As some will be aware I have a passion for the coinage of Probus, particularly that from Lugdunum. As time goes by I find the time between additions to this sub-collection grows. I have recently added a coin to this sub-collection that I thought worthy of sharing with you. It is a sub-type variety that I did not previously have in my collection and am more than happy to welcome it. It is a type noted in RIC but not one I can find noted in the original Bastien or Bastien Supplement II. For some reason I don't have Supplement I and must remedy that. The base Mars type itself is common but the addtion of the bound captive is what makes this one different enough to be noteworthy. The coin itself has plenty of underlying silvering remaining though has lots of hard, green encrustations on the surface. The obverse has suffered more than the reverse but it is the reverse that matters to me with this one. The coin would seem to be one of those without an officina mark. The border of dots is close enough to the exe that it leads me to this conlusion though I am happy to be proven wrong. If it has an exe then it will either be II or III and I suspect that this would only be concluded through finding a die match. I am not proficient enough to be conclusive on allocating this to an emission but would put it in emission 6 (Bastien) based on style. Probus Antoninianus Obv:– IMP C PROBVS P F AVG, Radiate, cuirassed bust right Rev:– MARS VICTOR, Mars walking right, holding spear and trophy; at foot, captive. Minted in Lugdunum (unmarked?). Emission 6? Officina -. A.D. 278 - A.D. 279 Reference(s) – RIC 35 Bust Type F (Scarce) Martin
That's the most facial detail I can recall seeing on Mars on one of these. Quite the physique, too. He'd look very masculine if he weren't so delicately walking on his tiptoes! It's interesting how this "bound captive" motif seems to depict more of an object than a person - one seldom sees very human features or faces on the captives - at least on the coins I've seen. But I suppose that shouldn't be terribly surprising, since captives in the ancient world must've been considered just that... objects as much or more than they were people. They seem to always be shown so much smaller than life-size, too.
Interesting coin...and a thought provoking observation about the depiction of the 'captive'. Although this coin was struck some 50 years later than the OP, it does have a very detailed and 'human' depiction, albeit small, of a Parthian captive which greatly appealed to me.
Nice scarce capture @maridvnvm ! You made me go back and look at my Probus' and I realized I had the Captive theme on my very common versions... RI Probus 276-282 CE BI Ant 2.80g captives left and right Cohen 768 RI Probus 276-282 CE Ant 21mm captive on ground Riding Horse.jpg
PROBUS Antoninianus OBVERSE: IMP PROBVS P F AVG, radiate cuirassed bust right REVERSE: ADVENTVS AVG, Probus on horseback left, holding sceptre & right hand held high in return salute; at left, under hoof, a captive looks on, R-thunderbolt-Z in ex. Struck at Rome, 279 AD 3.3g, 21mm RIC 155
Indeed it does! That little Parthian is something! Down to the detail on his trousers! (I forget what those were called, but I remember seeing them.) Quite the fierce portrait of Licinius, too! What's he holding? A scroll? Looks like he could burn through steel plate with that gaze!
Well, sort of, and always referred to as 'mappa'; The word mappa is said to be of Carthaginian origin, and denoted a smaller kind of napkin which the guests carried with them to the table. The napkin itself was a Roman invention: since they ate mostly with their hands, frequent hand washings and wipings were in order between courses. One brought his own napkin with him which could also be used as a doggie bag to take home leftovers. These could be quite rich since meals where very big and elaborate. Often the host would actually provide a treat specifically meant to be taken away in the mappa. These meals and feasts were mainly given by the wealthier and more influential Romans and later on they carried the mappa in their hand as an ornament and as a symbol of their wealth and influence. The mappa was also used by the emperor or magistrate as a starting signal at the Circus, the emperor or consul would drop his mappa and when it hit the ground the races or games would start. In late Roman iconography it came to be a used as one of the principal attributes of the consuls (one of them was usually the emperor). AE Follis of Licinius II; Antioch, 2.36 grams. 19 mm: circa 317-320 AD Laureate, robed bust with mappa, globe and scepter DN VAL LICIN LICININIVS NOBC Jupiter standing with victory and scepter, captive at his feet IOVI CONS ERVATORI CAESS SMANT Z to right RIC 29
Dr. Sylviane Estiot has just commented on my coin elsewhere and has made some interesting points that I had not been aware of. 1) Bastien was aware of this coin and it corresponds to Bastien 312 (allocated to emission 7, dated to summer A.D. 281). He knew of 4 examples of the coin and only one more example has come to light in recent years apart from my example, this coin was acquired by Bibliothèque nationale Paris (1985). No other examples noted in Bastien Supplement I or II. 2) Bastien was aware of another Antoninianus from the same reverse die in Vienna. This coin has a different bust type (Radiate, cuirassed bust right, seen from the rear) All the above cons come from a single reverse die. 3) What is of particular interest is that this reverse die also turns up as the reverse die of an aureus, Bastien 301 (one aureus known, an old sale Kress München 10/11/1969, 874, never seen again since) obverse IMP C M AVR PROBVS AVG, laureate cuirassed bust right. Which means that the aureus reverse die has been used for a small series of radiate coins and explains why this reverse has no officina mark. Since then a new aureus with a laureate cuirassed bust left from a new reverse die. The use of an aureus reverse die for base metal coinage is known but seems quite scarce. All this adds to my appreciation of what I already considered a special coin.
