The denarius I'm sharing today was minted under the moneyer Lucius Opeimius(whom I'll refer to as Lucius from now on) circa 131 B.C.. Lucius first appears in the historical record in 125 B.C., after his election to the Praetorship. As Praetor, Lucius crushed a rebellion in the town of Fregellae, razing the town in the process and preventing(or at least delaying) a massive revolt by Rome's Italian allies, who were no doubt paralyzed by fear after witnessing the fate of the Fregellans. Lucius went on to run for consul in 122 B.C. but was defeated by Gaius Fannius whom the Popularis tribune Gaius Gracchus had thrown his support behind. Defeated but not having given up, Lucius ran again in 121 B.C., winning the consulship and quickly beginning the process of repealing various reforms passed and championed by Gaius Gracchus. On the day of the repeal, one of Lucius's attendants, Quintus Antyllius, was killed by a mob of Gracchan supporters. The next day, Lucius called to arms a force of senators and equestrians and called on Gaius Gracchus and his colleague Fulvius Flaccus to turn themselves in and face trial for the killing of Antyllius. When the two would not turn themselves in, Lucius placed a price on both their heads. Fulvius was found hiding in a bathhouse and summarily executed. Gaius fled, later committing suicide in a sacred grove. Further, 3,000 of Gaius's supporters were executed without any trial for having been part of this small uprising, marking the end of a short-lived democratic movement in the Republic under which the people had, if only for some short time, taken back some control from the Senate. In 120 B.C. Lucius faced trial for his actions during the uprising but, unsurprisingly, was ultimately acquitted. In 116 B.C., he was placed at the head of a commission to divide Numidia between Jugurtha and his brother Adherbal. Lucius was later found to have accepted bribes from Jugurtha and exiled from Rome, living out the rest of his life in disgrace in Dyrrachium. In only 15 years, Lucius had gone from moneyer to Consul to exile, his career ending just as quickly as it had peaked. As an interesting aside, I will tell you that this consul is remembered for at least one positive thing even today and if you'd like to read about that, I direct you to "Lucius Opimius: A Consul for the Wine Lover" by George M Burden published in the May 1995 edition of the Celator. Roman Republic AR Denarius(3.98g, 17mm, 12h), Lucius Opeimius, moneyer, 131 B.C., Rome mint. Helmeted head of Roma right; behind, wreath; before, mark of value. Border of dots. / Victory in quadriga right, holding reins in left hand and wreath in right hand; below, L OPEIMI; in exergue, ROMA. Line border. Crawford 253/1; BMCRR Rome 1133; Opeimia 12 Ex CNG e-auction 405, 9/6/2017, lot 364, ex Bruce R Brace collection, CNG e-auction 279, 5/16/2012, lot 275 As always, feel free to share anything relevant!
Roma does look a bit upset and ugly. An interesting phenomenon was happening during these years that I really don't understand but in 132 BC Roma was happy and rather normal, them you get this ugly, upset looking Roma in 131 that I have posted, then in 130, back to happy/normal, then in 129, back to ugly, upset Roma. It's like they had two teams of engravers who did alternate years. No idea why but it lead to some interesting depictions of Roma.
Great write-up RS. Roma changed quite a bit with time. It is interesting how much alike these are - L. Postumius Albinus. 131 BC Obv - Head of Roma right, behind apex (that is a pointy hat), before XVI in monogram. Rev - Mars in quadriga right, below L POST ALB, in exergue ROMA. Crawford 252/1 M. Opimius. 131 BC Obv - Helmeted head of Roma r.; below chin, V. Behind, tripod. Rev - Apollo in biga r., holding bow with arrow and reins with quiver over shoulder; below, M·OPEIMI. In exergue, ROMA. Cr. 254/1 M. Metellus Q. f. 127 BC Obv - Helmeted head of Roma r.; behind, ROMA upwards, below chin, XVI in monogram. Rev - M METELLVS Q F round Macedonian shield decorated with elephant’s heads; the whole within laurel wreath. Cr. 263/1a
Super write up @red_spork ! Great history, especially during this critical juncture in the Roman Republic's History! Selfishly holding power and control, ultimately got the Italian Peoples to revolt in the Marsic War. I will follow your timeline of Lucius Opeimus with some Denarii... 131 BCE as Moneyer, here is another Moneyer from that year. RR Postumius Albinus 131 BCE Roma Mars Quadriga Sear 128 Craw 252-1 125 BCE during his Praetorship: RR Porcius Laeca 125 BCE AR Den Roma - Libertas in Quadriga holding pileus and rod crowned by Victory flying Sear 146 Craw 270-1 121 BCE when he was Consul: RR Plutius 121 BCE AR Den Roma X Dioscuri Sear 153 Craw 278-1 116 BCE Commission to Numidia: RR Curtius Silanus 116-115 BCE AR Den Roma Jupiter Quad Lituus S 162 Cr 285-2 Whose events contributed to and ultimately led to the disgraceful (for Rome) Social War 91-88 BCE. Rome LOSES the War POLITICALLY, but after some nasty fighting, defeats the Italians MILITARILY. 91 BCE - Social War - ROME: RR Junius Silanus 91 BCE Roma B behind Biga I above Sear 225 Craw 337-3 90-88 BCE Marsic Confederation of Italians against Rome Marsic Confederation denarius 90-88 BCE Italia-Corfinium Oath Ceremony over pig Sear 227 SCARCE One consequence was that the tough, mountain Italia Samnium people were virtually exterminated by Sulla and the Romans. To their honor: Samnium Aesernia 263-240 BC AE 20 Vulcan Pilos Tongs Jupiter Biga
Of all the coins posted my favorite is this Samnite coin. Their history and ultimately their fate is so intertwined with that of the Romans and you don't see examples as nice as yours very often. I've heard that may be because the Romans attempted to destroy and restrike their coins but I'm not sure if that's correct or not.
Wow, @Alegandron!! Amazing Marsic Confedaration denarius! I'm looking for one of Social Wars but almost never appears and when appears, it uses to be much higher than I can pay for it. Very congratulations!
Thank you very much. I have 3 different ones from the Marsic Confederation. One is pretty hard to find. However, I love this one a lot as it represents a sacred bond that the Marsic Confederation formed to fight the Romans. The Marsic Confederation / Italia's history is both amazing and sad in their military loss...
