Coin Talk
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A Visigothic siliqua minted in the name of Honorius in Septimania
In 414-415 the Visigoths based in Septimania and Aquitaine propped Priscus Attalus in his second usurpation and a local Gallic mint, located probably at Narbonne, started minting imitative siliquae in his name. By 415 though, under the pressure from general Constantius, the Visigoths abandoned him and he was captured by Honorius loyalists and taken to Ravenna. Afterwards, the mint in Septimania -- both Narbonne and Toulouse had been under the control of Athaulf, the King of the Visigoths, since at least 413 -- began issuing in the name of Honorius. The new coinage was the same style of imitative siliqua, of the same overall quality and design. These new siliquae minted in the name of Honorius are part of the "Gaul series" (RIC X p. 451) which means they must be connected with those minted for Attalus and are part of a cohesive coinage. The exergue of pseudo-Ravenna might have originated in 410 with Alaric's invasion of Italy (cf. DOC p. 223) and was used from... -
Augusti & Caesars who campaigned in Britain
Portrait Coins depicting Caesars and Augusti who campaigned in Britain.
* All images formatted by @furryfrog02
Four Augusti died in Britain:
SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS - at Eboracum (York), AD 211, while campaigning in the north.
CARAUSIUS - in southern Britain, AD 293, assassinated by his Chief Minister, Allectus.
ALLECTUS - in southern Britain, AD 296, killed in battle with the invading force of Constantius.
CONSTANTIUS (Chlorus) - at Eboracum (York), AD 306, while campaigning in the north.
Julius Caesar:
In 55 BC Julius Caesar became the first Roman Imperator to set foot in Britain. He fought skirmishes with local Chieftains in the south east of the country eventually departing Britain later that year to resume his campaign in Gaul. He returned in early 54 BC and successfully subjugated the Britannic forces only to abandon the campaign later in the year.
Denarius, Crawford,... -
Coinage of Demetrios I Poliorketes
Poliorketes is an often forgotten historical figure. Most historians would regard him as a boring historical figure, but by the end of reading this you will start to love him a bit more. He was a historical badass and his coinage reflects those accomplishments. Poliorketes was the second ruler of the Antigonid dynasty. The Antigonid dynasty was a dynasty full of Hellenistic kings who ruled an area of Macedon, after Alexander the Great, from 294-168 BC. The group that split up Alexander’s kingdom were called Diadochi (Διάδοχοι). The Antigonid was one of the four dynasties fought for by other Διάδοχοι that descended from Alexander’s conquered land.
The whole dynasty originates from one of Alexander’s best generals, Antigonus I Monophthalmus. Antigonus attempted to re-claim parts of Asia Minor and Syria. He was defeated by Demitrios I in the battle of Ipsus. The first true ruler of this dynasty was Demitrios I Poliorketes. He won the war against Antigonus and became the leader of... -
Romans vs. Parthians
After a number of diversions in Anatolia, and a bit of an RR drought, this week I added another Roman Republican coin to my collection. My latest RR coin is connected to two of my primary collection themes, Sulla and the rivalry between Parthia and Rome.
The Sulla Connections (or Romans v. Romans)
Marcus Licinius Crassus escaped when his brother and father were killed as Marius returned to Rome after Sulla went off to fight Mithridates. He then played a key role in Sulla’s return and victory at the Colline Gate. [See Plutarch Crassus 6.6] At this time the seeds were also sown for his rivalry with Pompey, a younger man of less noble birth who served Sulla well as a ruthless warlord. [See... -
Revisiting the date of a scarce series of bronzes in the name of Helena at Alexandria
Inspired by the very smart and inquisitive posts of @DonnaML regarding the family of Constantine the Great, I have decided to add a new thread to the theme.
Most of us who dwell on the Late Empire have noticed that the dates assigned to some coinages in RIC VII to X are too general or even added just as the generic dates of a reign -- "c. 310-313," "340-350" or "383-388."
Others seem to be wrong when compared to newer insights and research in the history of the era. For instance in 1966, the common wisdom (based on Alfoldi) was that Helena, Constantine's mother, died after 330, perhaps not as late as 335 to 337 as it had been considered by Otto Seeck for instance, but sometime between 330 and 333. As a matter of fact, Alexandria is shown to have a pause in any and all mintage between 330 (the last issue for Helena according to RIC) and 333 (the introduction of the GLORIA EXERCITVS soldiers and standards type).
The last coinage from Alexandria assigned to... -
Honoring the Wet-Nurse: a French Medal from 1831
Medal, France, AR 18.09 g, 35.0 mm, 12 h.
Mathias Vivier, 1831.
Obv: NUTRIX QUOQUE MATER, wet-nurse seated left, holding breastfeeding infant.
Rev: MAISON/CENTRALE/DE/NOURRICES,/1831.
About Mathias Vivier and this medal
Mathias Nicolas Marie Vivier was a nineteenth century medallist, born in Paris, 6 April 1788. He was a pupil of Moineaux and entered the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in 1807. He was represented several times at the Paris Salon between 1819 and 1833, and he lived until about 1859.[1] Vivier was well known for his medals featuring such historic personages as Alexander Pope, John Milton, Dr. Hermann Boerhaave, Leonardo da Vinci, George Washington, and Copernicus. Several of his medals are featured in Durand’s "Galerie metallique."[2]
This medal, struck by Vivier in 1831, bears the obverse legend NUTRIX QUOQUE MATER, meaning "wet-nurse as well as mother," and the reverse legend MAISON CENTRALE DE NOURRICES, 1831, translated "Central Home... -
Far-Out Faustina Fourrée?
At first, this denarius of Faustina I seems unremarkable, but its existence is fascinating and raises more questions than it answers. I'd love to hear your thoughts, and by all means, post anything you feel is relevant!
Faustina I, AD 138-140.
Unofficial imitative issue?, 3.27 g, 18.0 mm, 12 h.
Ca. AD 140-160?
Obv: DIVA FAVSTINA, bare-headed and draped bust, right.
Rev: PIETATI(?) AVG, Pietas, veiled and draped, standing left, dropping incense from right hand onto lighted altar and holding box in left hand.
Refs: Cf. BMC p. 67, † note, RSC 234b, CRE 113 and Strack 462 (Budapest), all of which read PIETAS AVG.
Is this a fourrée imitation or a solid silver, official issue?
If this is an official issue, it must read PIETAS AVG, for no coins with a PIETATI AVG reverse legend and a standing figure sacrificing over an altar appear until the reign of Pescennius Niger. Many coins depicting Pietas were issued for Faustina I after her death, and this... -
Twenty Cent Pieces
Well the $.20 pieces are a very short-lived coin. It was authorized by Congress on March 3, 1875 and as soon as they appeared in public there were complaints about the similarity, design and the size in relation to a quarter of a dollar.
This coin was only minted for 4 years and only 7 different issues exist. The first year of issue was 1875 and Philadelphia produced 38,500 pieces. Carson City produced 133,290 pieces and San Francisco produced 1,155,000 pieces. The following year, 1876, 14,750 pieces were produced at Philadelphia with another 1,150 coins in proof. Carson City only produced 10,000 coins with the majority of those coins never being released to the public. Most of them were melted at the Mint and it is believed that most of the Philadelphia coins were also melted.
The following two years, 1877 and 1878 just over 1100 pieces were minted in proof only. In these two years no pieces were made for general circulation.
The demise of the $.20 piece it is believed to be... -
The mystery of AMANDUS
Eutropius IX, 21 : He thus became master of the Roman empire; and when the peasants in Gaul made an insurrection, giving their faction the name of Bagaudae, and having for leaders Amandus and Aelianus, he despatched Maximian Herculius, with the authority of Caesar, to suppress them. Maximian, in a few battles of little importance, subdued the rustic multitude, and restored peace to Gaul.
285 AD
The crisis of the third century in the Roman Empire is almost over. But not entirely. In Gaul, a group of peasants called the bagaudae rebelled against the grinding taxation and garnishing of their lands, harvests and manpower by the predatory agents of the late Roman state. After the death of the emperor Carinus, forty-nine cities revolt, including Paris, Sens, Troyes, Auxerre and Meaux. A man named Amandus took the head of this small army (with the help of Aelianus). After having been given the title of Emperor, he carried desolation everywhere, ravaging the... -
A Heroic Heir
I was really thrilled this week to have added a long sought after 'grail' coin! It has been on my numismatic 'Bucket List' for the better part of a decade.
Vespasian
AR Didrachm, 6.20g
Caesarea, Cappadocia mint, 76-77 AD
Obv: ΑΥΤΟΚΡΑ ΚΑΙϹΑΡ ΟΥƐϹΠΑϹΙΑΝΟϹ ϹƐΒΑϹΤΟϹ; Head of Vespasian, laureate, r.
Rev: ΤΙΤΟϹ ΑΥΤΟΚΡΑΤWΡ ΚΑΙϹΑΡ ƐΤ[ΟΥϹ] Θ; Titus in military dress, standing facing, holding spear and sword
RPC 1649 (10 spec.).
Acquired from Aegean Numismatics, June 2020.
Several issues of silver coinage were struck for Cappadocia during Vespasian's reign. They were produced in two distinct styles: Roman (with a six o'clock die axis) and 'local' (with a twelve o'clock die axis). The majority of Cappadocia's silver coins were struck in 'local' style, presumably at Caesarea and were somewhat supplemented by the 'Roman' style coins from Rome. Whether 'Roman' or 'local', all Cappadocian silver were produced at nearly 48% fineness. This remarkable...
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