The Season of Harvest

I had a pleasant drive to Gettysburg today and got a chance to talk with Fred Shore at some length. I acquired this lovely denarius from his collection, with harvest themes...



TI. MINVCIVS AVGVRINVS, denarius, 134 BC.
Obv.: Helmeted head of Roma right; behind, mark of value.
Rev.: Spiral column surmounted by standing statue holding staff; at base of column, two corn ears; on left, togate figure holding loaves(?) in both hands and placing foot on modius; on right, togate figure holding lituus; above, ROMA; on left, TI. MINVCI C. F.; on right, AVGVRINI.
Reference: Crawford 243/1; Sydenham 494.

When I got home, the combines had arrived at the corn fields. They are now harvested and bare, which always a little bittersweet after watching them grow all spring and summer. Share your coins of harvest!

 

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I would love to have that coin JA. Great catch.

 

Hey I've got one of those:


Yours is a great example of the type. I discussed the subject of the reverse when I posted mine here. Interestingly after I bought it I found that it was published on WildWinds as the "plate coin" of sorts for the type.

 

GORGEOUS RR. Luvit! Gracchii Bro time! (Tiberius Tribune in 133 BCE)

 

what a great reverse, sweet new denarius JA!


demeter and grain (wish the grain on the reverse was better!)..




basket of harvested fruit...



hope you all don't mind much if i slipe this in...a modern porcelain/gilded german notgeld coin.....dude harvesting.

 

Nice one, JA. Lots of eye appeal there.

Can Tellus join the harvest party? She'll even bring her own plough and hoe...


HADRIAN
AR Denarius. 2.97g, 19mm. Rome mint, AD 134-138. RIC II 276; RSC 1425. O: HADRIANVS AVG COS III P P, bare head right. R: TELLVS STABIL, Tellus standing left, holding plough and hoe; two grain ears to her right.

 

Don't forget to eat your grains...


Cappadocia, Caesarea. Severus Alexander AE20.
Obverse: AYK CEOV ALEΞAND, laureate bust right.
Reverse: MHT P K AIC, three stalks of grain tied together, ET - H.


Cilicia, Laertes. Trajan Æ21. Demeter seated
Obv: Laureate head right.
Rev: Demeter seated left, holding poppy and grain ears in right hand, scepter in left.
SNG France 589-90; SNG Levante 371.


Phrygia, Acmoneia. Salonina
Obv: KOP. CALWNINA / CEB. Diad. amd dr. bust r.
Rev: AKMONEWN. Four ears of grain bound together.
Von Aulock 3385

 

Ilipense
After 150 BC
AE AS
Obvs: Grain ear, dotted border.
Revs: ILIPENSE, Fish swimming right. Crescent above
23x30mm, 11.93g

 

Hmm, I have surprisingly few harvest-related coins, or maybe I am not recognizing them as such. This one's pretty clear though:


Nero
struck in Rome, CE 63
Orichalcum sestertius, 34 mm, 26.7 gm
Obv: NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM P M TR P IMP PP; laureate head right, wearing aegis
Rev: ANNONA AVGVSTI CERES; Ceres, veiled and draped, seated left, holding corn ears and torch, her feet on stool, facing Annona standing right, holding cornucopia; between them, modius on garlanded altar; in background, stern of ship
Ref: RIC 98. Cohen 24
Formerly stuck in an NGC slab.

 

Gorgeous OP-example, JA (congrats on that beauty)

Oh, and fantastic additions by the coin-gang (some real winners)

=> here are a couple of examples from Selinos showing some "selinon leaves"





... and here is a neat Gordie-III coin showing some sweet grain ...



Oh, and how 'bout this grain example from Thessaly? (pretty cool, eh?)



Here are a couple of bull-n-grain examples

Bithynia, Kalchedon AR Siglos



Mysia Parion


Canopy & grain ears (Judaea Herod Agrippa I AE Prutah)

 

I have a few harvest coins... albeit representing some NASTY times in history:

LIBYAN REVOLT / MERCENARY WAR:
After the 1st Punic War, Carthage did not have enough money to pay their Mercenary Army in Sicily. The Romans DEMANDED indemnities and the removal of the Carthage / Mercenary Army from Sicily soil. Carthage took the Army to North Africa, but all their funds were tied up in payments to Rome. The Mercenary Army revolted against their Carthaginian employers. From 241-238 BCE an incredibly NASTY and BLOODY war ensued between Carthage and the Mercenaries, called the Libyan Revolt. Three long years of bloody hatred. These are two very scarce coins from the Mercenary Army from that period. For more info:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercenary_War


Carthage - LIBYAN REVOLT Rebel Army
241-238 BCE
9.63g 24mm
AE Shekel
Sardinia mint
Tanit
3 Grain ears Crescent
SNG Cop 248


Carthage - LIBYAN REVOLT Rebel Army
241-238 BCE
AR Half Shekel
Sardinia mint
Tanit
3 Grain ears
SNG Cop 252 O-R.JPG

 

My favorite plant related coin is this small silver (1/12?) of Metapontum. Larger coins of the time showed the grain head on the obverse and an incuse of the same design on the reverse. This 0.4g fraction replaces the reverse with an incuse of a single seed (barley?) which works out to be about life size on the coin. I challenge all: Post coins whose type is a single seed.

 

CAPUA / 2nd PUNIC WAR:

During the 2nd Punic War, Hannibal occupied Capua. Capua was the 2nd Largest city behind Rome of Italia. They had always had a prominent place in Italian history. Hannibal promised the aristocracy of Capua that, once Rome was destroyed, he would make Capua the Capital of Italia. We all know Rome won this horrible war. Knowing that, anything left over from the war that would enhance Hannibal's legacy needed to be destroyed. Rome recalled, confiscated, and destroyed any coinage from Capua that would represent anything to do with Hannibal. This drove all coinage from Capua during the Hannibal war into a very scarce to rare availability.

Here is one with a grain ear...

Campania CAPUA
AE 14.5mm 216-211
Obv: draped head of Hera
Rev: Oscan lettering, Grain ear
Comment: Hannibal's capital of Italia
Ref: SNG Fr 517 SNG ANS 219 HN Italy 500
EX: EE Clain Stefanelli
Rare


EDIT: @dougsmit ... mine is a single seed... does it meet your challenge?

 

Wonderful coins all! Driving home last night and seeing the 'Harvest Moon' in the sky really put me in the mood for autumn.

There are many Flavian types to choose from concerning harvest time. I think this one is appropriate enough.



Vespasian
AR Denarius, 3.43g
Rome mint, 79 AD
RIC 1062 (C), BMC 244, RSC 550
Obv: IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG; Head of Vespasian, laureate, right.
Rev: TR POT X COS VIIII; Ceres seated left, with corn ears and poppy and torch

 

@dougsmit , does this meet the challenge?


Luceria
AES Grave
Anonymous 217-215 BCE
Uncia 7.35g
Obv: Frog
Rev: Corn Ear, pellet retrograde L
Ref: Thurlow-Vecchi 285

Barley Corns:

 

Great OP and wonderful posts!!!

Surprisingly, I seem to have the same problem as TIF......so just to join in on the fun I'll post this denarius of Sulla as dictator (Venus) with the 'cornucopiae' reverse:

 

I feel good that I have a reverse similar to one of the EXPERTS here!

Mine is from his son Titus tho:


RI
Titus 79-81 CE
AR Denarius
Ceres seated, corn ear, poppy, torch

 

Regarding Doug's challenge to post coins showing a single seed,

@Alegandron: Your Campania shows a grain ear; many seeds are on the one ear-- same comment for your aes grave corn ear.

 

WOW! Like that one! Nice Mikey!!!

 

Pppplllllppplllllppplllll.....

The Luceria Frog/Ear Aes might be just a barley... It is a tough one, but I did check one with similar reverse as mine (yes, some were listed as corn ear, but this one looks like mine as a single barley corn...) My Thurlow-Vecchi book does little to describe, and mine is much better than their plate coin.

I akin the look of this single corn/seed Barley corn pic as what you see of the barley corns you would have in a can of soup (like Beef-Barley soup)...