Perspective

Not many ancient coins have images drawn in perspective. Most obverses are heads in profile. Some special Greek coins are heads "3/4 facing" which lends perspective. I can think of some tables depicted on Roman imperial and provincial coins that show all four legs as if viewed at an angle. Architectural buildings, temples and other buildings, are usually depicted straight on. I can think of some provincial city views with a clear attempt at perspective.

Of course, bigas and quadrigas are seen at an angle such that all the horses show-- individually they are viewed from the side but the ones behind the others are depicted slightly ahead so you can see their necks and heads.

Do you have any coins with images not depicted "square on" that you could show us? This thread was inspired by this Roman Republican piece I just got:



Mn. Fonteius, 108 or 107 BC.
Crawford 307/1. Sear 184. Fonteia 7
Obverse: Jugate heads of the Dioscuri right, stars above and crossed X (for 16) in front of the neck.
Reverse: A galley, mostly right, but heading somewhat toward the viewer such that the back oars are shorter than the front oars (due to perspective). The eyes either side of the ram are both visible (so it is seen partially front-on) and oars on the left (far, back) side of the galley also appear (although fewer and too wide for photographic realism).
Rudder man at the rear, control mark T below the ram.

Overall, the galley is depicted at about 45 degrees to the viewer--not in profile and not head on. I consider this a rare attempt at perspective. If you have any coins with images not seen from the side or the front, please show us!

 

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Great OP coin. I happen to have two of these.

 

Very nice coins!

 

The horse on the reverse of this coin from Carthage appears to be running forward and nearly toward the viewer

 

Fantastic examples!!!

Sometime last year I picked up this one, the closest I have of the type....but it's a fourree:


There are examples of Sol that appear to be coming at you (or rearing) on coins of Probus:

 

There are some "architectural" provincials from Heliopolis which show sophisticated aerial renderings of a temple. I don't have one

Here's an assortment of Greek and Roman coins in my collection which have devices rendered in a perspective other than straight-on-side-view:

Complex scene on the reverse:

PHOENICIA, Tyre. Elagabalus
CE 218-222
AE29, 13.4 gm
Obv: Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right
Rev: Dido building Carthage; she stands to front before the arched gate of the city, looking left, holding a rule and transverse sceptre; above the gate, a mason at work, [below, a man digging with pick]; murex shell in upper field, palm tree to right
Ref: Rouvier 2375; BMC 409; AUB 245; Price & Trell 748

An artistic rendering of a nymph:

Sicily, Syracuse. Dionysos I
390 BCE
Æ tetras, 14 mm, 1.8 gm
Obv: head of nymph facing slightly left, wearing necklace
Rev: octopus
Ref: CNS 29; SNG ANS 385

Next are a couple of quadrigas which have a bit more perspective than usual. This tetradrachm is often said to depict the racing quadriga as it is about to round a turn: the horses legs are drawn up, heads wild , and you can see the chariot in a 3/4 perspective as if it is turning. The denarius also shows a quadriga in a slightly turned perspective-- you can see the eagle emblem on the front of the quadriga.


SICILY, Syracuse. Agathokles (317-289 BCE)
struck 310-305 BCE
AR tetradrachm, 17.40 g, 24 mm
Obv: head of the nymph Arethusa left, wearing grain wreath, earring and necklace; around, three dolphins; under, monogram (NK?)
Rev: ΣYPAKOΣIΩN, fast chariot charioteer leads to left, holding reins and kentron; above, triskeles; in exergue, monogram
Ref: Ierardi 12 (O2-R8); SNG Copenhagen 573 var., SNG ANS 637
The story of its acquisition is here.


Elagabalus, 218-222 CE
AR denarius, 19.4 mm, 3.5 gm
Antioch, 218-219 CE
Obv: ANTONINVS PIVS FEL AVG, Laureate draped cuirassed bust right
Rev: SANCT DEO SOLI / ELAGABAL, Quadriga right, bearing sacred Baetyl stone, flanked by four parasols
Ref: RIC IV 195
Writeup is here, along with some recreations of the reverse scene in full-color perspective .

This Plancus denarius reverse has a nice mix of perspectives:

Roman Imperatorial, moneyer L. Plautius Plancus
47 BCE
AR Denarius, 3.79 gm
Obv: L. PLAVTIVS; facing mask of Medusa, serpents at either side of face
Rev: PLANCVS; Aurora flying right and conducting the four horses of the sun. Banker's mark in left field.
Ref: Plautia 15b Sear 429, Cr453/1b; Syd 959a.
formerly slabbed by NGC

A nearly full-frontal portrait of Athena, looking a bit like a court jester in her triple-crested helmet:

IONIA, Klazomenai
Mid-late 4th century BCE
Æ18 mm, 4.35 g
Obv: bust of Athena facing slightly right, wearing triple-crested Attic helmet
Rev: KLAΖOMEN / AIΩN in two lines above, ram walking right; in right field, trophy
Ref: SNG Munich 484; SNG Copenhagen 86

This lion has just enough turn to show the far brow, adding realism to the portrayal:

THESSALY, The Oitaioi
167-146 BCE
AR Hemidrachm (15mm, 2.30 g, 1h)
Herakleia Trachinia mint
Obv: Lion’s head left, spear in its jaws
Rev: OITAI downward to right, ΩN downward to left, Herakles standing facing, holding club in both hands
Ref: Valassiadis 9; BCD Thessaly II 494 (same obverse die)
Acquired from Ardatirion, March 2015
Ex BCD Collection (Classical Numismatic Group Electronic Auction 290), lot 57
Ex Peus 384 (2 November 2005), lot 199
Ex Vinchon (20 May 1959), lot 483
Ex M. Ratto 11 (16 May 1935), lot 239
Ex R. Ratto (4 April 1927), lot 1023
Ex Naville-Ars Classica V (18 June 1923), lot 1764

An ordinary front-facer but very interesting. It's tough to find these in better condition:

MACEDON, under Roman rule
D. Junius Silanus Manlianus, praetor
142-141 BCE
AE, 20 x 22 mm, 9.5 gm
Obv: Facing mask of Silenus, wearing ivy wreath
Rev: MAKE ΔONΩN legend In two lines; D above; all within ivy wreath
Ref: SNG Copenhagen 1324

Although the next coin is mostly side-view, the shallow engraving of the ship gives wonderful depth to the reverse. The ship really does appear to be in the distance-- very skillful engraving! Annona and Ceres are also shown in realistic poses.


Nero
struck in Rome, CE 63
Orichalcum sestertius, 34 mm, 26.7 gm
Obv: NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM P M TR P IMP PP; laureate head right, wearing aegis
Rev: ANNONA AVGVSTI CERES; Ceres, veiled and draped, seated left, holding corn ears and torch, her feet on stool, facing Annona standing right, holding cornucopia; between them, modius on garlanded altar; in background, stern of ship
Ref: RIC 98. Cohen 24

 

When I saw this thread I though 'Great, I'll get to show my Fonteius galley!' No that is what you were showing. It is a bit more than perspective being peeled apart and flattened out exaggerating the situation but it is so far ahead of its time IMHO. There are some dies of this coin that are a great deal less successful than the ones shown here and small flans sometimes cut the back side oars ruining the effect. I still like Bing's coin best.

A different perspective is provided by coins of Zeugma showing an almost aerial view of a temple with grove of trees inside a wall before it. I have it in Antoninus Pius and Philip I.

 

Nero's temple of Janus bronzes have some attrmpy at a corner view but his gold (which I don't have) are straight on.

 

Those Fonteius are great, but once again @TIF kills me with all her wonders...

Q

 

Bing, your coins #2 has it all. Gorgeous! Time to get rid of coin #1.

 

here's an arcadius LRB...

 

I have a Philip from Zeugma with the garden view from JA:



Philip I “The Arab” AD 244-249
Æ30, 13.7g, 6h; Zeugma in Commagene.
Obv.: ΑΥΤΟΚ Κ Μ ΙΟΥΑΙ ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟC CΕΒ; Laureate draped bust right, from behind.
Rev.: ΖΕΥΓΜ-ΑΤΕΩΝ; Tetrastyle temple with peribolos enclosing the sacred grove of trees, statue of seated Zeus within temple, capricorn left in exergue.
Reference: BMC 29

 

If someone is interested in trading for coin 1, just let me know.

 

Here is a Macrinus with a reverse: Facing Quadriga...


Roman Imperial
Macrinus 217-218 CE
AE25
Facing Quadriga

And most all my Republican Bigas, Trigas, and Quadrigas have a 1/8-1/4 (?) perspective...

 

I am writing to bump this up to the top. Doug's Zeugma courtyard has "perspective". The further parts of the courtyard rectangle are depicted closer together. His Nero "temple of Janus" pieces show two sides of a building without even an angle between them as we would see when viewed from an angle such that both sides could be seen, so they are not square-on, but do not not use more modern ideas of perspective. TIF's gorgeous Syracuse Agathokles piece shows a chariot from an angle (which is especially clear at the chariot), but does not show the decrease in size associated with distance from the viewer.

Is decrease in size for things further from the viewer really so rare in ancient-coin images?

Trajan, struck 114-117 according to Butcher, at Seleucia Pieria in Syria.
24 mm. 11.46 grams.
This Trajan Roman provincial coin depicts a shrine with the sacred stone of Zeus Kasios. It is not square on, but at an angle to give an impression of depth, but does not use the modern "vanishing point" idea of expressing depth. The columns at the back are as far apart as the columns at the front.

So, it is clear that some coins show objects at an angle (but we have not seen many examples here. I'd like to see more). Do we not have more to show that exhibit decreasing size at greater distance? Is that really so very rare?

 

I think this may fit the bill for your request.


AR Siliqua
383-8 CE Most likely 384/5 CE.
16mm
2.0g
D N MAG MAX-IMVS P F AVG, diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right / VIRTVS ROMANORVM, Roma enthroned facing, head left, holding globe & spear.
TRPS = Trier
RIC84b, RSC20a

 

The way I see this, the two at the back are farther apart than those at the front which is exactly wrong from a perspective point of view. The rear columns are perhaps even a bit taller than the front which is equally wrong.

 

Tetrarchy period argentii with the Tetrarchs sacrificing reverse attempt to show a city gate or walled enclosure in the background with something of a three dimensional perspective.

 

Cool example and one I'm STILL missing