|
Crawford 433/2, ROMAN REPUBLIC - M. Junius Brutus - AR Denarius
|
Rome, The Republic.
Rome Mint.
M. Junius Brutus, 54 BCE.
AR Denarius (3.84g; 19mm).
Obverse: BRVTVS; head of L. Junius Brutus facing right.
Reverse: AHALA; head of C. Servillius Ahala facing right.
References: Crawford 433/2; Sydenham 907; BMCRR 3864; Junia 30.
Provenance: Ex Barry Feirstein Collection [NAC 45 (2008) Lot 14]; ex NAC 11 (1998), Lot 279.
Struck by chief assassin of Caesar during his early political career. The coin depicts Brutus' illustrious ancestors on both sides of his family. The Brutus side is Lucius Junius Brutus, who expelled the Tarquin kings from Rome and became consul in 509 BCE. The Ahala side is C. Servilius Ahala who was celebrated by Cicero for having slain a traitor. At this point in his political career, Brutus was in opposition to Pompey, and it's likely that this coin type is intended to remind the general public of Brutus' pedigree against tyranny.
|
|