In the 1981 miniseries Masada there is a fictitious meeting between the Roman legate Flavius Silva (Peter O'Toole) and the Jewish rebel leader Eleazar ben Yair (Peter Strauss) in the hopes of finding a peaceful settlement between the Romans and Jews. At one point during the negotiations Eleazar produces a coin and says "We've seen these coins. Very impressive - a Jewish woman at the foot of a centurion. 'Judaea vanquished!'" He then drops the coin in front of Silva and continues "As long as one of us is alive and remembers how to start a fire or hold a sword, this war will go on." Ever since I first saw that miniseries many years ago I wanted one of those iconic bronze coins. Today I can finally say I have one. Although Judaea Capta coins in general are not rare, in fact most are quite common, they are in very high demand and are quite pricey. I think I made out OK with my latest arrival - a piece with honest wear and minor cleaning scratches. Vespasian Æ Sestertius, 24.60g Rome mint, 71 AD RIC 167 (C3). BMC 543. Obv: IMP CAES VESPASIAN AVG P M TR P P P COS III; Head of Vespasian, laureate, r. Rev: IVDAEA CAPTA; S C in exergue; Palm tree; to l., Vespasian stg. r. with spear and parazonium, foot on helmet; to r., Judaea std. r. on cuirass Acquired from Denarius, December 2018. The Jewish War was an important event for the fledgling Flavian dynasty - in essence it gave them the legitimacy to rule. The ensuing propaganda onslaught after the capture of Jerusalem in August of 70 is awe inspiring. We have Josephus' description of the joint triumph of 71 held for Vespasian and Titus in book 7 of his 'Jewish War', the buildings and monuments erected by the regime, and more importantly for our purposes we have the coins. Judaea Capta types were struck in all metals for almost as long as the dynasty ruled. The first flurry of these came in 71, presumably in conjunction with the triumph, amidst a great issue of bronze coinage that same year. One of the most iconic Judaea Capta types is this sestertius' reverse featuring a triumphal Vespasian with a defeated Judaea at his feet, not surprisingly one of the more common types from the issue. Vespasian is seen proudly standing holding a spear and parazonium (a triangular sword) with his foot on an enemy helmet, while Judaea is sitting on a captured cuirass in abject despair - take note of their size discrepancy. The iconography on display here strongly hints at what the spectators of the triumph likely witnessed. The slight of hand the Flavian regime devised which transformed defeated rebel provincials into a foreign menace is truly amazing. I can't help but to post one more bit from the Masada miniseries - the moment when Silva's forces first draw up to Masada. General Cornelius Flavius Silva: "The ground you occupy is the property and territory of the Emperor, Senate and people of Rome. In their name I order you to depart from it." Eleazar ben Yair: "The ground you occupy was given as promised to the children of Israel by almighty God, king of the universe and lord of mankind. Since time began he has punished anyone who trespassed on his children's land. I have warned you once and one warning is all that he allows. You have sentenced yourself and your soldiers to death." A truly fantastic series, despite the fictional indulgences. Please feel free to post your common iconic coins!
That’s a lovely coin. I have the denarius equivalent, but nothing imperial in bronze. It’s on the list of “coins I would love to have one day but are probably too expensive.“ It’s a long list.
David Atherton, Nice addition of an iconic Roman victory coin, especially on a large planchet. The Judaea Capta series has always fascinated me. Below is a denarius I scored years ago. 3.32 gm.
Always an interesting topic and—when the post is offered by the most knowledgable Flavian coin enthusiast I've had the pleasure to encounter— @David Atherton —it’s even more exciting. Here are my Judaea Capta coins in order of favor. I realize that the second and third are debatably “Judaea Capta” issues. Thank you for the interesting post, David! Great coin and best wishes on your hunt for Flavian bronze.
Sweet sestertius, has nice eye appeal. I've yet to obtain any Ivdea Captas but am definitely keen to get a Roman stone ballista ball or Jewish sling projectiles fired during the siege, at which point I'll have no choice but to join the party. I figure such artifacts are locked-down nowadays but perhaps there are some labeled pieces in old "Grand-Tour" style collections obtained long before anyone cared much about such things.
A great addition David! You sure are adding some wonderful coins to your new bronze collection of Flavians.
Great coin and write-up @David Atherton . I like movies with coins that are properly attributed. My icon is RR was issued by L.TITVRI.SABIN and loosely made into the movie Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, see link below. The movie did not mention the coins. L. Titurius L.f. Sabinus. 89 BC. silver Denarius, Rome mint. Obv - Bareheaded and bearded head of King Tatius right; SABIN downward to left Rev - Crawford 344/1; Kidnap of the Sabine Women: two soldiers, facing each other, each carrying off a Sabine woman in his arms; L TITVRI in exergue. Rev - Crawford 344/2; Tarpeia facing, buried to her waist in shields, with raised hands she tries to thrust off two soldiers who are about to cast their shields at her; L•TITVRI in exergue Rev - Crawford 344/3; Victory driving biga r., holding wreath; L.TITVRI below; V (or L) in exergue the movie
This coin was a major bronze milestone for me. Finding an example with no tooling or smoothing, at a reasonable price, and with plenty of eye appeal was not easy!
I wonder how such a piece could be provenanced exactly to the Jewish War? The ones found at Masada would be easier to provenance correctly, although I imagine it is illegal to sell them.
What a nice sestertius, David! Awesome coins, guys! My only example, an affordable denarius: Silver denarius, RIC II-1 2; Hendin 1479. 2.8g, 9.3mm, Rome mint, 69 - 70 A.D.; obverse IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG, laureate head right; reverse IVDAEA, Jewess seated right, mourning, veiled, supporting chin with left hand, trophy of captured arms behind her.
Very nice score, David. I'd love to get one of these Judaea Capta bronzes someday. In the meantime, I'm very pleased to have managed to picked up this one in silver earlier this year. VESPASIAN AR Denarius. 3.05g, 18.4mm. Rome mint, 21 October 69 - early 70. RIC 2; Cohen 226; BMC 35; Hendin 1479. O: IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG, laureate head right. R: Judaea seated right on ground in attitude of mourning, trophy set on shields behind her; IVDAEA in exergue. Ex Prof. Dr. Hildebrecht Hommel Collection, with tag noting acquisition date 15 Feb 1943
I watched the series recently, after visiting Masada. It's held up really well, and deserves to be better known. I haven't got many common-but-iconic because I know there will always be another chance, and end up spending money on scarcer things. A Judaea Capta is near the top of my list; I don't even have one in silver. I bit the bullet on a Tribute Penny because it seems to be an overstrike, which makes it a more interesting example of the issue.
Agreed. Although the series is very fanciful with some of the history, it's compellingly presented with a cracking good script. One of Peter O'Toole's finest roles too. Kophar: [in a patronizing tone] Your excellency, what an honor. Cornelius Flavius Silva: Hello, Kophar. I see you're still one step ahead of leprosy.
