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Linganore High School students studying Latin get to study more than just the ancient language; some get to keep coins used in Rome.

Deborah Carter's Latin classes participate in the Ancient Coins in Education Program (ACE), which offers students authentic Roman coins dating back 1,700 years.

The students examine and identify the coins and write about the people who might have used them, entering their stories in a national competition.

Last fall, Wendy Owens, a 15-year-old sophomore in Carter's Latin II class and member of the ACE club, took first price in the national competition for her story "Reluctance." This story will appear in the Celator, the ACE program's magazine.

In her story, Wendy fictionalized the second marriage of a sister of the Roman Emperor Flavius Honorius.

In Wendy's story, the woman is deeply resentful of being forced into her second marriage; as a Christian, she believed in only being married once. She is initially defiant, but in the end utters the words of a Latin marriage vow: "Quando Gaius, ego Gaia," or "when you are Gaius, I am Gaia."

For her prize, Wendy received a silver coin minted under Emperor Trajan, sometime between 98 and 117 A.D.

Wendy said she has a special place for the coin. "I keep it on my bookshelf," she said.

Carter's classes can participate in the program because of a grant from the Community Foundation of Frederick County.

All of the students who were able to correctly identify the bronze coins got to keep theirs. Carter said the coins dated to the second and third century A.D., and that some of the coins were minted under the same emperor, but in different cities. Because of this, they have different markings and can be harder to identify.

Students in the class chose to study Latin for a variety of reasons, ranging from the practical to the esoteric.

Greg Herrell, 15, a sophomore, said he sought out Latin because he thought it would help with his SATs.

Joseph Meyers, a 17-year-old junior, said he finds that it helps him with English words, and gives him a scholarly authority. "You just can't argue with people who speak Latin," he said.

Paul Woodward said he just found the language interesting. "Latin's awesome," he said.

Carter said that she has been including the coins in her class for several years, adding that a former student had told her about the program and gotten her involved.

E-mail Christian Brown at chbrown@gazette.net.