My very first Roman coin!

Something different arrived today...

Normally I collect Greek and Byzantine coins. Why? Because I think that the art of Greek coins is second to none, and the Byzantine ones are attractive to me because the history is fascinating and I am also an Orthodox Christian. It was fairly evident from the start that most people collect Roman coins in this forum. I am not sure why, but I think it has to do with the Roman history being so accessible and popular due to movies and such, they are more economical than the Greek ones, and they are easier to read and research due to the Latin alphabet. If my assumptions are wrong, let me know.

I often entertained the thought of getting into Roman coins, but I had trouble finding one that spoke to me. Definitely not any imperial ones. The history is fascinating, but as coins I find them a bit lacking as I am used to the Greek art. I was more attracted to the Roman Republic aesthetics and finally I found one that I fancied and at a price a lot more economical to what I am used when I shop for Greek coins. So this is what I got:



Very happy with it... I always wanted a chariot on a coin and there is no way I could get one on a Greek coin in that condition for that price!

There was a bit of a shock when I first held it in my hands as the Greek coins I am used to are a lot bulkier and with a high relief. I display some of my coins in those cute floating silicone frames, and this was the first coin that refuses to stay in the middle of the frame as it is so thin. I haven't done much research on it yet, but it was apparently issued by a 'moneyer' (not quite sure how that system worked) called Spurius Afranius of the Afranius family. They were a well known family but not indigenous to Rome from what I found. There is a bit of a debate about the 'S' in the front, as it is regarded as a cognomen since there is no dot in front of the 'S'.

Do I like it? Yes! Will I switch to Romans? No, I like the Greek art better, but hopefully it won't be my last Roman coin either.

Let me know what you think and show me your Republic coins. I am interested to know if anyone here has coins minted by that fella.

 

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I can't say I agree with your assessment of Roman art over Greek art But what better response could there be than a typically Roman style veristic 'portrait' face with a Hellenistic looking hairstyle and ruler diadem? Those wrinkles...

 

Congratulations on a brilliant 'introduction' (in your case, not so much) to the series!
Your convergence of interests is very cool. (I'm into later Byzantine, on a small scale, but enough to find some resonance with where you're coming from.) The collectorly equivalent of lateral thinking.

 

..that's a dand-dee 1st RR coin Only.......its all rabbit holes n fields ain't it?!..here's a lil something from my collection in honor of your Orthodoxy..

 

P.O.M., Nice score ! I love the portrait of Roma .

 

ominus1, I like your cross ! Have you identified the figures surrounding Christ ? Is this a reliquary cross or a solid casting ?

 

..thanks Al...its two pieces, but doesn't come open...i believe(been told) its Mother Mary in the center with the 4 Evangelicals....

 

...Um, sorry to interject, but it looks a lot like a reliquary cross from here. Congrats, ominus1; the kind that would make me sit up if I saw it online. Looking like Mary in the center (with the conventional, ikonic Greek abbreviations for 'Mary, the Christ-bearer,' with Jesus above. Who is to either side, or below, is beyond me. Only a Poor Old Man, could you help out any?

 

Ominus1, you mean, of course, the four Evangelists. For better and worse, there's a Lot more than four Evangelicals....

 

Back to the standard, ikonic abbreviation for Mary, consisting of two letters to either side of her face, it's "MP" ..."(Theta) Y."
There are coins with this, especially from the Comnenan period, but this is the Wiki article (surprisingly solid), with more background, even from the first couple of paragraphs. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theotokos
(Hope the link works --my machine is in the middle of Ongoing Technical Difficulties.)

 

..ahaha...of course there's more than 4...i believe this refers to Luke, Mark. John & Matthew...perhaps Mary is holding the baby Jesus... great info VGO..and we dont wanna steal @Only a Poor Old Man's shine on his 1st Roman Coin here...

 

Ominus1, just, Touchet. And Thanks. I worry (often not enough) about crowding out other people's threads with peripheral stuff. More about Autism spectrum than anything more intentional, or, to paraphrase, 'nefarius.' Except, it's a learning curve....

 

Clem.fandango, you have a point here. There's this moment in the late Republic where the portraiture takes a solid left even from the relatively idealized naturalism in late Hellenistic coins. ...Other people on the forum have said a lot, just lately, about how this hyper-realism is perpetuated into the Julio-Claudians and the civil war leading up to the Flavians. Sorry, I'm too disorganized to find the thread, but it's a safe bet that you know which one I'm talking about.

 

ominus1, I agree with +VGO.DVCKS, your cross is most likely a reliquary cross especially being made in two pieces. It looks like the pendant hanger is missing from the top. What does the bottom of the cross look like ? The inscription on your cross wan't clear enough for me to make out. The Byzantine cross below is in my collection & the inscription on the back side is very clear, St. John on the front side & the Virgin Mary on the back side. The cross is 4 in. long.

 

Congrats, @Only a Poor Old Man on your first Roman. Nice Denarius.

My first Ancient coins were all Greek. Captured 5 in one shot: A Drachm of Alexander III of Makedon and 4 Athena/Owl Tetradrachmae.

I enjoy the History of the Roman Republic, and I have much less interest in the Empire. I personally do not care for putting an Emperor or a
living Human on a coin.

ROMAN REPUBLIC


Roman Republic 234-231 BCE AR Heavy Denarius - Didrachm Apollo-Horse prancing Crawford 26-1 Sear 28

 

Alegandron, Great artwork on that coin ! The coin looks more Greek than Roman.

 

ROMAN REPUBLIC


RR Anon AR Heavy Denarius - Didrachm 275-270 BCE ROMANO Apollo Left-Galloping Horse Sear23

 

The four Evangelists. And that isn't Christ, it's the Virgin Mary. You can very faintly see the Greek letters ΜΡ ΘΥ on either side of her, which stand for the Greek words ΜΗΤΗΡ ΘΕΟΥ, "Mother of God". See a similar inscription on the cross that Al Kowsky posted above.

 

see my above post

 

This thread took an unexpected turn.. I like the crosses posted, I saw a couple very affordable ones turning up on ma-shops, but I haven't bought any as I am waiting for a really nice example like @Al Kowsky 's. I would actually fancy a pendant cross not just as a collectable, but as a usable pendant.

I am not an expert by any stretch of the imagination, but as others stated it is Virgin Mary with the 4 evangelists which is a pretty common depiction in Orthodox iconography.

Getting back on the Roman Republicans, do any other members have coins minted by moneyers that bear their names on the coins? As for Mr Afranius himself, I searched the forum and it appears that @red_spork has one. I wonder if he knows more info about him and his family and why they got to mint coins for Ancient Rome.