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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Mikey Zee, post: 2409586, member: 72818&quot;]When this Roman Republic denarius was offered to me, along with four others, I used all of my pending May coin budget to purchase two of them---this being the one I LOVE the most! The centering and details are wonderful and&nbsp; the Apollo/Satyr devices literally depict a two sided coin, the &#039;drunken dude&#039; as unattractive as the god is handsome. Hmmm, I noticed that either size was not that important in antiquity or old Marsyas (like George Costanza on Seinfeld) just came out of the &#039;pool&#039; ...or crawled out of a pond he drunkenly fell in??<img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie8" alt=":D" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p>Briefly, Marsyas challenged Apollo to a musical contest and lost his hide and his life and his punishment is seen as appropriate for challenging a God. It seems several interpretations can be considered for the devices of the coin: Apollo as a symbol of harmony and Marsyas as a symbol of liberty---hence the &#039;Phrygian Cap&#039; (and not simply &#039;bald&#039; like Socrates LOL)...... Since this was struck posthumously, Marius died 86 BC after his 7th Consulship with Cinna, the references to harmony and freedom following the Social Wars seems reasonable but little more than optimistic propaganda since by this time Sulla was now in Italy and would soon become Dictator and ultimately crush all credible Marian resistance. Finally, the symbolism may refer to the moneyers family line (the gens Marcia)....&quot;who claimed legendary descent from Marsyas....&quot; Hmm, it seems Sulla would have been a more likely descendant<img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie11" alt=":rolleyes:" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /><img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie85" alt=":smuggrin:" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p>Lucius Marcius Censorinus denarius</p><p>Rome mint, 82 BC; 18mm, 3.85 grams (EDIT)</p><p>Laureate head of Apollo right</p><p>The satyr Marsyas bearded, naked and drunk walking left, holding a wine skin over his shoulder, wearing Phrygian cap; behind a column with Nike or Minerva, L CENSOR left.</p><p>CRR 737, RRC 363</p><p><br /></p><p>Please post any coin that you feel is in the &#039;spirit&#039; of this thread<img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]497732[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]497733[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]497734[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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