A nutritional numismatic snack: pine nuts

Well, really a pine cone but there are nuts in there somewhere


IONIA, Metropolis [or Miletos]
c. late 2nd century BCE [or 1st century BCE]
AE 12, 1.8 gm
Diogenes, magistrate
Obv: turreted head of Kybele right [ or turreted head of Tyche right]
Rev: Pine cone; monogram in left field; ΔIOΓE downward in right field
Ref: Ashton, R. and P. Kinns. “Opuscula Anatolica III”, 7, in Numismatic Chronicle, 2004. [or SNG von Aulock 7926 ("pine cone"); SNG Copenhagen 907 ("thyrsus head")]

This target came to me uncontested and was the at the lowest estimate tier for the auctioneer, so I was delighted to garner this unusual coin for a low price.

Pine cones are seen on a number of coins but they are small devices, only identified in context. For example, provincial coins of Anatolia depicting the moon god Mên often show him holding a little round object identified as a pine cone.

This however is a tiny bronze coin with a large pine cone taking center stage. Why do I care? I don't know! It just struck my fancy and I love it.

There don't seem to be many in archives-- I found 5-- although there were a couple of other coins with solo pine cone reverses from Skamandria (Troas). On those, the pine cone isn't as recognizable as such.

I don't own the references for this coin and there seems to be disagreement about the place of origin. Ashton & Kinns' work is more recent, so I'll probably catalog it as from Metropolis for now. Isn't it fun having coins which have some question marks attached? Maybe someday more information will come to light.

Post your pine cones (haha... although I know some of you have coins of Mên showing him with a pine cone). Add any coin you feel fits the vibe of this thread, as usual

 

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Wow - cool little bronze! I love it.

 

Interesting coin @TIF, I have not seen that one.

Sadly I have none, but what about an acorn?


Ostur
1st c. BC
AE Semis
Obvs: OSTVR below acorn.
Revs: Two palm branches.
19x20mm, 6.88g

 

An acorn?? Excellent!

 

Nice TIF! I love it. The pine cone reminds me of the ancient bronze cone in Rome that used to sit in front of the old St. Peter's and is now in the Vatican museum.

I think there is a superman joke in there somewhere but I'm lazy today

 

Gorgeous and COOL coin @TIF ! I use the criteria of capture (outside of History), as: TOTAL COOL - GET IT NOW!!!

Since I have been exposed to, and have hit several DEER where I have lived, and now live again... I akin the DEER as a VEGETABLE with EYES. Yes, they are VERY stupid animals... SOoooo, since I do NOT have a Pine Cone, I will post a similar living being: A DEER coin...


RI Salonina wife of Gallienus 254-268 CE AE Ant 3.61g 20mm Rome mint 267-268 CE crescent Deer Walking delta RIC 15

 

Sheesh @TIF You already have me chasing turtles, monsters, obscure deities etc etc and now TREE NUTS?!?!

Seriously, Congrats on yet another COOL addition!!

 

Did someone say "pine nut"?

 

or a Texas joke...

 

Dante references this very pine cone in Inferno 31, comparing the face of the giant Nimrod to the size of this cone. Nice to gaze upon the very object that fired Dante's imagination:

"His face appeared to me as long and large
As is at Rome the pine-cone of Saint Peter's,
And in proportion were the other bones..."

 

Yes!! That's the reason. The little girl totally gets it

Nice job digging that correlation from your head, Gavin! And nice picture, @Curtisimo

I loved that movie and everything else by that ensemble . Spinal Tap? So funny, so spot-on.

 

Nutritious? Well, you got to have your grains too.


Vespasain
AR Denarius, 2.98g
Rome mint, 77-78 AD
RIC 980 (C), BMC 216, RSC 216
Obv: CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG; Head of Vespasian, laureate, right.
Rev: IMP XIX across field; Modius, standing on three legs, containing five ears of corn upright and two hanging over the sides
Acquired from Zeus Coins, January 2008.

 

That's awesome! I wasn't aware of the reference in Dante. I had to explain to the people I was with why the bronze pine cone was so special. The Vatican Museum can be somewhat of a sensory overload with so many fascinating objects to look at. It's easy to miss stuff but I'm glad I stopped and got some good pictures of this one

 

What a cool little coin... the foresty green colours are lovely. And frankly you can't lose with either pine cone or thyrsus head. But yes... PINE CONE!

 

@Curtisimo, that pinecone is one of the few remaining connections to the Old St. Peter's. Old line drawings show it as part of an atrium fountain in the courtyard of the old basilica. That's how Dante would've encountered it.

 

A very neat coin Tif

 

Man I definitely need to get back into smaller Greek coins. Some of my favorites among my few Greek coins are the little ones Cool coin TIF!

Not directly related to your coin TIF but I feel like, being a creature of nature, the satyr would have chowed down on some pinecones every now and again.

Thasos, Thrace
AR trihemiobol
Obv: Satyr kneeling left, holding kantharos
Rev: ΘAΣ-IΩN, amphora
Mint: Thasos
Date:411-350 BC
Size: 0.82 gr
Ref: SG1755v



Some eat them and some throw them:

 

Cool coin @TIF - I've never seen an ancient with a pine cone!

 

That is a cool coin. I wonder what the significance was to Metropolis or Miletos. Here is the aforementioned Mên type.


PRO: PAMPHYLIA
PO : ATTALEIA
PZ : Between 205 and 208
Obverse
VSG: .. ANTWNEINO..
VT : PORTRAIT MAN R / CARACALLA
VA : WREATH LAUREL / CLOTHES
Reverse
RSG: ATTALEWN
RT : MAN STANDING HL(1) / MEN(1)
RA : FOOT / ON / BUKRANION / PINE-CONE(1) / PHRYGIAN CAP / CRESCENT / STAFF(1)
Technical details
M : AE
GEW: 10.17(1)