This first coin was mis-attributed to Aretas IV (9 BC - 40 AD). These types for Aretas are the most common of Nabataean bronzes. However, the lettering on the reverse of this example reads, at the top, from right to left: mem, lamedh, kaph, yodh, signifying Aretas' son Malichus II (40 - 70 AD). During the reign of Malichus II, the Nabataean Kingdom quietly flourished - I say "quietly" because there are no extant records of anything happening of import. It is reported, however, that when the Judaeans revolted in 66, Malichus sent 5,000 cavalry and 1,000 infantry to assist Titus in basically crushing the Jews. Here is Malichus II and his queen Shaqilat II (his father also married a woman named Shaqilat, who was Malichus' mother). Got it? Anyway, here are the king and queen peeking out from behind the flan and the sands of time... Oh, also...Malichus II is usually depicted with a moustache, as opposed to his father, who is clean-shaven. This is a nice example of the moustached king. BTW, does anyone know of any ancient type with a moustached king, other than Malichus II?
Theodahad and Odoacer, two barbarian kings of Italy, were depicted with moustaches on some of their coins.
Here's a lepton of Aretas IV, from the earlier part of his reign, before jugate busts of the king and queen became de rigeur on Nabataean bronzes. Technically this coin only grades F, but the centering is great, you can read the ligature between the cornucopias (heth and resh, denoting HRTT, or Haratat...Aretas). Also, the sand patina gives wonderful contrast. I particularly like the way the bust comes across as a silhouette with an eye...
The portrait on your last coin reminds me a bit of one of mine. I purely bought it because i found the bust so impressive in its simplicity with a mesmerizing eye. (it's a tiny 11 mm bronze)
Here's a less than lovely coin, but scarce. The earliest Nabataean coins were issued by Aretas II (c. 103-96 BC), minted at Damascus. They are modeled after the iconography of Alexandrian staters with Athena on the obverse, Nike reverse. Although these little imitative bronzes show no outward evidence of being Nabataean, they always occur in a Nabataean context, mixed in with coins of later rulers. Evidently they were never demonetized, so finding them in any recognizable condition is tough. I discuss these coins on my website here. Here are better examples as a reference. I didn't collect the above coin per se - it came along for the ride with some others.
here's a nabatean a seller gave me recently... Nabatean Kingdom, Aretas IV, 9 BC - 40 AD O: jugate busts of Aretas IV and Shuqailat(off flan), R: cross cornucopias. "Aretas (off flan)/Shuqai/lat. Petra mint. 16x18 mm, 3.3 g i'm missing the queen's face, but i believe i have her name on the reverse...without the kings.
