sesterce

[ ses-turs ]

/ ˈsɛs tɜrs /

a silver coin of ancient Rome, the quarter of a denarius, equal to 2½ asses: introduced in the 3rd century b.c.

Origin of sesterce

1590–1600; < Latin sēstertius, equivalent to sēs- half-unit (see sesqui-) + tertius third (i.e., 2 units and half a 3rd one equal 2½ asses)

And the fourth part of it, consisting of two asses and half of a third, they called "sesterce."

Ten Books on Architecture |Vitruvius
But since I have won every sesterce he owns I must needs pay for his board.

A Friend of Caesar |William Stearns Davis
"You will never get a sesterce of Cornelia's dowry," he declared.

A Friend of Caesar |William Stearns Davis
Once let the mob overtake them, and the lives of all three were not worth a sesterce.

A Friend of Caesar |William Stearns Davis

A sesterce is four and one-half cents so that the possible price of a peach in Rome 1900 years ago was $1.35.

The Peaches of New York |U. P. Hedrick

sesterce

/ (ˈsɛstɛːs) /

a silver or, later, bronze coin of ancient Rome worth a quarter of a denarius

C16: from Latin sēstertius a coin worth two and a half asses, from sēmis half + tertius a third