Saturnalia Give away: Funny ancient trivia facts + Trajan's Treasure: 2 T-rages for $22 a piece

You all go black Friday shopping???

Yeah, me neither.
Well, I did participate in Forvms black Friday 20% off sale and picked up a couple of VERY interesting Trajan provincial coins that just arrived and I am very excited to share with you all.

If you make it to the end of this post, I am giving away a lovely ancient coin for Saturnalia!

But first, the new acquisitions.
Prefacing with, I just cannot get good pictures on smaller coins with my phone. Maybe I'm just getting an ID10T error.
I was just scrolling along minding my own business when I came across this Trajan type that I'd never seen... with Egyptian iconography on it... for 20 bucks!
Sellers pic:

My pic:

Trajan, Bronze dichalkon, Emmett 707, F, a bit rough, ragged flan, 1.660g, 14.3mm, 0o, Alexandria mint, 25 Jan 98 - 8/9 Aug 117 A.D.; obverse no legend, laureate head right; reverse no legend, Hemhem crown, date in lower field divided by ram horns; from the Ray Nouri Collection

"The Hemhem crown, also known as the triple Atef crown, was symbol of Pharaonic power and authority credited with magical abilities that would protect Egypt from any enemy. It originated during the 18th dynasty was first seen in an image of the pharaoh Akhenaten in a tomb at Amarna. A Hemhem crown is worn Tutankhamen on the back of the gilded throne discovered in his tomb. No examples of this type of crown are known to have survived." ... hey, wait! The guy on this hieroglyph has one. Get him!!!

And then, I scroll a bit further and then I come across another provincial Trajan with one of Herakles twelve labors referenced on it (like everyone else I only had the Nemean lion) also on sale for a tiny amount! Aaand it was the same seller so shipping was only $4
Sellers pic:

My pic:

Trajan, Copper quadrans, RIC II 702, BMCRE III 1062, Cohen II 341, SRCV II 3248, F, dark patina with highlighting earthen fill, a little off center on a tight flan, scratches, 1.791g, 11.6mm, 180o, Rome mint, 98 - c. 106 A.D.; obverse IMP CAES TRAIAN AVG GERM, diademed bust of Hercules right, Nemean lion skin tied around his neck; reverse Erymanthian Boar walking right, S C (senatus consulto) in exergue; from the Ray Nouri Collection;

"Herakles' fourth labor was to capture the giant fear-inspiring Erymanthian Boar that lived on Mount Erymanthos in the primitive highlands of Arcadia. The centaur Chiron advised Herakles to drive the boar into thick snow. Herakles caught the boar and carried it back to Eurystheus, who was frightened, hid and begged Herakles to get rid of the beast. Three days later, Eurystheus, still trembling with fear, sent Herakles to clean the Augean stables."


Ps, Anyone know Ray Nouri? Guy has taste and I appreciate the great deal

Ok,ok. On to the cointest
Post your funniest ancient history/mythology trivia facts.
From ancient cities being named Sexi, to Zeus being married to and sleeping with his own sister, to Caracalla killing 30,000-300,00 over getting mooned and a statue only to later get murdered while pooping on the roadside. I want the funniest and most ridiculous that history has carried down the ages to you and I.
You get up to three entries. That are different subjects to post on to impress.... or should I say Empress No. No I should not. My and others sense of humors.
I will exercise no ill will nor differential prejudice against any cointestant, other than @Alegandron and at the end, this Friday or Saturday... when I'm least sober I will reread all of the funny facts and decide the funniest, most awkward and decent writing helps and let you all know who won...
However, during Saturnalia the slaves became the masters for a day and you know what that meant the masters were. Even Roman patrons would pretend equality with their sponsor.
So, the winner won't win anything. They will decide who on the ancients forum (recognizable names that would be interested/ excited) sponsor they will be and who the coin goes to.
To sweeten the pot, check out the prize ahead of time
A beautiful, recently unearthed (so you literally will know the coins provenance from the time it was lost to time, to when it was found and got to you) BARBARIAN coin (though, with some of the British rulers coins it can be hard to tell the legitimate ones from the ones my ancestors made):

 

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LOL

 

Just kidding old buddy. As I recall Philip II had some pretty funny stories...like catching one of his many wives (Alexander's mom, Olympia) in bed with a snake and not being able to bed her after.
But you have to tell the story to participate in the cointest!

 

My story: probably apocryphal

Valerian I was captured by Shapur and made into a human footstool.

when the people of Rome demanded their emperor back, Shapur said “sure.”

And sent the emperors body, stuffed with straw, back to the homeland

not really funny but more absurd overall

 

Another one:

the emperor Diocletian retired and went to his hometown of Split in Croatia to farm cabbages.

when his old bro Maximian implored Dio to come back to work, Dio replied:

“man, if you could see my cabbages you’d understand why your request is impossible”

 

Two hilarious stories @hotwheelsearl !!!
A couple hilarious side notes:
After his father's capture by all accounts Gallienus did NOTHING to get his father back! Ouch. What did or didn't daddy do?
I recall that Valerian would be called upon whenever Shapur was ready to get on his horse. So Shapur could step on his back while mounting his stead! Just twisted stuff.
But man, I really Love Diocletian stuff... but so ironically, not his coins
He actually believed that his cabbages were a "cure all"! Got cancer? Cabbage. Got gout? Cabbage. Got a crumbling tetraarchy? CABBAGE!!!

 

This whole situation cracks me up on so many levels!!

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In 63 BC Caesar was elected to the position of the Pontifex Maximus, the chief priest of the Roman state religion, which came with an official residence on the Via Sacra. In 62 BC Pompeia hosted the festival of the Bona Dea ("good goddess"), which no man was permitted to attend, in this house. However a young patrician named Publius Clodius Pulcher managed to gain admittance disguised as a woman, apparently for the purpose of seducing Pompeia. He was caught and prosecuted for sacrilege. Caesar gave no evidence against Clodius at his trial, and he was acquitted. Nevertheless, Caesar divorced Pompeia, saying that "my wife ought not even to be under suspicion"

 

I rarely take offense to fun jokes and play! LOL, I know who you are... and how many times have I jibed YOU! Life is more fun that way. I will have to dig up a fun story, but my mind is already mush today. My wife and I both got hit with Credit Card fraud this morning... and we have separate accounts for everything!

 

Classic story @Clavdivs !
About a man who was abducted by pirates when he was 18. When they told him he needed to pay 20 talents for his release caesar famously asked if they knew who he was. And that they should demand no less than 50 talents!
During his captivity Caesar lectured them about things ranging from poetry to athletics
The whole time telling them that he would come back and crucify them all.
As sure as the Sun rises, due to thet local kings ambivalence Caesar hired a mercenary army and did just what he said
Oh no! Sorry to read @Alegandron
Nightmare scenario.
I lost my wallet a while back, so can kinda commiserate.
Just take care of you and the fam and then back to the funnies

 

Excellent and interesting new coins @Ryro . I always find it fun reading stories about coins with Egyptian symbolism. Plus who doesn’t love a budget Trajan... the guy was a bacon loving beast man.

..............................​

As to the question of an amusing story...

The first ever nude statue of a woman in the Greek world was the Aphrodite of Knidos made by Praxiteles of Athens in the 4th century B.C. At the time it was common for men to be portrayed naked in art but not for women (take that double standards).

The statue was made for the people of Knidos to serve as the cult statue in the Temple of Aphrodite. The statue was apparently so realistic that it caused some unexpected trouble for the priests. One young man was so aroused by the statue that he broke into the temple at night and attempted to make love to it. The priests burst in and caught the man quite literally with his pants down. He was so so ashamed that he threw himself from a nearby cliff top.

However, the unfortunate young man wasn’t the only Ancient Greek with a strange attachment to the statue. King Nicomedes I of Bythinia offered to pay off the debts of the city of Knidos if they handed over the (hopefully subsequently washed) statue.

 

Oh man.. that is terrible. Hope it all works out for you and the wife.
Happened to me about 21(?) years ago.. before we had kids my wife was on a work trip to LA.. she went to take some money out down there and we were cleaned out! She called me in a rage .. asking what type of party I was throwing while she was away that it cleaned out the bank??...lol... I looked around at all the empty pizza boxes and empty beer cans - quick calculation .. no wasn't me!! She used the credit card for the rest of the trip and the bank eventually reimbursed us.. but in that case I was guilty until proven innocent!.. we laugh at it now..
Hard to imagine now, I am sure, but I hope you are made whole and can look back later and not be upset about it. Banks and credit card companies are usually very good at sorting these things out... they need this system to work.
Best of luck...

 

All is good (well...ok) Because of a lot of international travels for the last 40 years, I get hit with CC fraud once to twice a year. CC’s usually contact me. They have my spending habits down pat, and will call me if it does not seem correct. They usually FedEx me a new card and account number within a day or two. Unfortunately, I am not traveling anymore, but the fraud keeps coming...

This one was my wife’s account at Walmart, but she also had one of my CC in the account. She was hit, I was hit, but WMUS reversed the charges, as the CCs ( and my wife’s bank account) were not in the buyer’s name, nor was it from an area of the country that we would normally visit. I always use a CC for a $1 purchase or more because they are protected and can be disputed.

This is an odd year for me. I have had my card replaced 3 times for various fraud reasons. And I am not using the cards as much anymore.

I suggest that anyone set alerts in your bank accounts, and any spending cards to send you an email and text for any purchase above 0.99 (local currency). Set alerts for everything: online purchases, debits, credits, overseas purchases, card not present purchase, etc. Better to delete the texts and emails, rather than miss a fraudulent transaction. With all the hacking going on, the thieves are thick.

Perhaps we can redirect each of our nations’ Special Forces to go after the world’s Hackers and Trolls rather than for military and political reasons...


Here is a tough-to-find coin of the Mercenary Revolt / War against Carthage. Carthage would not pay their Mercenaries after the First Punic War with Rome. Uh-oh, THAT was a major bad no-no. It turned in to an UGLY war, with inhumane actions, even by Ancient war standards...


Carthage-LIBYAN UPRISING - Mercenaries issue
Mercenary War 241-238 BCE
7.36g AR DiShekel
Herakles Head in Lion's Head-
Lion walking; Punic M above; LIBYA below
R SNG Cop 240f
Overstrike
Coins were struck in the name of Libya and "M", which has been taken as either "machanat" - the Camp (of the mercenaries), or perhaps Matho, their leader

 

Well very good to hear you have a good hold on the situation.. with your experience it seems it will be resolved. Hopefully just a bump in the road. I always fear for the seniors who have no idea what is happening and are taken advantage of and do not understand how to fix it.
My wife and I were in our late 20's when ours occurred - and frankly I never blamed her for thinking the worst .



Best to you and wife!!

 

Yeah, I am still pending a $2000 dispute on one of my other CC. 2 guys using their names but with my card with my name, took a vacation using a fake card ( it did not look like my card, nor signature was correct.) Resort tried to say it was my charge. Why did that business owner ALLOW the transaction when the card was in my name, not a real CC for the account, and their names were on the rooms???

 

Just another classic tale of boy meets statue, falls in love with statue and tries to sleep with statue. Truly a timeless tale. And it also goes to show why Greek sculptures are known as the finest from antiquity; they truly loved their art
With so many great Greek stories and you can pick just about anything from their mythology for a laugh (or a cry), I think I will mention a couple classic Greek one liners from the battle of "The Hot Gates"...Thermopylae!
When King Leonidas I of Sparta was told by a Persian messenger that Xerxes I would spare his men's lives if they gave up their weapons that moment. Old Leonidas proudly replied, Tell Xerxes to "come and take them""
Another classic Dad joke passed down the ages from this battle is when a Greek soldier complained that, "Because of the arrows of the barbarians it is impossible to see the sun", Dienekes, one of the strongest of the Spartan warriors, replied, "Won't it be nice, then, if we shall have shade in which to fight them?



Any more funny stories from the past please post em up for a chance to win a CT pal a SaWeet Barbarian coin!

 

Thia Saturnalia "win a coin for your patron" giveaway is almost over. If you have a CT buddy that you would like to gift a recently unearthed Barbarian coin to, all you have to do is write down a story from antiquity that makes you chuckle. But once the sun sets on this snowy Utah day it'll be over and a winner announced!

 

This Guy EPITOMIZED Ancient Republican Rome's virtues. He did not trust outside influences to corrupt the Roman People. He was also a purist to defend the Roman Republic.

Marcus Porcius Cato 234–149 BCE

He had an outstanding career, Everyone can get a quick glimpse of it on Wiki:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cato_the_Elder

HOWEVER, in later years after the Second Punic War with Hannibal, he became FIXATED on DESTROYING Carthage. EVERY public speech, in the Senate, to the People, etc. He ALWAYS ended it with:

"Carthago delenda est", or "Carthage must be destroyed."

It cracks me up that he was SO adamant about his beliefs - that is the only humor in this story...

However, not too long after his death, the Roman Republic did fabricate a Third Punic War, and destroyed Carthage... to extinction of their State and their People.

When you drill a thought, a phrase, a belief into the minds of the people, over and over, many times, and very unfortunately, folks will BELEIVE; whether the statement is true or not. Unfortunately, Carthage literally paid for it with their LIVES...
In 146 BCE, the City of Carthage was destroyed: Up to 750,000 killed, including civilians.
The remaining 50,000 survivors were enslaved.

 

Alrighty, the sun is down and I'm right and proper to judge some comedy.
2 excellent stories from @hotwheelsearl on excellent comedic tropes. The macabre and eccentricity.
Also, @Alegandron and @Clavdivs coming with heat... but @Curtisimo 's story is Greek, absurd aand probably true.
So, the most ridiculous story of antiquity entered here in goes to @Curtisimo !!!
Making him the Saturnalia patron of his desired CT friend.
So, Curtisimo who gets the Barbarian coin???

 

I win! SWEEEEET!!!


@Ryro very cool give away my friend. As to the recipient, what do you think about holding on to this coin and giving it as a Saturnalia present in case we have any participants this year that don't receive a gift? If all the packages arrive and no one is left out of those festivities then I could nominate another recipient. Thoughts?

 

Deal. If someone gets skunked for Saturnalia at least they know a rad barbarous awaits... and if everybody receives their coins then to the patronimo go the spoils