This is one of the few reverse types that doesn't explicitly advertise itself as a 'Judaea Capta' but I believe can be categorised as such. Vespasian Æ As, 11.11g Lyon mint, 71 AD Obv: IMP CAES VESPASIAN AVG COS III; Head of Vespasian, r.; globe at point of bust Rev: VICTORIA NAVALIS; S C in field; Victory stg. r. on prow, with wreath and palm RIC 1178 (R2). BMC p. 201 ‡. BNC 812. Acquired from Harlan J Berk, Fixed Price 4, October 2020. A fairly rare VICTORIA NAVALIS variant struck at Lugdunum (modern Lyon) during the massive bronze issue of 71 AD. The Victory on prow type is traditionally attributed to the naval victory Vespasian won on Lake Gennesaret (Sea of Galilee) during the Jewish War. By any definition it is a most bizarre 'naval' battle indeed. Near the close of the Galilean campaign, Vespasian and Titus marched to Lake Gennesaret in order to secure the cities along its coastline. Tiberias fell without much resistance, but the neighbouring city of Taricheae was a tougher nut to crack. Home to many of the Jewish rebels who had fled Tiberias, they put up a small fight on the plain outside the city and were quickly defeated by Titus' troops who then stormed the city and began slaughtering the inhabitants. Many of the rebels took flight to waiting boats they had previously commandeered on the lake. These were likely local fishing or ferry vessels not intended for use in war. Vespasian ordered the legionaries to construct large rafts in order to pursue the rebel's makeshift flotilla. With the coastline guarded by Roman horsemen the legionaries launched their rafts and sailed out in a large line toward the enemy. The Jewish boats were no match for the heavily armoured Roman rafts. The legionaries easily picked off the Jewish rebels who had no means of escape. The slaughter was intense, so much so that Josephus claims 6,500 Jews were killed. Several years later during Vespasian and Titus' Jewish War Triumph in Rome, ships were displayed to commemorate the battle. Were the Victoria Navalis coins struck with the same event in mind? As unlikely as it seems, the impromptu 'naval' battle at Lake Gennesaret is the best candidate for Vespasian striking this Actium-lite reverse type. The connection to Augustus would not have been lost on his contemporaries. Flavian propaganda at its most exaggerated. The VICTORIA NAVALIS type was struck not only for Vespasian but also for Titus Caesar and Domitian Caesar - which goes some distance to demonstrate how important the underlining message was to the dynasty. The seller provided a neat video of the piece. Let's see your Victory coins!
Very attractive As with a nice brown patina! About the type, some link it with the centenary of Augustus’ victory over the fleet of Antony and Cleopatra, and some with the Roman civil wars of 69 AD.
A helpful write-up. Mine, but not a VICTORIA NAVALIS but a VICTORIA AVGVST, with retrograde obverse letters. Similar reverse iconography.
Nice David, I have a similar type by Titus. Titus as Caesar, Titus. As Caesar, AD 69-79. Æ As (26mm, 11.08g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck under Vespasian, AD 73. Laureate head right / VICTORIA NAVALIS, S C across field, Victory standing right on prow, holding palm frond and wreath. RIC II 644. VF Navalis.....commemorating victory over the Jews on the sea of Galilee.
Greetings All, Here’s mine again https://www.cointalk.com/threads/victory-coins-and-medallions.362810/page-2#post-4608765 There is a lot written about what exactly this victory could be. The two best threads I remember are: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/a-most-peculiar-naval-victory.343940/ and https://www.cointalk.com/threads/vespasians-victoria-navalis.323424/ - Broucheion
Forgive the re-posting, but... Below is my similar type. the coin is not great, but the price was. Vespasian. COS III. Rome mint. 71AD. RIC II 355. Diam.: 16.5 mm. Weight: 11.3 gr. I've also read that the VICTORIA NAVALIS commemoration could include the combined Roman naval successes on the Sea of Galilee AND off the coast of Joppa.
EDIT OF ABOVE POST I just today realized two errors in my minimally supplied data above. The following info is correct... Vespasian. COS III. Rome mint. 71AD. RIC II 335 Diam.: 29 x 28 mm. Weight: 11.31 gr.
