quality historical references
Your comments make my day better - I've no clue where you get all this knowledge from, but thank you! I really appreciate learning something new from you :)