Julia Mamaea Damnatio Memoriae denarius? Or slashed by The Joker?

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by Marsyas Mike, Mar 11, 2017.

  1. Marsyas Mike

    Marsyas Mike Well-Known Member

    I recently obtained a cruddy denarius of Julia Mamaea with some damage that I thought might be interesting. It is has a lot of (very uninteresting) black crud on the reverse, but the obverse has a large chisel cut across Mamaea's face. It looks like she was given one of The Joker's "smiles" from Batman (R.I.P. Heath Ledger). Not a banker's mark, this looks more like one of those test cuts applied to Athenian tetradrachms. And it looks kind of deliberate to me. There is also a pretty deep punchmark in front of her face taking off the tip of her nose.

    Julia Mamaea Damnatio Den (1).JPG

    Julia Mamaea Damnatio Den (7).JPG

    Julia Mamaea Damnatio Den (3) crop.jpg
    Denarius Julia Mamaea (Mother of Severus Alex.)222-235 A.D.
    IVLIA MAMAEA AVG, diademed & draped bust right / FELICITAS PVBLICA, Felicitas standing, head left, holding caduceus & resting arm on column. RIC 335; RSC 17; BMC 483

    I realize it looks like a fourrée, but I am pretty sure the black stuff is on the surface of the coin, not base metal breaking through the silver (any tips for cleaning this off would be appreciated - it is really hard stuff).

    Anyway, what got me to thinking was the fact that Julia Mamaea, after she was murdered with her son Severus Alexander, was blamed for bad management, greed, meddling, etc. Therefore, according to Livius.org "The Senate pronounced a damnatio memoriae over Mamaea." Usually this manifested itself in statues and inscriptions, but I know coins were included as well (poor Geta). Ancient Imports.com has a wonderful example for sale, a bronze as (I think) of Mamaea, which they list as a damnatio memoriae.

    I realize assigning damage to an ancient coin to a specific event is impossible, but I thought the nature of the damage here was compelling. Any thoughts? Any others out there?
     
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  3. Mikey Zee

    Mikey Zee Delenda Est Carthago

    Interesting !! Probably @dougsmit opinion would carry the most weight.
     
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  4. ro1974

    ro1974 Well-Known Member

    can this be a limes denarius
     
  5. ro1974

    ro1974 Well-Known Member

  6. Marsyas Mike

    Marsyas Mike Well-Known Member

    It could be, but my photos are darker than the coin in hand. The visible silver parts look like the typical Severan-era 50% (or so) alloy. The 2 or 3 limes I've seen in person were very dark (like the one in your photo). But I really don't know.
     
  7. randygeki

    randygeki Coin Collector

  8. Bing

    Bing Illegitimi non carborundum Supporter

  9. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    Here's my example of your coin (the issue with the Felicitas standing reverse type). Mamaea Felicitas Standing Denarius.jpg
    And here's the corresponding Sestertius:

    Mamaea Felicitas Standing Sestertius.jpg
     
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  10. Volodya

    Volodya Junior Member

    One of the few coins I sort of miss from my long-gone Imperial collection:

    [​IMG]
     
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  11. Alegandron

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

    My only Mamaea

    RI Julia Mamaea AR denarius  Pietas incense altar perfume Seaby 48.JPG
    RI Julia Mamaea AR denarius Pietas incense altar perfume Seaby 48


    And my only Damnatio slash...

    upload_2017-3-11_14-31-27.png
    RI Fausta 325-326 CE AE3 Spes stdg 2 infants SMHA 20mm 3.48g scratch over eye damnatio memoriae by Constantine
     
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