An Ancient Coin for Independence Day

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by Sulla80, Jul 4, 2019.

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  1. Sulla80

    Sulla80 Well-Known Member

    On July 4th, 1776 the Continental Congress "...in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown...".

    While I don't have any coins from the start of the American republic, perhaps I can share a new addition, which might be relevant.
    Brutus Ahala denarius.jpg
    Roman Republican, M. Junius Brutus, 54 BC.
    AR Denarius, Rome, struck 54 BC
    Obv: Bearded and bare-headed head right of L. Junius Brutus; BRVTVS.
    Rev: Bearded and bare-headed head right of Caius Servilius Ahala; AHALA
    Size: 3.96g, 17-19mm
    Ref: Crawford 433/2; Junia 30

    This coins links to founding of the Roman Republic. The obverse portrait of Lucius Junius Brutus, tells the story of the overthrowing of the monarchy in 509 BC. This Brutus of 509, nephew to Rome's seventh king, Tarquinius Superbus, and grandson to Rome's 5th king, Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, led the revolt that banished the king and his family. He was then elected as one of the first two consuls of the new republic. M. Junius Brutus, in 54 BC claimed the earlier Brutus as his ancestor.

    The reverse of this coin shows another ancestor of M. Junius Brutus, Gaius Servilius Structus Ahala, who in 439 murdered Spurius Maelius for plotting to make himself king. M. Junius Brutus, was the descendant of these two tyrannicides. A decade later, in 44 BC, he would be the leader of the conspirators who killed Julius Caesar on the Ides of March. At the time, 54 BC, the coin was perhaps only a celebration of liberty, freedom from tyranny, the founding of the republic, and Brutus’ ancestors.

    There are at least two variants of this coin that have been shared in earlier CT posts, including this one with a nice write-up by @Alegandron and this coin with a note worth reading from @dougsmit.

    America’s founding fathers took inspiration from the Roman Republic and the ideals, writings and characters of ancient Rome. George Washington had a play "Cato, A tragedy" performed at Valley Forge in 1778 to rally the troops....but that is another coin and another story. Picking the imagery on the first coins under the Mint Authorization Act of 1792 the founders chose the Roman goddess Libertas and her classical attributes of cap (pileus) and staff (vindicta). The liberty cap became and important symbol in the American revolution and on American coins. The liberty cap also appears on a more famous coin of Brutus - the EID MAR.

    Share anything you find relevant - ancient or modern. Happy 4th!
     
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  3. Sallent

    Sallent Live long and prosper

    M. Junius Brutus better watch his six o'clock because Antony and Octavian are coming for him.

    89497q00 (1).jpg


    Happy 4rth of July, our Independence from Mad King George and our Independence from tea time. God bless coffee, and God bless America.

    george_washington_the_original_master_chief_by_sharpwriter-d5ebrn6.jpg
     
    Last edited: Jul 4, 2019
  4. furryfrog02

    furryfrog02 Well-Known Member

    I don't have anything ancient that fits the theme.
    But I do have a 1976D Bicentennial Half Dollar that was struck through cloth. One of my favorite error coins :)
    1976D Half Dollar Struck Through Cloth.jpg

    And I will throw in a 2011 AAFES POG with a patriotic theme. I collected these during my deployments.
    15L25.JPG
     
  5. Al Kowsky

    Al Kowsky Well-Known Member

    Sulla80, this famous denarius is conveying the same message, along with the Koson staters.

    brutusden.jpg pomponius.jpg Koson Stater, 8.37 gm.jpg
     
  6. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    Nerva says, "... with libertas and justitia for all":

    Nerva LIBERTAS PVBLICA denarius TRPII COS III.jpg
    Nerva IVSTITIA AVGVST denarius RIC 30.jpg
     
  7. 7Calbrey

    7Calbrey Well-Known Member

    Mine also shows Independence Hall. Modern coin under president Kennedy. That was 43 years ago (Bicentennial). And now 243 congrats to Freedom for Ever.

    Ind.243 001.jpg Ind.Kenn 001.jpg
     
  8. Alegandron

    Alegandron "ΤΩΙ ΚΡΑΤΙΣΤΩΙ..." ΜΕΓΑΣ ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΣ, June 323 BCE

    Gorgeous coin and write-up! Very very nice, and congrats

    Thank you, @Sulla80 . Since you called it out rather than rewrite it, here is what I posted some time ago. This is one of my favorites, for what the coin represents and honors in Human History...

    Rome had been ruled by Kings traditionally since 753 BCE. However, her last King, after many offenses and excesses at the expense of the Roman people... Lucius Tarquinius Superbus was deposed in 509 BCE. The Monarchy was replaced by a Republic.

    Instrumental in the overthrow of the monarchy, one of the first two Consuls of Rome in 509BCE, was Lucius Junius Brutus. He was consul with Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus and later Publius Valerius Publicola. According to Livy, one of Brutus' first acts as a Consul was to have the Roman citizens swear an oath to never allow a King of Rome. Even when his own two sons were caught in a conspiracy to restore the monarchy, under orders of the Consuls, he stoically witnessed their execution... Tough love...

    Later, in 439 BCE Republican Rome was gripped in a severe famine; people starving, suffering abounded. Enter Spurius Maelius, a wealthy Plebeian, who saw an opportunity to seize Rome... He purchased a large amount of wheat to distribute - at a low price - to the starving people of Rome. However, his ulterior motive was to foster support to usurp the fledgling Republic and proclaim himself Rex (King). A hated word in Roman vocabulary! The cry of the people arose and Maelius was to appear before the aging Cincinnatus, (the elected Dictator during this crisis.) Enter Gaius Servilius Ahala, Magister Equitum (Master of the Horse). Maelius refused to appear, and was hunted down and killed by Ahala. Ahala then razed his home to the ground and distributed the withheld wheat to the starving people.

    Fast forward to 54 BCE: Long descendant of the two early Republic Heroes, Marcius Junius Brutus, (also known as Quintus Servilius Caepio Brutus), new to politics at 31 years old, enters the membership of the vigintisexvirate (the three Moneyers authorized to mint coinage). This was the first step on the cursus honorum - the road to political office in the Republic. Because of his deep-rooted love for the Res Publica, he honors his ancestral heritage by placing the busts of both great family forefathers, Brutus and Ahala, on the obverse and reverse of the denarius issue of 54BCE.

    You all know the rest of the story as Senator Brutus, who on the Idus Martiae, 15-Mar-44 BCE, delivered the killing blow to the Tyrant Gaius Iulius Caesar, usurper of the Res Publica...

    [​IMG] [​IMG]
    Roman Republic 54 BCE
    AR Denarius, 18.3mm, 3.7g
    Moneyer: Marcus Iunius Brutus (aka Quintus Servillius Caepio Brutus)
    Obv: Bare hd of L. Iunius Brutus (Consul 509 BCE), Bearded r, BRVTVS behind
    Rev: Bare hd of C. Servilius Ahala (Master of the Horse 439 BCE), bearded r, AHALA behind
    Ref: Sear 398, Crawford 433/2, from collection W. Esty CKXSUB 613
     
  9. Bing

    Bing Illegitimi non carborundum Supporter

    Since it's a day of fireworks, here is a lightening bolt to represent them:
    VALENTIA.jpg
    VALENTIA, ROMAN PROVINCIAL
    AE As
    OBVERSE: Helmeted head Roma right, TRINI L F Q before. T AHI T F behind
    REVERSE: Cornucopia on thunderbolt within wreath; VALEN-TIA
    Struck at Valentia, Spain 138 BC
    11.4g, 27mm
    CNH pg. 317, 4; Burgos 2512
    th.jpg

    HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!!
     
  10. Eduard

    Eduard Supporter**

    For the 4th of July, two sestertii proclaiming LIBERTAS : Liberty and Freedom.

    Galba: Libertas
    Galba sestertius Libertas OBV1 N - 1.jpg Galba sestertius Libertas REV1 N - 1.jpg

    Nerva: Libertas
    Nerva Sestertius Libertas Publica OBV1 N - 1.jpg Nerva Sestertius Libertas Publica REV1 N - 1.jpg


    Finally, a tribute to the man who made it all possible - George Washington, first President of the United States.
    Washington cent small eagle 1791 obv1 N - 1.jpg Washington cent small eagle 1791 rev1 N - 1.jpg
     
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  11. ancient coin hunter

    ancient coin hunter 3rd Century Usurper

    Nice coins everybody. I'm afraid I don't have a single Libertas type. Here's a coin from Mr. Un-Liberty, and by the mid-third century what was a more common sentiment. PLEASE STAY LOYAL!!!

    maxthrax1.jpg

    maxthrax2.jpg
     
  12. Sulla80

    Sulla80 Well-Known Member

    Agreed...quite a storied coin.

    Very cool error coin!
     
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  13. Bert Gedin

    Bert Gedin Well-Known Member

    Happy 4th of July to Sulla 80 and All here on CT ! Sorry to be such a useless Eustace, but I'm not up to taking pictures for this page. When I was in Washington D.C., some years ago, I purchased a booklet, called "We the People - The Constitution of the United States of America." "What about Coins?", I hear you saying. On page 2, a photo - "The first national coins were issued by the newly independent United States in 1787. The coin has 13 linked circles and the words, "We are one." inscribed in the center. Other side of the coin depicts a sun dial and the Latin word, Fugio, meaning "time flies". Enjoy your Independence Day !!!
     
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  14. Sallent

    Sallent Live long and prosper

    Well, with everyone doing Libertas coins, I don't want to be left out if this party, so here is one of mine....

    41943.jpg

    And here is the depiction of that day when Benjamin Franklin found out the God Zeus was a Loyalist instead of a Patriot, and Franklin defeated Zeus in glorious battle.

    ben_franklin_vs__zeus_by_sharpwriter-d4hjp6a-e1331354051206.jpg
     
  15. kevin McGonigal

    kevin McGonigal Well-Known Member

    No coin image here, but it is most appropriate to associate some of ancient coinage with the American revolution. Many of the founding fathers were highly educated by a system that immersed them in the history of the Ancient World with emphasis on the politics of the Roman Republic. To read Madison, who was fluent in Attic Greek as well as Latin, is a refresher course for a Classicist. Graduates of Harvard, like John Adams, were expected to both read and write Latin, fluently, and Harvard public addresses (and most lectures) were given in Latin. Cato the younger, bugaboo to tyrant Julius Caesar, was invoked by more Founding Fathers than John Locke. Addison's play, Cato, was among Washington's favorite performances. E Pluribus Unum and Novus Ordo Saeclorum would have been as understandable to Cicero as to us, actually more so, I guess. For the generation of 1776, Dictator Caesar was what happened when the people stopped paying attention to who was governing, an error they would rectify. And if Caesar had his Brutus, (and Charles II his Cromwell) George III... could well profit by their example. The fact that Libertas, in her many iterations dominated our first coinage, is evidence enough of the influence of the Classical World on numismatics ( and the US Treasury). The Founding Fathers understood all too well what putting the image of a living ruler on its coinage was a herald of. So, as we celebrate our political independence and our own individual liberties, let us keep in mind that our Founding Fathers were standing on the shoulders of men casting long shadows and they knew it.

    One less important aside. While I know that many of the Founding fathers studied the Classical World of Greece and Rome, and collecting ancient coins was popular among the classicists of Europe (hence Paduans), especially after the first excavations of Pompeii then going on, I have never been able to ascertain whether or not that interest extended to ancient coins. Do any readers know if any of our Founding Fathers collected ancient coins?
     
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  16. dougsmit

    dougsmit Member

    A common misconception is that freebee giveaways are the same as freedom. This unofficial Severus Alexander bears the legend LIBERTAS and a figure of Liberalitas.
    rn0240bb0822.jpg
     
  17. Ryro

    Ryro Trying to remove supporter status

    Adding the obverese of this Carus and the reverse of his son Nigrinian and what do you get having to do with one of the most symbolic representations of America?
    D5BA8334-B1CD-4D11-B9BA-5C06DA98495C.png
    CARUS
    282-283 CE Antoninianus. Rome.
    Obv: IMP C M AVR CARVS P F AVG.
    Radiate and cuirassed bust right.
    Rev: VIRTVS AVGG / ΓKA.
    Mars standing left with shield and spear.
    RIC 45.

    5F331E50-36A2-489C-8006-E69B59919EEA.png
    Nigrinian
    DIVO NIGRINIANO AE AntoninianCONSECRATIO Reverse: Eagle Very Rare
     
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  18. Valentinian

    Valentinian Well-Known Member

    CaracallaPMTRPXVILibertasSR6830n8811.jpg

    Caracalla, struck 213 at Rome.
    Libertas standing left holding cap of liberty (pileus) and holding scepter in left.
    PM TRP XVI COS IIII PP (TRP XVI is 213)

    This type is not famous, but celebrates a famous event mentioned in books on the history of Rome. In 212 Caracalla gave all free inhabitants of the Roman Empire the privileges of Roman citizenship in 212.
     
  19. Sulla80

    Sulla80 Well-Known Member

    Great coins! especially the sestertius of George Washington :)

    Thanks for post - and here's the coin you reference (public domain image ex-wikipedia) designed by Ben Franklin:
    Penny.jpg

    Some coins from the "John Quincy Adams Collection" here and some relevant notes for Thomas Jefferson:
    1805. In April, Jefferson received from Nicolai Henrich Weinwich of Copenhagen "a box containg 150. pieces of Roman coin in bronze of different sizes from the reign of Augustus to that of Theodosius." Two weeks later he forwarded them to the American Philosophical Society, where they might be "of more extensive use."
     
  20. ancient coin hunter

    ancient coin hunter 3rd Century Usurper

    I thought that the secret purpose of the decree was to increase the tax rolls. Then, like now, the only certainties were death and taxes.
     
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  21. Archeocultura

    Archeocultura Well-Known Member

    George Washington was not the first to defeat the British III Antoninus Pius 0732 BRITAN as 7-0489.jpg ; Antoninus Pius celebrated his victory long before that!
     
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