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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;DonnaML, post: 4937436, member: 110350&quot;]Back to normal, after my venture far afield to a Roman Provincial of Caesarea!&nbsp; Although these may be my last purchases of Roman Republican coins for a while -- I don&#039;t want to get carried away. Unless, of course, I see something I can&#039;t resist!</p><p><br /></p><p>35. Roman Republic, C. Vibius C. f. C. n. Pansa Caetronianus, AR Denarius 48 BCE, Rome mint. Obv. Mask of bearded Pan right; below, PANSA / Rev. Jupiter A[n]xurus, laureate, barechested, seated left on throne, holding patera in right hand and long scepter in left hand; on right, C•VIBIVS•C•F•C•N curving downwards; on left, IOVIS • AXVR curving upwards. Crawford 449/1a, RSC I Vibia 18 (ill.), Sear RCV I 420 (ill.), BMCRR 3978, Sydenham 947. 19 mm., 3.75 g.* (<i>Purchased from Silbury Coins, UK, Sep. 2020</i>.)</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1186312[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]1186315[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>*Caius Vibius Pansa, son of Caius and grandson of Caius, was Consul in 43 BCE. (Crawford p. 465.) According to Grueber in BMCRR (pp. 509-510 at n. 1), he was a supporter of Caesar, and governor of Bithynia and Pontus in 47 BCE, striking coins at Apamea and Nicaea. He was killed in battle in 43 BCE before the town of Murina.</p><p><br /></p><p>The mask of Pan on the obverse -- I assume it&#039;s considered a representation of a mask of Pan, rather than a representation of Pan himself, because it has no neck? -- is a pun on his <i>cognomen</i>, Pansa. (Crawford p. 465.) The figure of Jupiter A[n]xurus on the reverse (see the reverse legend) refers to an association of the moneyer’s <i>gens</i>, Vibia, with the town of Anxur (now Terracina). (See <i>id</i>.)&nbsp; The town is in Latium on the Tyrrhenian sea, about 98 km. southeast of Rome. See BMCRR at p. 510 at n. 1, stating that in Anxur “there was a special cult of Jupiter, whose temple was situated on the highest point of the city, and who was represented as a youth, handsome in features, and of perfect form; a representation suggested by the type of the coin.” See also John Melville Jones, <i>A Dictionary of Ancient Roman Coins</i> (Seaby, London 1990) at p. 153, under entry for Jupiter.</p><p><br /></p><p>The ruins of the sanctuary platform and temple of Jupiter Axurus can still be found in Tarracina; here&#039;s a photo from Wikipedia:</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1186306[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>I have a couple of questions/comments about the reverse; here&#039;s a detail of the relevant portion:</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1186307[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>First, there&#039;s more detail on this example than on a lot of others I&#039;ve seen, which leads me to ask: what&#039;s that thing sticking out of the back of Jupiter&#039;s left heel? It looks like a dart. But he&#039;s not Achilles, so I doubt that that was the intention!</p><p><br /></p><p>Second, this is also one of the few examples I&#039;ve seen on which one can see the front edge of the seat of Jupiter&#039;s throne.&nbsp; From the angle, it almost looks like an attempt at perspective. But then again, where are the front legs of the throne?</p><p><br /></p><p>36.&nbsp; Roman Republic, L. Procilius L.f., AR Serrate Denarius, 80 BCE. Obv. Head of Juno Sospita right, wearing goatskin headdress; behind, S•C downwards / Juno Sospita wearing goatskin headdress, standing in biga right with galloping horses, holding figure-eight style shield [prob. an allusion to the mythological Shield of the Salii priests, or <i>ancilia</i>] in left hand and brandishing spear in right hand; coiled serpent below horses; in exergue, L•PROCILI•F. Crawford 379/2, RSC I Procilia 2 (ill.), Sear RCV I 307 (ill.), BMCRR Rome 3150, Sydenham 772, Harlan, RRM I Ch. 4 at pp. 19-22 [Michael Harlan, <i>Roman Republican Moneyers and their Coins</i>, 81 BCE-64 BCE (2012)]. 20.05 mm., 3.97 g. (<i>Purchased from Marc Breitsprecher, Oct. 2020</i>.)*</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1186310[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>* See Crawford at p.396, stating that the moneyer, Lucius Procilius son of Lucius, “is presumably to be identified with the Senator attested in 56 [citing Cicero] and with the man later condemned for misconduct in that year [also citing Cicero].” The presence of Juno Sospita on both sides of the coin “reveals the moneyer’s Lanuvine origin” (<i>id</i>.), as does the presence of the serpent, which “alludes to a sacred ritual performed at Lanuvium.” Harlan, RRM 1, Ch. 4 at p. 20.</p><p><br /></p><p>Regarding the type of shield held by Juno Sospita and its connection to the <i>ancilia</i>, that connection is supported by David R. Sear, whose online Glossary of Frequently Encountered Terms in Roman Coin Descriptions (also found in each volume of the Millenium Edition of Roman Coin Values) states as follows: <i>&quot;Ancile</i> a shield of distinctive form (narrow central section of oval shape with broad curving extensions at top and bottom). It was a particular attribute of Juno Sospita and was associated with the Salian priesthood of Mars.&quot; See <a href="https://www.davidrsear.com/academy/roman_glossary.html#Ancile" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.davidrsear.com/academy/roman_glossary.html#Ancile" rel="nofollow">https://www.davidrsear.com/academy/roman_glossary.html#Ancile</a>. See also the discussion of the <i>ancile</i> at <a href="https://www.romanumismatics.com/historicarticles?view=article&amp;article_id=509" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.romanumismatics.com/historicarticles?view=article&amp;article_id=509" rel="nofollow">https://www.romanumismatics.com/historicarticles?view=article&amp;article_id=509</a>, with a photo of an example of an Augustus denarius (RIC 343) depicting two <i>ancilia</i> on the reverse.</p><p><br /></p><p>Now that I have an example of Crawford 379/2, I can pair it with my example of Crawford 379/1:</p><p><br /></p><p>Roman Republic, L. Procilius L.f., AR Denarius, 80 BCE. Obv. Laureate head of Jupiter R., S C behind/ Rev. Juno Sospita advancing right, wearing Etruscan shoes turned up at the toe, holding figure-eight shield [prob. an allusion to the mythological Shield of the Salii priests, or <i>ancilia</i>] in left hand and hurling spear with right hand; snake before; behind, L. PROCILI/F downwards.&nbsp; RSC I Procilia 1 (ill.), Crawford 379/1, Sydenham 771, Sear RCV I 306 (ill.), Harlan, RRM I Ch. 4 at pp. 19-22 [Michael Harlan, <i>Roman Republican Moneyers and their Coins</i>, 81 BCE-64 BCE (2012)], BMCRR Rome 3147. 19.5 mm., 3.6 g. (<i>Purchased from Harlan J. Berk, Ltd., NYINC Jan. 2020.</i>)*</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1186322[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1186325[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>* Same footnote, except to note Crawford&#039;s statement at p. 396 that the reverse type on this coin “doubtless portrays the cult statue of Juno Sospita” (<i>id</i>., citing Cicero, De Natura Deorum 1.82).</p><p><br /></p><p>Edited to add: Please post your own Vibius Pansa coins (there are quite a few different kinds, from both this moneyer and his father), your own Juno Sospita coins from anyone, or anything else that you think is appropriate.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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