I am interested in depictions of the patera on coins. Can we crowd source the earliest appearance of a patera on a Greek or Roman coin? I'm defining patera here as a shallow bowl primarily used to pour out a libation to the gods. The image of Genius holding a patera dominates the Roman coinage of the Tetrarchs. I'd like to think this dominance relates to Diocletian's Christian persecution, in that Genius is modeling the token gesture to the gods that everyone in the empire was supposed to make, especially those seditious Christians. But perhaps that's too fanciful a reading. Thoughts about one or both of these queries?
My earliest is a quinarius M. PORCIUS CATO; GENS PORCIA AR Quinarius OBVERSE: M • CATO • PRO • PR, wreathed head of Liber right REVERSE: Victory seated right, holding palm branch over her left shoulder and patera in her right hand, VICTRIX in ex Utica, Africa 47-46 BC 1.4 g, 13 mm Cr462/2, Porcia 11 CALIGULA AE As OBVERSE: C CAESAR AVG GERMANICVS PON M TRP O T - Bare head Left. REVERSE: VESTA - Vesta seated left, holding patera and scepter Struck at Rome, 37/8AD 9.6g, 28mm RIC38, BMC46, C27 HADRIAN AR Denarius OBVERSE: HADRIANVS AVGVSTVS, laureate head right, slight drapery on far shoulder REVERSE: COS III, Concordia seated left on throne, holding patera & resting left arm on statuette of Spes on column at side of throne Struck at Rome, 125-8 AD 2.3g, 18mm RIC 172 HADRIAN AR Denarius OBVERSE: IMP CAESAR TRAIAN HADRIANVS AVG, laureate head right, draped far shoulder REVERSE: P M TR P COS III, Clemency standing left, holding patera over altar and staff, CLEM in ex. Struck at Rome, 124 AD 2.9g, 18mm RIC 117c, S 3463 SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS AR Denarius OBVERSE: SEVERVS PIVS AVG, laureate head right REVERSE: P M TR P XVI COS III P P, Concordia seated left on throne, holding patera and sceptre Struck at Rome, 208 AD 3.42g, 20mm RIC 218
This was a thought-provoking thread and it made me go back through all my coins looking for one. This is my earliest: Vespasian, AD 69-79. Roman AR denarius, 3.18 g, 18.4 mm, 6 h. Rome, AD 73. Obv: IMP CAES VESP AVG P M COS IIII CEN, laureate head, right. Rev: SALVS AVG, Salus seated left, holding patera, left hand at side. Refs: RIC 58; RIC 2.1 522; BMCRE 87-89; Cohen/RSC 432; CBN 76; RCV 2307.