There is also an As of Domitian with an interesting Ludi Saeculares reverse. [...]
Domitian As Ludi Saeculares Emperor Sacrificing With Musicians
https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=184381
I really like the
Domitian Ludi Saeculares AE As. It is fun to see the Games coinage issued by different emperors across
Roman Imperial
history. (E.g.,
Ludi Saeculares:
Augustus,
Domitian, Septimius Severus/Caracalla,
Philip I & II; probably others I'm not thinking of; though a 100-year celebration, or 110-year, the intervals could be creatively re-calculated by Emperors to host a festival in their reign.)
Domitian also
had a similar
Dupondius but with a
goat being sacrificed to the left of the musicians [
an ex from ACSearch]. I wonder if yours is before or after the
goat was killed?
Could this be described as showing the performers/competitors? If so, I wonder if
Domitian is the only emperor who showed competitors on
his Ludi Saeculares coins? (Are they doing musical/theatrical competition, or the pre-Games ritual
blessings?)
If not, that's interesting too, and raises an important question: Why didn't the
Ludi Saeculares coinage ever show the actual competition/competitors? That would seem to be a great subject for a
reverse die. (
Republican AR
Denarii showed us gladiatorial competition and
equestrian athleticism.
Nero's
Thessaly Provincials show
his musical performance and a bull-fighting event.) So there must be a reason for their absence from
Ludi Saeculares coinage.
Septimius showed a fascinating scene of ritual "preliminaries" (
Denarius RIC 263):
https://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.4.ss.263 (Here is the much better example from
Roma:
https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=9259591)
Caracalla &
Septimius Severus also showed
Liber &
Hercules, representing the activities, I suppose, but not performers themselves.
Philip & family mostly showed
animals and monuments. But actual Games performers?
The closest other one I can think of might be Philip's
elephant riders (but some might argue those aren't even
Ludi coins at all), e.g.
RIC 167 (AE
Sestertius) & 58 (AR
Antoninianus):
https://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.4.ph_i.167 &
https://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.4.ph_i.58Interesting group of interesting imperial bronzes!