I nearly passed on this seemingly non-descript, Fine+, off-centered RR denarius despite lacking that full standing Eagle reverse on any of my other 'Republicans'. After a closer look, I realized that the obverse was not some odd version of Roma or Minerva with a Crested Helmet as I initially thought, rather it was entirely something else and that greatly intrigued me. The consensus appears to be: "The bust appears to bear the attributes of a number of different deities and has therefore been occasionally deemed a parthenon. The identity of this goddess is, as such, something of a mystery" In fact, this draped goddess is wearing the helmet of Minerva, the laurel wreath of Apollo, the crown of Isis, the wings of Victory and the bow and quiver of Diana on her back with a cornucopiae before. If one also equates the winged and helmeted bust with Vacuna, a Sabine goddess, as some authorities seem to suggest, we now have attributes of six deities for this sole goddess. The association to Vacuna is questionable, however, and possibly discounted---- Crawford strongly disagrees with the association....yet it is mentioned by some since it appears to pay homage to the origins of the Plaetoria gens, the family of the moneyer M Plaetorius M f Cestianus. And on the reverse, the Eagle with spread wings, standing right looking left on a thunderbolt..."indicate that the public games sacred to Jupiter (and Magna Mater?) were caused to be performed as usual by the curule aediles..." and that this particular coin 'bears record to the aedileship of the moneyer'. So, now we have one or two additional attributes or associations with deities or a grand total, obverse and reverse of at least 6 to as many as 8, more than I can ever recall coming across before. To make it easier to discern all of those 'attributes', I have attached a higher grade example directly below mine. Since I was the only bidder and won at the minimum required, I may have lucked out and purchased this odd example at below fair market retail..... or simply talked myself into another but(t) coin LOL. Regardless, it is a very strange and interesting coin. Placing this denarius in historical context it was during 67 BC that Pompey launched a campaign against the pirates of Cilicia and is given dictatorial powers by the Senate. At Pontus and Zela (located in the modern Black Sea area of Turkey), Roman troops were engaged against Mithradates..... I look forward to all of your posts and comments. Please share any example you may have that depict a god or goddess sharing multiple attributes. Perhaps someone has a coin that tops the 'split personality disorder' of this particular one. M. Plaetorius M. F. Cestianus, AR Denarius, Rome mint, 67 BC; 19 mm, 3.85 grams. CESTIANVS S C, helmeted and draped bust right with 'multiple deity attributes'. M. PLAETORIVS M F AED CVR: Eagle standing on Thunderbolt, looking left. Crawford 409/1 EDIT: I just noticed one offered by ACM on e-bay...and she lists it as VACUNA....http://www.ebay.com/itm/In-celebrat...165467?hash=item4654c8efdb:g:oCsAAOSwgmJX1a0g
I like the issue and have a worn example myself: M. PLAETORIUS M.F. CESTIANUS ROMAN REPUBLIC; GENS PLAETORIA AR Denarius OBVERSE: Bust of an Vacuna right, wearing a wreathed and crested helmet, bow and quiver on shoulder, cornucopiae below chin REVERSE: M PLAETORIVS M F AED CVR Eagle right, on thunderbolt, head left Rome 67 BC 3.7g, 18 mm Cr409/1; Syd 809; Plaetoria 4
Note we have several different ways the legends were fit on the flan. Minor variations are common on some issues.
@Bing has her down as Vacuna. If it is her, it is very interesting indeed as she is the goddess of leizure. That's right, if you were an ancient who was looking forward to staying in bed longer and having to work less after a season of busting your rear end in the fields, she would have been your godess. I'd imagine the prayers might go something like this: "Oh Divine Vacuna, make my money last through the off season and keep my creditors and all troubles at bay so I can stay in bed all day drinking wine and doing nothing at all. I'd get up to make a sacrifice to you Divine Vacuna, but I'm feeling lazy." She was also associated with lakes and water, lived in some sacred woods, and her element was the earth (hence the association with the after harvest times) It is believed Emperor Vespasian, looking for a cure to his illnesses, traveled to a holy lake associated with her, and drank the water looking for a cure. He shortly thereafter died of explosive diarrhea (who knows how polluted that water was). PS: You've got to love the Romans. They had a deity for everything. I bet you if the Roman religion was alive and well today, there would be a deity for "Internet Access" and a deity for smart phones, and probably even a patron deity for internet shopping.
The word vacuna for vaccines in spanish is derived from the Latin word for cow, vacca...which is also why the English word vaccine starts with [vacc] as it derives from medical research into cows which led to the first vaccine. It's all to do with Dr. Edward Jenner, who discovered vaccines by conducting groundbreaking research on cowpox and the effects on the immune system of cows, which led to a vaccine for smallpox (the world's first vaccine). So vacuna also being the Spanish word for vaccines is just a happy coincidence.
Worn, mysterious and interesting ... hey, my wife calls me one of those names!! Great OP-example, Mikey-Z (congrats) => I happen to have a fairly sweet example as well ...
NICE JOB @mikey! I have a couple of those cool ones too... RR Plaetorius Cest 67 BC AR Den Helmeted Diety quivr cornu S-C Eagle tbolt S 349 Cr 409-1 O-R.jpg RR Plaetorius Cest 67 BC AR Den Helmtd Diety quiv cornuc S-C Eagle tbolt S 349 Cr 409-1 VF O-R.jpg I honestly think the Diety is really Ferd, the friendly neighbor of the Farkle Family.
Great posts everyone!! Although this is a fairly common type, and not all that scarce, I'm still a bit surprised so many of us have examples of it......and several outstanding examples at that.
