In ancient times roman soldiers recived bags of this minerals as their pay?

Answer 1

.It is sometimes said that in the early days Roman soldiers were paid in salt and that the word salary is derived from the Latin for salt (sal). This is not true. Roman soldiers were paid in money right for the start, right from the time of the introduction of pay for the soldiers. The historical record says that soldiers were paid in money and it is possible to reconstruct the times when this monetary remuneration was increased. Moreover, their pay was called stipendium, not salarium. This misconception originated from Pliny the Elder, who stated that "[I]n Rome. . .the soldier's pay was originally salt and the word salary derives from it...". However, this was just speculation about a distant past the Romans had forgotten and Pliny was nor a historian. He was a naturalist. It is more likely that the soldiers may have been given an allowance to buy salt at times of was because at such times its price shot up. Salt was very important in those days because it was the most important preservative for food