The last of my recent purchases that I hadn't posted yet: Nabataean Kingdom. AE 17. Malichus II and Queen Shaqilath II (40-71 AD). Petra mint. Obverse: Conjoined heads of Malichus II and Shaqilath II facing right. Reverse: Crossed cornucopia, Aramaic legend between "Malichus, Shaqilath" in three lines, two lines between cornucopia and one line below (not clear on this specimen). Sear, Greek Imperial, 5703. Purchased from Ephesus Numismatics. Nabataea, as I mentioned in previous posts, was an ancient Arab kingdom covering territory roughly equivalent to modern Jordan and the Sinai Peninsula. The kingdom was quite wealthy due to its prime position along the spice trading routes, and was an ally of Rome from the first century BC until Trajan annexed the territory as the new province of Arabia Petraea in 106 AD. Not much is known about the reign of Malichus II. During the Jewish Revolt, he sent 5,000 cavalry and 1,000 infantry to support the Roman armies of Titus. Also, David Sear's Greek Imperial Coins and Their Values notes, "Shaqilath II was sister and wife of Malichus II." I guess they picked up this habit from their Egyptian neighbors? Like most Nabataean bronzes, this features conjoined busts of both the king and queen. The portraits are rather stylized- I don't think it's possible to distinguish the various Nabataean rulers by portrait alone, the legend is key to proper attribution. Coins of Malichus II seem to be less common than those of either his predecessor Aretas IV (9 BC- 40 AD) or his successor Rabbel II (71-106 AD), though it's not obvious why as he had a long and apparently peaceful reign. Also, on this coin you can see part of a casting sprue. Like many bronze coins of the region (Judaea, Seleucids, Parthians, etc.) the planchets were originally cast in a string of blanks that were then cut apart; the remaining sprue was supposed to be sanded off prior to striking, but often there was a trace left.
It's sometimes difficult to tell the difference between the busts of Aretas IV and Malichus II, but the busts of Rabbell II are easily recognizable as those of a different king. You are correct that these bronzes of Malichus II are far less common than those of his father, the reason being that his father minted a bazillion of them and by the time M took the throne, there was more than enough small change in circulation.
I have one of these! Nabatean Kingdom, Malichus II 40 - 70 AD O: jugate laureate and draped bust of Malichus II and Shuqailat II right R: two cornucopias, crossed and filleted, Aramaic legend, "Malichus / Shuqai/lat" in two lines above and one below cornucopia SNG ANS 1444 16x12 mm 3.1g
