Hello everyone and welcome to Round 2 of the 2018 CoinTalk Imperator Tournament! If you are unaware of the tournament I invite you to get caught up with all the fun in the master thread; https://www.cointalk.com/threads/an...annual-coin-imperator-tournament-2018.320328/ A big thank you to all of our participants. Without further ado… ............................................................ #8 @Bing HERENNIUS ETRUSCUS AR Antoninianus OBVERSE: Q HER MES DECIVS NOB C, Radiate and draped bust of Herennius right REVERSE: CONCORDIA AVGG, Clasped hands Struck at Rome, 250/1 AD 3.53g, 21mm RIC138 Price: $65 Why It’s Cool: History: As with many third century emperors, much of the material on Trajan Decius and his sons is late and unreliable. If the Historia Augusta ever included biographies for the Decii, they are now lost. It is at least safe to say that Herennius Etruscus and his younger brother, Hostillian, possessed a high pedigree. Their father, the emperor Decius, was no military upstart, but hailed from a consular family based in Sirmium. Herennius Etruscus was born in Pannonia sometime between 220 and 230, and was thus old enough to do military service during his father's reign. In the year 250 Decius officially appointed his two sons, Herennius and Hostillian, as Caesars. The title "Prince of the Youth" (princeps iuventutis) may have initially distinguished the elder son, but by 251 both were accorded the same titular dignity. Nevertheless, Herennius clearly overshadowed his younger brother. By the end of his reign, Decius had elevated his son to the rank of Augustus, a distinction which Hostilian never enjoyed while his father and brother lived. Concern over the precarious Danubian frontier dominated the joint reign of Decius and his sons, to such an extent that Decius sent Herennius ahead to Illyricum very soon after he secured power. Following serious incursions into Dacia and Moesia by the Carpi and Goths, Decius and Herennius Etruscus led an expeditionary force against the Gothic king Cniva. The barbarians were on their way to their homelands as the two sides met at Abrittus (Hisarlak, near Razgrad in modern Bulgaria). Cniva was able to lure his adversaries into a swampy area, and thereafter everything fell into place for the Goths. Cniva broke his force into several tactical groups, surrounded the Roman army, and nearly destroyed it. Herennius was struck down by an arrow early in the battle. Trying to console his men, his father is said to have remarked that the loss of but one soldier mattered little to him. Trebonianus Gallus' desperate efforts to salvage some remnant of the expedition from the slaughter were insufficient to save the lives of either Augustus. Decius and Herennius Etruscus thus became the first Roman emperors to be killed by foreign enemies in the field of battle. The survivng men proclaimed Trebonianus Gallus emperor, even though Hostilian already held nominal power in Rome. The reign of Decius and his sons is usually perceived as one of the worst in a series of destructive turning points heralding "the crisis of the third century." Yet despite his ill fortune, the Latin sources look favorably upon Decius as a paragon of traditional principles, and this warm reception applied to his elder son as well. Eutropius claims father and son were both deified. Gibbon offered this obituary: "Such was the fate of Decius . . . who, together with his son, has deserved to be compared, both in life and death, with the brightest examples of ancient virtue." The Gothic invasion (Image courtesy of Wikipedia) The Coin: The hand shake has always intrigue me, as well as many historians. The handshake has existed in some form or another for thousands of years, but its origins are somewhat murky. One popular theory is that the gesture began as a way of conveying peaceful intentions. By extending their empty right hands, strangers could show that they were not holding weapons and bore no ill will toward one another. Some even suggest that the up-and-down motion of the handshake was supposed to dislodge any knives or daggers that might be hidden up a sleeve. Yet another explanation is that the handshake was a symbol of good faith when making an oath or promise. When they clasped hands, people showed that their word was a sacred bond. Concordia was the Roman goddess of agreement, understanding, and marital harmony. Her Greek version is Harmonia. The cult of Concordia Augusta (Majestic Harmony) was of special importance to the imperial household. Dedicatory inscriptions to her, on behalf of emperors and members of the imperial family, were common. In art, Concordia was depicted sitting, wearing a long cloak and holding onto a patera (sacrificial bowl), a cornucopia (symbol of prosperity), or a caduceus (symbol of peace). She was often shown in between two other figures, such as standing between two members of the Royal House shaking hands. In this case, just the clasped hands are reference enough to show Majestic Harmony. Bargain: The average price for this coin is between $125 and $150 so I felt very good about purchasing this coin for $65. ............................................................ #24 @Pavlos Bronze coin from Pontus. Mint between 80 - 70 B.C. Amisos mint. 23mm; 11,01g. Obverse: Head of Perseus right, wearing Phrygian helmet. Reverse: AMIΣOY, Pegasus grazing or drinking left, monograms below and left. Reference: SNG BM Black Sea 1213-7 Price: $45 Why It’s Cool: This is a bronze coin from Amisos, a city in ancient Pontus on the Black Sea. On the obverse of this coin is Perseus, the hero who slew Medusa. On the reverse, Pegasus is shown standing and drinking from a spring with the name of the town, Amisos, shown below. In Greek mythology, Pegasus was said to have been born from the blood that was shed by Medusa when she was beheaded by Perseus. Later, while Pegasus was drinking at the well of Pirene, the hero Bellerophon was able to throw Athena's golden bridle over his head and ride him, leading to the defeat of the monstrous Chimaera! This bronze coin was struck between 80 - 70 B.C during the reign of Mithridates VI Eupator of Pontus. Mithridates VI is remembered as one of the Roman Republic's most formidable and successful enemies and the greatest ruler of Pontus. He is also well known for regularly ingesting small doses of poison to gain immunity as protection against assassination. In the end, when he was defeated and cornered by the Romans, he attempted to commit suicide with this same poison, which obviously failed. Mithridates, who was of both Persian and Greek ancestry, may have favored an image of Perseus for his coins because Perseus was a Greek hero that was considered an ancestor of the Persians by many Greeks. Mithridates VI allowed his most important cities to strike their own copper coinage (of which Amisos was the most prolific). The years before the Mithridatic Wars saw a substantial increase in the minting of coins as the economy of the region was unified under the direction of Mithridates VI. During the wars, Mithridates VI funded his military campaigns by introducing new materials for coinage. Copper alloys were used widely for the first time in coins of the region, possibly as a means to substitute for a shortage in silver coinage. It is also possible that the copper coins were meant for use in the region of Cimmerian Bosporus. These Pontic coins circulated widely for many decades after the wars and were still a major part of the economy into the early imperial period. ............................................................ A Gentle Reminder Round 1 went about as well as anyone could have hoped from the perspective of keeping the commentary fun, interesting and friendly. It would be a challenge to run a tournament of this type on almost any other board but with the great people here on CT it has been both an honor and a pleasure. Lets try to keep up with the perfect score in the friendliness department by concentrating comments on why you liked an entry instead of why you didn't like the other. Remember that everyone gets 3 votes to choose which coin you think comes out on top in each of the three categories. With that I will open the thread for comments, opinions, coin pile-ons and random posting of coin things as you see fit.
Two great coins, one with nice eye appeal and another with a scarcer emperor with great historical background....this one will be close. My only Herennius Etruscus, Syria, Seleucis and Pieria. Antiochia ad Orontem. Herennius Etruscus. As Caesar, A.D. 250-251. Æ octassarion. 31mm // 16,30g. Obv: ЄPЄNN ЄTPOV MЄ KV ΔЄKIOC KЄCAP, bare-headed and draped bust of Herennius Etruscus right. Rev: ANTIOXЄΩN MHTPO KOΛΩN, Tyche seated within tetrastyle temple, the river-god Orontes swimming at her feet; above shrine, ram leaping right, head left; in exergue, S C. McAlee 1158.
I have no coins featuring Perseus or a pegasus... here's one of Herennius: Herennius Etruscus, AD 251 Tetradrachm, 27mm, 11.7g; 12h; Antioch, Syria Obv.: EPENNE TPOY ME KY ΔEKIOC KECAP; bare-headed, draped, cuirassed bust right, three dots beheath bust (=officiana 3) Rev.: ΔHMAPX EΞOYCIAC; eagle standing right on palm branch, head right, tail left, wreath in beak In Ex.: SC @Sallent likes to make fun of my eagle...he's big boned! I saved the drawing he made on my computer but I can't get at it right now... Both of you did a great job on the write ups!
i have a one of each...i've found it quicker to just go to the "table of coins"(plus other treasures, not to mention the foil lampshade) and find and take a pic rather than go thru the computer for hours looking with no rhyme or reason of order..now i just have to remember that..
Pavlos' excellent coin and write up easily eliminated me from this great tournament and my dreams of glory were short lived... now not even a footnote in the dust bin of history. Funny, I googled that phrase and got this: The History of Wheelie Bins: Historians are divided over the origins of the wheelie bin. ... The modern plastic wheelie bin was invented by the Slough based company Frank Rotherham Mouldings on March 12th 1968. It was initially used only for the movement of refuse from one area to another inside the factory. Well crap... can historians not agree on anything?? Two great coins! Who will join me in the wheelie bin??
Great writeup and cool Herennius from Bing, but Pavlos sallies forth with that killer Pegasus of his again! Since I'll be meeting the winner of this matchup in the next round, I'll be watching how things play out with great interest.
This one is close!! Bing mentioned that Hostilian didn't make Augustus during his brother & father's lifetime. Here's an issue from after their deaths, when Trebonianus Gallus acknowledged the younger brother's status. He retained his title as Augustus until his death a few months later. The usual account is that he died of an illness (perhaps the plague), though some say it was murder by Gallus. C OVAL OSTIL MES COVINTVS AVG // SAECVLVM NOVVM And here's my Mithradates VI Perseus issue, with Medusa looking a bit unhealthy on the reverse:
There is still some time to weigh in on this match if you haven't already. It closes in a little under 2 hours.
Another match in the rear view ladies and gentlemen... and a very entertaining one at that! Results #8 @Bing - 70 #24 @Pavlos - 82 Winner Bing wins the interest category and comes to an almost even split on the bargain category but Pavlos carries the match on the strength of his coin's fantastic eye appeal. Thank you to both players for the great entries and write ups. I certainly wouldn't have guessed you to be a newer collector, Pavlos, with great coins like that in your cabinet... well done @Pavlos will take on @zumbly in Round 3 with a spot on the winners podium at stake! It should be tons of fun
I'm sorry we won't get a play a match together in this tournament, Bing... maybe next year. Congrats, Pavlos, I have to say I'm glad I won't be meeting your killer Pegasos in Round 3!
Very nice round Bing and a pretty coin. This is going to be a nice round 3 zumbly, I need to choose my next coin wise as I don't have that many coins yet in my collection. However, hopefully some new coins arrive next week that I ordered, including a quite rare Seleukid quasi-municipal type coin!
Congrats to both contestants. I'm looking forward to seeing the Zumbly/Pavlos match up : there will be blood !!! Q
