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<p>[QUOTE="DonnaML, post: 7649840, member: 110350"]Most of you are probably aware that Roman Provincial coins in the Western provinces (Hispania and Gaul), issued with Latin legends by local "colonies" and municipalities, ceased being minted very early. (By contrast, Roman Provincial coins in the East mostly had Greek legends, and lasted until the reign of Diocletian.) See K. Butcher, <i>Roman Provincial Coins: An Introduction to the Greek Imperials</i> (Seaby 1988) at p. 17: "the western coinage began to dwindle in the reign of Tiberius . . . and had died out altogether early in the reign of Claudius." In fact, with specific respect to Hispania, David Sear states that " some of the Spanish mints had a final burst of activity under [Caligula], but before the accession of the next emperor, Claudius, all local issues had ceased in the province, never again to recommence." D. Sear,<i> Greek Imperial Coins and their Values</i> (Seaby 1982) at p. 34.</p><p><br /></p><p>Thus, the overwhelming majority of Western Provincial coins were issued under Augustus and Tiberius. Until now, my only Western Provincial coin was the dupondius depicting Augustus & Agrippa with a crocodile on the reverse, issued by Colonia Augusta Nemausus [Nîmes] in the Gallia Narbonensis province (Southern Gaul) -- the subject of a very interesting thread just a couple of days ago.</p><p><br /></p><p>Now, I have a Provincial coin from Hispania as well.</p><p><br /></p><p>Tiberius, AE As, 14-37 AD, Hispania Tarraconensis, Turiaso Mint [now Tarazona, Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain], M. Pont. Marsus and C. Mari. Vegetus, duoviri [city magistrates]. Obv. Laureate head right, TI CAESAR AVG F IMP PO<u>NT</u> M / Rev. Bull standing right, head facing, M PO<u>NT</u> <u>MAR</u>SO; <u>MVN</u> <u>TVR</u> in field above bull, C <u>MAR</u>I <u>VE</u>GETO below, II VIR in right field [ligate letters underlined]. RPC [<i>Roman Provincial Coinage</i>] Vol. I 418 (1992); RPC I Online at <a href="https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/1/418" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/1/418" rel="nofollow">https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/1/418</a>; ACIP 3291a [Villaronga, L. & J. Benages, <i>Ancient Coinage of the Iberian Peninsula: Greek / Punic / Iberian / Roman, Societat Catalana D 'Estudis Numismatics, Institut D 'Estudis Catalans</i> (Barcelona, 2011)]; FAB 2450 [Alvarez-Burgos, F., <i>La Moneda Hispanica desde sus origines hasta el Siglo V </i>(Madrid, 2008)]; SNG Copenhagen 606 [<i>Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum, Copenhagen, The Royal Collection of Coins and Medals, Danish National Museum, Part 43, Spain-Gaul</i> (Copenhagen 1979), Parts 40-43 reprinted as one volume, 1994]. 28 mm., 11.98 g. <i>Purchased from Tom Vossen, Netherlands, May 2021; ex. Aureo & Calico, Auction 364, 21 April 2021, Lot 1202.</i>*</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1315282[/ATTACH]</p><p> </p><p>* Turiaso was "a municipium of Hispania Tarraconensis, now Tarazona, situated on a small river that runs into the Ebro, to the south of Tudela." <a href="https://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp?key=Turiaso" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp?key=Turiaso" rel="nofollow">https://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp?key=Turiaso</a> (quoting Stevenson's <i>Dictionary of Roman Coins</i> (1880)). See also <a href="https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/x51280" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/x51280" rel="nofollow">https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/x51280</a> ("Located in the hinterland of NE Spain close to the Ebro river valley, c. 60 km north of the ancient site of Bilbilis Augusta, the Iberian settlement named Turiasu later became an important Roman city called Turiaso. Under Visigothic rule it was called Tirasona and is now called Tarazona").</p><p><br /></p><p>Tarazona is now in Aragon in the north of Spain. Under the Roman Empire, it was part of Hispania Tarraconensis, the largest of the three provinces in Roman Spain, along with Hispania Baetica and Lusitania. Under the Republic, before Augustus's reorganization in 27 BCE, Turiaso was part of Hispania Citerior (Nearer Iberia, i.e., closer to Rome, as compared to Hispania Ulterior).</p><p><br /></p><p>For a discussion of Turiaso's coinage, see the section entitled "Regio Turiasonensis Turiaso," in Sir George Francis Hill, "Notes on the ancient coinage of Hispania citerior" (Numismatic Notes and Monographs, American Numismatic Society 1931) at <a href="http://numismatics.org/digitallibrary/ark:/53695/nnan86651" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://numismatics.org/digitallibrary/ark:/53695/nnan86651" rel="nofollow">http://numismatics.org/digitallibrary/ark:/53695/nnan86651</a>. The article includes, among other things, a list of all the names of magistrates (<i>duoviri</i>) found on the coins of Augustus and Tiberius minted in Turiaso, and notes that "G. Marius Vegetus [named on my coin] appears both as aedile and as duumvir. Under Augustus, both asses and semisses were struck by duoviri, and the aediles do not seem to have issued coins. Under Tiberius, as usual, the duoviri strike the asses, the aediles the semisses; but who was responsible for the sestertii or dupondii does not appear."</p><p><br /></p><p>As for the bull on the reverse, Kevin Butcher notes at p. 62 of <i>Roman Provincial Coins</i>, <i>supra</i>, that "A standing bull, probably connected with anniversaries commemorating the foundation of the various colonies, occurs at Caesaraugustus, Celsa, Calagurris, Cascantum, Ercavica, Graccurris, Turiaso, and Clunia." Oxen pulling a plow were certainly a common symbol of the foundation of colonies on Roman coins, so such an interpretation is not surprising, even though a plow is nowhere in sight! See Jones, John Melville, <i>A Dictionary of Ancient Roman Coins</i> (Seaby 1990) at pp. 121-122 (entry for “Founder”), explaining that the Romans “inherited a custom from the Etruscans of defining the boundaries of a new city by marking them with a plough,” so that certain coins showing plowing can be interpreted as a reference to the founding of colonies. As a typical example, see this denarius of C. [Gaius] Marius C.f. Capito, issued ca. 81 BCE (Crawford 378/1c), showing Ceres on the obverse and a husbandman with a yoke of two oxen plowing left (with their faces turned forward as on my new coin), a type often associated with the foundation of colonies by Sulla's veterans:</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1315310[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Please post your Roman Provincial coins from Hispania, and/or your Roman Provincial coins of Tiberius from anywhere. And/or your bulls, oxen, cows or heifers with their heads turned to face the camera![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="DonnaML, post: 7649840, member: 110350"]Most of you are probably aware that Roman Provincial coins in the Western provinces (Hispania and Gaul), issued with Latin legends by local "colonies" and municipalities, ceased being minted very early. (By contrast, Roman Provincial coins in the East mostly had Greek legends, and lasted until the reign of Diocletian.) See K. Butcher, [I]Roman Provincial Coins: An Introduction to the Greek Imperials[/I] (Seaby 1988) at p. 17: "the western coinage began to dwindle in the reign of Tiberius . . . and had died out altogether early in the reign of Claudius." In fact, with specific respect to Hispania, David Sear states that " some of the Spanish mints had a final burst of activity under [Caligula], but before the accession of the next emperor, Claudius, all local issues had ceased in the province, never again to recommence." D. Sear,[I] Greek Imperial Coins and their Values[/I] (Seaby 1982) at p. 34. Thus, the overwhelming majority of Western Provincial coins were issued under Augustus and Tiberius. Until now, my only Western Provincial coin was the dupondius depicting Augustus & Agrippa with a crocodile on the reverse, issued by Colonia Augusta Nemausus [Nîmes] in the Gallia Narbonensis province (Southern Gaul) -- the subject of a very interesting thread just a couple of days ago. Now, I have a Provincial coin from Hispania as well. Tiberius, AE As, 14-37 AD, Hispania Tarraconensis, Turiaso Mint [now Tarazona, Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain], M. Pont. Marsus and C. Mari. Vegetus, duoviri [city magistrates]. Obv. Laureate head right, TI CAESAR AVG F IMP PO[U]NT[/U] M / Rev. Bull standing right, head facing, M PO[U]NT[/U] [U]MAR[/U]SO; [U]MVN[/U] [U]TVR[/U] in field above bull, C [U]MAR[/U]I [U]VE[/U]GETO below, II VIR in right field [ligate letters underlined]. RPC [[I]Roman Provincial Coinage[/I]] Vol. I 418 (1992); RPC I Online at [URL]https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/1/418[/URL]; ACIP 3291a [Villaronga, L. & J. Benages, [I]Ancient Coinage of the Iberian Peninsula: Greek / Punic / Iberian / Roman, Societat Catalana D 'Estudis Numismatics, Institut D 'Estudis Catalans[/I] (Barcelona, 2011)]; FAB 2450 [Alvarez-Burgos, F., [I]La Moneda Hispanica desde sus origines hasta el Siglo V [/I](Madrid, 2008)]; SNG Copenhagen 606 [[I]Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum, Copenhagen, The Royal Collection of Coins and Medals, Danish National Museum, Part 43, Spain-Gaul[/I] (Copenhagen 1979), Parts 40-43 reprinted as one volume, 1994]. 28 mm., 11.98 g. [I]Purchased from Tom Vossen, Netherlands, May 2021; ex. Aureo & Calico, Auction 364, 21 April 2021, Lot 1202.[/I]* [ATTACH=full]1315282[/ATTACH] * Turiaso was "a municipium of Hispania Tarraconensis, now Tarazona, situated on a small river that runs into the Ebro, to the south of Tudela." [URL]https://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp?key=Turiaso[/URL] (quoting Stevenson's [I]Dictionary of Roman Coins[/I] (1880)). See also [URL]https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/x51280[/URL] ("Located in the hinterland of NE Spain close to the Ebro river valley, c. 60 km north of the ancient site of Bilbilis Augusta, the Iberian settlement named Turiasu later became an important Roman city called Turiaso. Under Visigothic rule it was called Tirasona and is now called Tarazona"). Tarazona is now in Aragon in the north of Spain. Under the Roman Empire, it was part of Hispania Tarraconensis, the largest of the three provinces in Roman Spain, along with Hispania Baetica and Lusitania. Under the Republic, before Augustus's reorganization in 27 BCE, Turiaso was part of Hispania Citerior (Nearer Iberia, i.e., closer to Rome, as compared to Hispania Ulterior). For a discussion of Turiaso's coinage, see the section entitled "Regio Turiasonensis Turiaso," in Sir George Francis Hill, "Notes on the ancient coinage of Hispania citerior" (Numismatic Notes and Monographs, American Numismatic Society 1931) at [URL]http://numismatics.org/digitallibrary/ark:/53695/nnan86651[/URL]. The article includes, among other things, a list of all the names of magistrates ([I]duoviri[/I]) found on the coins of Augustus and Tiberius minted in Turiaso, and notes that "G. Marius Vegetus [named on my coin] appears both as aedile and as duumvir. Under Augustus, both asses and semisses were struck by duoviri, and the aediles do not seem to have issued coins. Under Tiberius, as usual, the duoviri strike the asses, the aediles the semisses; but who was responsible for the sestertii or dupondii does not appear." As for the bull on the reverse, Kevin Butcher notes at p. 62 of [I]Roman Provincial Coins[/I], [I]supra[/I], that "A standing bull, probably connected with anniversaries commemorating the foundation of the various colonies, occurs at Caesaraugustus, Celsa, Calagurris, Cascantum, Ercavica, Graccurris, Turiaso, and Clunia." Oxen pulling a plow were certainly a common symbol of the foundation of colonies on Roman coins, so such an interpretation is not surprising, even though a plow is nowhere in sight! See Jones, John Melville, [I]A Dictionary of Ancient Roman Coins[/I] (Seaby 1990) at pp. 121-122 (entry for “Founder”), explaining that the Romans “inherited a custom from the Etruscans of defining the boundaries of a new city by marking them with a plough,” so that certain coins showing plowing can be interpreted as a reference to the founding of colonies. As a typical example, see this denarius of C. [Gaius] Marius C.f. Capito, issued ca. 81 BCE (Crawford 378/1c), showing Ceres on the obverse and a husbandman with a yoke of two oxen plowing left (with their faces turned forward as on my new coin), a type often associated with the foundation of colonies by Sulla's veterans: [ATTACH=full]1315310[/ATTACH] Please post your Roman Provincial coins from Hispania, and/or your Roman Provincial coins of Tiberius from anywhere. And/or your bulls, oxen, cows or heifers with their heads turned to face the camera![/QUOTE]
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