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Image search results - "urn"
Semisse-1.jpg
AE Semis - Anonymous - After 206 B.C.
Obv.: Head of Saturn right, S behind
Rev.: prow of galley, S above; ROMA below
Gs 12,1 mm. 24,8
Crawford 56/3.
Maxentius
DenLPisoFrugibis.jpg
Denarius - 90 b.C. - Mint of Rome
L. CALPVRNIVS PISO FRVGI - Gens Calpurnia
Ob.: laureate head of Apollo right. Behind H. C below the chin.
Rev.: horseman galloping right holding palm. Λ above, L PISO FRVGI below.
gs. 3,9 mm. 18,3
Cr.340/1, Syd.669a
Maxentius
DenLMemmioGaleriabis.jpg
Serrate Denarius - 106 BC
L. MEMMIVS GALERIA - Gens Memmia
Obv.: Laureate head of Saturn left; ROMA and harpa behind
Rev,; Venus in biga right, Cupid flying above with laurel wreath, L MEMMI (ME in monogram) GAL in two lines in ex.
Gs. 3,82 mm. 17,2x17,8
Cr313/1a, Sear RCV 190.

Maxentius
SemisseStella.jpg
AE Semis - Anonymous - 169/157 B.C.
Obv.: Head of Saturn right, S behind
Rev.: Prow of galley right, star above, S before; ROMA below
Gs 12,5 mm. 24,1
Crawford 196/2, Sear RCV 829
Maxentius
TRAIAN-10.jpg
TRAJAN - Denarius - 103/112 AD.
Obv.:IMP TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P, laureate head right, drapery on far shoulder
Rev.:COS V P P S P Q R OPTIMO PRINC, Dacia mourning, seated on pile of captured arms, DAC CAP in ex.
Gs. 3,3 mm. 18,4
Cohen 118, RIC 98
Maxentius
Semisse-2.jpg
AE Semis - Anonymous - After 211 B.C. (Grueber 240/229 B.C.)
Obv.: Head of Saturn right, S behind
Rev.: prow of galley, S above; ROMA below
Gs 18,3 mm. 25,9
Crawford 56/3, Sear RCV 766, BMRRC(Grueber) 229
Maxentius
Cherronesoshemidrachm1.jpg
Thracian Chersonese, Cherronesos AR Hemidrachm. 400-350 BC. Forepart of lion right, head turned back / quadripartite incuse with crested helmet, pellet and 'A' and 'E' monograms in parallel incuse squares.CANTANATRIX
26531q00.jpg
Silver tetradrachm, Prieur 720 (1 example), SNG Paris 2331, Weber -, VF, 13.043g, 26.9mm, 180o, Aegeae mint, 132 - 133 A.D.; obverse AUTOKR KAIS TRAIA ADRIANO SEB P P, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right; reverse ETOUS •QOR• AIGEAIWN, eagle standing facing on harpe, wings spread, head turned right, goat in ex; rare;

Aegeae issued tetradrachms only during the reigns of Hadrian and Caracalla. The issues were probably related to visits of these emperors to the town or to its famous sanctuary of Asclepius. -- The Syro-Phoenician Tetradrachms and Their Fractions from 57 BC to AD 253 by Michel and Karin Prieur

ex FORVM
dealer's picture
1 commentsareich
Postumus_sestertius_helmeted_bust.jpg
Postumus, Principal Mint, double sestertius
IMP C M CASS LAT POSTVMVS P F AVG, Radiate, helmeted and cuirassed bust right
VICTORIA AVG, Victory advancing left, spurning captive
Weight 20.07g

A very rare obverse type - this coin from the same obverse die as the examples illustrated in Bastien
2 commentsAdrianus
caracalls_ric_IVa_54b.jpg
CARACALLA
AR Denarius
18.9 mm, 3.2 grams

OBV: ANTONINVS PIVS AVG,
Laureate, draped bust, right
REV: PART MAX P M TR P IIII, two captives seated right and left, mourning, at foot of trophy.
RIC-IVa-54b
Cherronesos_Hemidrachm.jpg
Cherronesos Hemidrachm
480-350 BCE

Obverse: Forepart of lion right, head turned
Reverse: Quadripartite incuse square with alternating raised and sunken quarters; partial E and dolphin pellet in opposite sunken quarters

BMC 31
SNG Copenhagen 829
Weber 2413
SNG Leake 1704
2 comments
JAMES_IV.JPG
JAMES IV OF SCOTLAND
James IV was the King of Scotland from June 1488 until his death in battle at the age of 40 on the 9th September, 1513.
James IV's mother, Margaret of Denmark, was more popular than his father, James III, and though somewhat estranged from her husband she raised their sons at Stirling Castle until she died in 1486. Two years later, a rebellion broke out, where the rebels set up the 15-year-old Prince James as their nominal leader. The rebels fought James III at the Battle of Sauchieburn where, on 11th June 1488, the king was killed. Prince James assumed the throne as James IV and was crowned at Scone on 24th of June. However he continued to bear an intense guilt for the indirect role which he had played in the death of his father.
James maintained Scotland's traditional good relations with France, and this occasionally created diplomatic problems with England, but James recognised nonetheless that peace between Scotland and England was in the interest of both countries, and established good diplomatic relations with England as well. First he ratified the Treaty of Ayton in 1497, then, in 1502 James signed the Treaty of Perpetual Peace with Henry VII which was sealed by his marriage to Henry's daughter Margaret Tudor the next year. Anglo-Scottish relations generally remained stable until the death of Henry VII in 1509.
James saw the importance of building a fleet that could provide Scotland with a strong maritime presence, he founded two new dockyards and acquired a total of 38 ships for the Royal Scots Navy. These including the "Great Michael" which, built at great expense, was launched in 1511 and was at that time the largest ship in the world.
When war broke out between England and France, James found himself in a difficult position as an ally by treaty to both countries. But relations with England had worsened since the accession of Henry VIII, and when Henry invaded France, James reacted by declaring war on England.
James sent the Scottish navy, including the "Great Michael", to join the ships of Louis XII of France and, hoping to take advantage of Henry's absence at the siege of Thérouanne, he himself led an invading army southward into Northumberland. However, on 9th September 1513 at the disastrous Battle of Flodden James IV was killed, he was the last monarch in Great Britain to be killed in battle. His death, along with many of his nobles including his son the archbishop of St Andrews, was one of the worst military defeats in Scotland's history and the loss of such a large portion of the political community was a major blow to the realm. James IV's corpse was identified after the battle and taken to Berwick, where it was embalmed and placed in a lead coffin before being transported to London. Catherine of Aragon, wife of Henry VIII, sent the dead king's slashed, blood-stained surcoat to Henry, who was fighting in France, with the recommendation that he use it as a war banner.
James IV's son, James V, was crowned three weeks after the disaster at Flodden, but he was not yet two years old, and his minority was to be fraught with political upheaval.
*Alex
HENRY_VI_from__National_portrait_gallery.JPG
HENRY VI
Henry VI was King of England from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471. The only child of Henry V, he succeeded to the English throne at the age of nine months when his father died.
This was during the period of the long-running Hundred Years' War (1337 - 1453) and Henry is the only English monarch to also have been crowned King of France (as Henri II), in 1431. During his early reign several people were ruling for him and by the time Henry was declared fit to rule in 1437 he found his realm in a difficult position, faced with setbacks in France and divisions among the nobility at home. Henry is described as timid, shy, passive, well intentioned, and averse to warfare and violence; he was also at times mentally unstable. Partially in the hope of achieving peace, Henry married the ambitious and strong-willed Margaret of Anjou in 1445. The peace policy failed and the war recommenced with France taking the upper hand such that by 1453 Calais was Henry's only remaining territory on the continent.
With Henry effectively unfit to rule, Queen Margaret took advantage of the situation to make herself an effective power behind the throne. Starting around 1453 Henry began suffering a series of mental breakdowns and tensions mounted between Margaret and Richard of York, not only over control of the incapacitated king's government, but over the question of succession to the throne. Civil war broke out in 1459, leading to a long period of dynastic conflict, now known as the Wars of the Roses. Henry was deposed on 29th March 1461 after a crushing defeat at the Battle of Towton by Richard of York's son, who took the throne as Edward IV. Margaret continuing to resist Edward, but Henry was captured by Edward's forces in 1465 and imprisoned in the Tower of London.
Queen Margaret, who was first exiled in Scotland and then in France, was still determined to win back the throne on behalf of her husband and son. So, when Edward IV fell out with two of his main supporters, Richard Neville the Earl of Warwick and George the Duke of Clarence, Margaret formed a secret alliance with them backed by Louis XI of France. Warwick returned with an army to England, forced Edward IV into exile, and restored Henry VI to the throne on 30th October 1470, though Henry's position was nominal as Warwick and Clarence effectively ruled in his name.
But Henry's return to the throne lasted less than six months. Warwick overreached himself by declaring war on Burgundy, whose ruler responded by giving Edward IV the assistance he needed to win back his throne by force. Edward retook power in 1471, killing Warwick at the Battle of Barnet and Henry's only son at the Battle of Tewkesbury. Henry was again imprisoned in the Tower where, during the night of 21st May he died, possibly killed on Edward's orders.
*Alex
CARDINAL_THOMAS_WOLSEY.JPG
CARDINAL WOLSEY
When Henry VIII became King of England in 1509 he appointed Thomas Wolsey to the post of Almoner, a position that gave him a seat on the Privy Council and an opportunity for establishing a personal rapport with the King to such an extent that by 1514 Wolsey had become the controlling figure in virtually all matters of state. In 1515, he was awarded the title Archbishop of York and this, followed by his appointment that same year as Cardinal by Pope Leo X, gave him precedence over all other English clerics. His ecclesiastical power advanced even further in 1523 when the Bishop of Durham, a post with wide political powers, was added to his titles.
After Wolsey attained the position of Lord Chancellor, the King's chief adviser, he had achieved more power than any other Crown servant in English history and during his fourteen years of chancellorship Wolsey, who was often alluded to as an alter rex (other king), used his power to neutralise the influence of anyone who might threaten his position..
In spite of having made many enemies, Cardinal Wolsey retained Henry VIII's confidence until, in 1527, the King decided to seek an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so that he could marry Anne Boleyn. Henry asked Wolsey to negotiate the annulment with the Pope and in 1528 the Pope decided to allow two papal legates, Wolsey himself and Cardinal Campeggio, to decide the outcome in England. Wolsey was confident of the outcome, but Campeggio took a long time to arrive, and then he delayed proceedings so much, that the case had to be suspended and the Pope decided that the official decision should therefore be made in Rome and not in England.
After his failure to negotiate the annulment, Wolsey fell out of favour with Henry and in 1529 he was stripped of his government office and property, including the magnificent Palace of Hampton Court, which Henry took as his own main London residence.
Wolsey was however permitted to retain the title of Archbishop of York and so he travelled to Yorkshire, for the first time in his career, to carry out those duties.
Now that he was no longer protected by Henry, Wolsey's enemies, including it is rumoured, Ann Boleyn, conspired against him and Henry had him arrested and recalled to London to answer to charges of treason, one of those being that with 'pompous and preposterous mind, he had enterprised to join and imprint the Cardinal's hat under the King's arms on the King's coin of groats made in the city of York'. But Wolsey, now in great distress, fell ill on the journey back to the capital and at Leicester, on 29 November 1530, aged about 57, he died from natural causes before he could be beheaded.
*Alex
MARY,_QUEEN_OF_SCOTS_(1542-67).JPG
MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS
Mary I is one of the most well known, romantic and tragic figures in Scottish history. She was the only surviving child of King James V of Scotland and became queen on the death of her father when she was only six or seven days old. Mary was brought up in the Catholic faith and educated in France along with the French royal children, while Scotland was ruled in her name by regents, principally the Earl of Arran. In 1558 Mary married the French Dauphin, Francis, and following his accession in 1559 she became Queen consort of France and he King consort of Scotland. However, when Francis died in 1560 Mary was devastated and in 1561 she returned to Scotland. Four years later, in 1565, she married her half-cousin, Lord Darnley and the following year she bore him a son, who would later become James I of England. When in 1567, Darnley's house in Edinburgh was destroyed by an explosion and he was found murdered in the grounds, suspicion implicated Mary and her favourite, the Earl of Bothwell. When later that same year Mary married Bothwell those suspicions were not allayed, and following an uprising against her, she was imprisoned in Loch Leven Castle and forced to abdicate in favour of her one year old son. After an unsuccessful attempt to regain her throne and defeat at the battle of Langside in 1568, Mary fled south to England, only to be imprisoned by Elizabeth I who perceived her as a threat to the throne of England. For over eighteen years Elizabeth had Mary confined in various castles and manor houses throughout England until, in 1587, after being accused of numerous intrigues and plots against Elizabeth, Mary was beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle.
*Alex
James_3.JPG
JAMES III
James III was crowned at Kelso Abbey in 1460 at the age of nine, he was the son of James II and Mary of Guelders. During his childhood, the government was led by successive factions until 1469 when he began to rule for himself. That same year he married Princess Margaret of Denmark. Margaret's father, King Christian I of Denmark and Norway was unable to raise the full amount of her dowry so pledged his lands and rights in Orkney and Shetland as security for the remainder. But Christian I was never able to redeem his pledge, and Orkney and Shetland have remained Scottish possessions ever since.
Soon after his marriage, James faced great difficulties in restoring a strong central government. His preference for the company of scholars, architects and artists coupled with his extravagance and partiality to favourites alienated him from the loyalty of his nobles. Even his own brothers, Alexander, Duke of Albany and John, Earl of Mar regarded him with jealousy verging on hatred. In 1479, James' brothers were arrested on suspicion of conspiring against the Crown. John Stewart, the Earl of Mar, died in suspicious circumstances, whilst Alexander Stewart, the Duke of Albany, escaped and fled to England.
The ever-present English threat had been temporarily solved by a truce with Edward IV in 1463 but James' estrangement from his brothers and a strong faction within the Scottish nobility led to the final loss of Berwick.
Although James had tried to settle his differences with Alexander, Duke of Albany, his brother again tried to take his throne in a coup after Edward IV recognised him as Alexander IV of Scotland in 1482. Some minor members of James III's household were hanged, including Robert Cochrane, the king's favourite. But James was removed to Edinburgh Castle where he survived and Alexander was exiled to France.
After his queen's death in 1486, James lived in increasing isolation amidst the growing resentment of the nobility. Finally, in 1488, the Scottish nobles seized James' eldest son, also called James, placed him at their head, and rose against the king. At the Battle of Sauchieburn, three miles from Stirling, James III, defeated, was thrown from his horse as he fled from the field. He was carried into a nearby cottage where he was set upon and stabbed to death.
James III was buried at Cambuskenneth Abbey near Stirling and his son, the figurehead of the revolt against him, was hailed as James IV.
*Alex
James_V_of_Scotland.jpg
JAMES V OF SCOTLAND
James V was King of Scotland from 9th September 1513 until his death in 1542, following the Scottish defeat at the Battle of Solway Moss.
James was the third son of King James IV of Scotland and his wife Margaret Tudor, a daughter of Henry VII of England and sister of Henry VIII. He became king at just seventeen months old when his father was killed at the Battle of Flodden on 9th September 1513.
James was crowned at Stirling Castle on 21st September 1513, but during his childhood the country was ruled by regents. In 1517, James moved from Stirling to Holyrood in Edinburgh and in the autumn of 1524, at the age of 12, he dismissed his regents and was proclaimed an adult ruler by his mother. But in 1525 Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus, the young king's stepfather, took custody of James, exercising power on his behalf and it wasn't until 1528 that James finally assumed the reins of government himself.
The death of James' mother in 1541 removed any incentive for peace with England, and war soon broke out between the two countries. Initially, in August 1542, the Scots won a victory at the Battle of Haddon Rig. A conciliatory meeting between James V and Henry VIII in England was proposed, but not until after James' wife, Mary of Guise, had given birth to her child which was due a few months away. Henry would not accept this condition and mobilised his army against Scotland.
On 31st October 1542 James was with his army at Lauder but, although his plans were to invade England, he returned to Edinburgh, on the way writing a letter to his wife mentioning that he had had three days of illness. The next month James' army suffered a serious defeat at the Battle of Solway Moss and James fell ill shortly afterwards. Some accounts state this was brought on by the Scottish defeat, but other historians consider that it was probably just an ordinary fever. Whatever the cause of his illness, James was on his deathbed when his child, a girl, was born.
James died on the 14th of December at Falkland Palace and was succeeded by his infant daughter, Mary, Queen of Scots, who was just six days old. He was buried at Holyrood Abbey in January 1543 alongside his two sons and his first wife Madeleine. However his tomb was destroyed soon after, in 1544, by the English during the burning of Edinburgh.
*Alex
Constantine_I_Alexandria.jpg
Constantine I. A.D. 307/10-337. ’ follis (17 mm, 2.78 g, 6 h). Alexandria, A.D. 333-335. CONSTANTI-NVS MAX AVG, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Constantine I right / GLOR-IA EXERC-ITVS, two soldiers standing facing, heads turned toward one another, each holding spear and resting hand on grounded shield; between, two standards; SMALA. RIC 58.paul1888
Abels-Chalukya.jpg
INDIA, Post-Gupta (Deccan). Uncertain. Circa 600-650. AE (Bronze, 19 mm, 4.34 g, 12 h), Vishnukundin style, struck somewhere in the Pallava-Visnukundin-Eastern Chalukya Region. SRI KU TA or SRI KRI TA (in Brahmi) Bull standing to right; above, legend in Brahmi; all within circle. Rev. Sankha flanked by lamp stands; all within rayed border. B.U. Abels: A Short Presentation on One West-Indian and One South-Indian Coin, in: Numismatic Digest 39 (2015), p. 128, ill. 2 (this coin). B.U. Abels: An Early Chalukya Coin, in: The Journal of the Numismatic Society of India, L, Part I & II (1988), p. 37-38 (this coin). Quant.Geek
IMG_3456.jpeg
Greek Coins
Pangaean District, Eion. Trihemiobol; Pangaean District, Eion; 5th Century BC, Trihemiobol, 0.77g. Cf. SNG ANS-287 (H behind goose's feet) and 291 (H right of goose's neck). Obv: Goose standing r., head turned back, lizard above, H (faint) before goose's feet. Rx: Four-part incuse square. Ex Morton and Eden/Sotheby 51, A Collection of Exceptional Greek Coins, 24 October 2011, lot 97; ex NFA VIII, 6 June 1980, lot 97. Formerly in the collection of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Catalogue (1955), 610; acquired by Boston as part of the Edward Perry Warren Collection, Regling, Sammlung Warren (1906), 569; obtained by Warren as part of the Canon Greenwell Collection in 1901.
paul1888
IMG_4066.jpeg
Roman Republic: L. Cassius Longinus; 3.86g. Veiled vesta bust left, in front L, behind it stands Kylix//Togatus left. and throws the voting stone with V into the urn.

Bab. 10; BMC 3931; Crawf. 413/1; Syd. 935
Ex: Auktion Áureo & Calicó 314, Barcelona 2018, Nr. 2034
1 commentspaul1888
IMG_4060.jpeg
Chersonesos, Thrace, c. 386 - 338 B.C. Silver hemidrachm, Weber 2422; BMC Thrace p. 185, 43; McClean II 4071; HGC 3.2, 1437; SNG Cop -, Choice gVF, attractive neat style, toned, Cherronesos (Gallipoli peninsula) mint, weight 2.323g, maximum diameter 14.1mm, c. 386 - 338 B.C.; obverse lion forepart right, head turned back left, tongue protruding; reverse quadripartite incuse with alternating shallow and deeper sunken quarters, pellet and VE ligature in one sunken quarter (pellet mostly off flan), pellet and five-point star (pentagram) in the opposite sunken quarter. Coin & photography ex Forum Ancient Coins.

This example is unusually well centered on the obverse, which motivated me to purchase it. Overall I believe it is an attractive coin.
3 commentspaul1888
JUSTINIAN_I_HALF-SIILIQUA.JPG
JUSTINIAN I, AR Siliqua or Half-Siliqua, struck 537 - 552 at CarthageObverse: D N IVSTINIANVS P P AV. Diademed, draped and cuirassed bust of Justinian I facing right.
Reverse: Monogram, cross above, S below, within circle, all encircled by wreath. (SBCV Monogram 3)

Diameter: 13mm | Weight: 1.17gms | Die Axis: 6
SBCV: 254 (Siliqua) | Sommer 4.119
Scratched obverse. Not in DOC.
RARE

The monogram on the reverse of this coin was originally interpreted as being that of the Ostrogothic queen Mathasunta (cf. BMC 80, 1). However, a later re-interpretation by Wolfgang Hahn (MIB) attributed this issue as being a regular African Imperial issue of Justinian, and this is the attribution that was adopted by SBCV.

On September the 15th 533 Justinian's army, led by Belisarius, entered the city of Carthage and brought it back into the Roman Empire after 98 years of Vandal rule. In March 534 the Vandal king Gelimer surrendered to Belisarius ending the Vandal kingdom and returning the African provinces to the empire. Large numbers of captured Vandals were transported to Constantinople and in April Belisarius returned there too and was permitted by Justinian I to celebrate a triumph, the first non-imperial triumph for over 500 years.
*Alex
Iron_Age_Britain_Cantii_Potin~0.JPG
2nd - 1st Century BC, IRON AGE BRITAIN, Tribe: Cantii, AE Potin, Minted between 100 and 30 BCObverse: No legend. Crude outline of head facing right; pellet within circle in centre.
Reverse: No legend. Crude lines representing a bull facing left, crescents above.
Flat Linear type, Class 1
Found, Thames Valley region, England
Diameter: 17mm | Weight: 1.9gms | Axis: 3h
BMC: 667-714 | SPINK: 63

The Cantii produced the first coins to be actually made in Britain.
These coins were cast in strips which were then cut into separate coins and as a result often retain characteristic cut edges from the runlets which joined them together.


THE CANTII (or Cantiaci)

The Cantii (after whom Kent and Canterbury are named) were the major tribal group in the South East region of England, bordered by the Atrebates, Regni and Catuvellauni.
This region was heavily influenced by continental cultures on the periphery of the early Roman world and this resulted in the Cantii producing the first coins actually made in Britain. These are known as “potins” and they were produced between the mid 2nd to the mid 1st century BC. The earliest versions are known as Kentish Primary, or Thurrock, types. Comparatively the later types, like those from the recently discovered Hillingdon Hoard, are of the “flat linear” type, which uses simplified and abstracted images. Similar coins from the late Iron Age have been found, but in much smaller quantities.
The word “potin” is of French origin and is used to describe these early coins which were cast in clay moulds from a copper alloy with a high tin content. They would have been shiny and silver-coloured when new, and though occasionally examples have turned up which retain this colouration, most coins by the time they get dug up have a characteristic black patina from tin oxidation. These were cast in strips which were then cut into separate coins and as a result often retain characteristic cut edges from the runlets which joined them together. The moulds themselves were made using “master” matrices of copper alloy which were cast with the design for one side of a coin in high relief and pressed into the clay. A rare example of a mould of this type was found a few miles west of the Surrey border in Hampshire.
The designs of the majority of potins found in England derive ultimately from coins produced in the Greek colonial Mediterranean city of Massalia (modern Marseilles) in southern Gaul in the late 4th century BC. These coins featured a head of Apollo on the obverse and a charging bull on the reverse. They were originally imported from the continent and later locally copied in the mid 2nd century BC, in the form of what are known as “Thurrock” types, which adhere closely to the original design. Later forms, known as “flat linear” types, greatly simplified this design into deep abstraction, ultimately reducing the head of Apollo to an outline and the bull to a trapezoidal arrangement of lines
We don’t know what these coins were called by the people who made them, or what they were worth in fiscal terms, but they are generally only found in south east England, which probably reflects the limits of the political and economic influence of the Cantii themselves. It isn't even clear what the role of these Iron Age coins actually was, though it is likely that they assisted in the maintenance of some kind of social power structure. Coins were not generally used as day to day currency by the people of Britain in the 1st and 2nd centuries BC, so apart from any monetary transactions, their range of uses probably included the storage of wealth, use as political tribute, and / or votive objects used as offerings to the gods.

CLICK ON MAP BELOW TO ENLARGE IT
4 comments*Alex
JUSTINIAN_I_AE_20_nummi_ANTIOCH.JPG
JUSTINIAN I, AE Half-Follis (20 Nummi), struck 548/549 at Antioch (Theoupolis)Obverse: D N IVSTINIANVS P P AVG. Helmeted and cuirassed facing bust of Justinian I holding globus cruciger in his right hand and shield in his left; cross in right field.
Reverse: Large K, cross above and mint-mark O/Π below. A/N/N/O in field to left of K and regnal year XXII in field to right
Diameter: 25mm | Weight: 7.8gms | Die Axis: 11
SBCV: 230 | DOC: 238.3

Much of Antioch was destroyed by a great earthquake on 29th November 528 and, following this disaster, the city was renamed Theoupolis.

548: On June 28th of this year, at the age of 48, the Empress Theodora died. Her body is buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople.
Also in this year Justinian I relieved Belisarius from military command in favour of the elderly Byzantine general Narses.
549: This year, after Belisarius had returned to Constantinople, the Ostrogoths under Totila besieged Rome for a third time. The Ostrogoths then conquered the city of Perugia in central Italy and stationed a Gothic garrison there.
549 was also the year that the last ever chariot races were held in the Circus Maximus in Rome.

*Alex
boudicca_iceni_AR_unit.JPG
1st Century CE, IRON AGE BRITAIN, Tribe: Iceni, AR Unit, Struck c.60 - 61 under Boudica (Boadicea)Obverse: No legend. Abstract Celtic style head with slit for eye and no ear facing right. Three pellets below head, branch emblem behind neck.
Reverse: No legend. Celtic style horse facing right, lozenge-shaped box with pellets on outer corners below horse. Section of large elaborate wheel-like object above horse, pellet below horse's tail.
Class: Icenian O
Diameter: 14mm | Weight: 0.9gms | Axis: 10
Spink: 434

The first known recorded example of this coin was made by William Stukely, an English antiquarian whose ideas influenced various antiquaries throughout the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Stukeley published over twenty books on archaeology and other subjects during his lifetime and he is regarded as an important forerunner of archaeology for his emphasis on methodically measuring and documenting ancient sites. He died of a stroke in early 1765.
The theory that this coinage was connected with Boudica was originally reported in 1987 and this was endorsed by R D Van Arsdell, an authority on the Celtic coinage of Britain, as Boudican in the 1990's. At the time though this was disputed by many in the numismatic community, some of whom continued to rely on older studies that lumped all "Face-Horse" coins together in a group dating before 20 CE.
However, John Talbot of the University of Oxford carried out research on these issues and, as his die-link and hoard work gradually progressed through the 1990's into the early twenty-first century, these coins were confirmed to be the final coinage of the Iceni. As Talbot's findings were only gradually revealed over a period of time, the accepted dating used in some dealer catalogues did not always keep up with the latest information. During his studies, Talbot discovered that coins from several die sets are only found in the Boudican Rebellion hoards. He also confirmed that these coins were struck in abnormally great numbers for any Icenian issue. But, because he was not certain that this was enough evidence to date the coins to 61 CE. he suggested only that they could have been struck any time after the Claudian Invasion of 43 CE.
Considering though that some die sets are known only from the Boudican Rebellion hoards, that it is still the case that these coins appear in uncirculated condition in the hoards, and that to date none of these coins have been found from secure contexts earlier than the time of the Boudican rebellion, it would appear that the 1987 report was essentially correct and these coins must have been struck nearer to the date of the Boudican Rebellion than earlier, possibly in connection with the financing of that rebellion. The conclusion now is that these coins can, with some confidence, be attributed to Boudica.


THE ICENI
The Iceni were a tribe located in eastern Britain during the Iron Age and the early Roman era. Their territory was bordered by the Corieltauvi to the west, and the Catuvellauni and Trinovantes to the south. In the Roman period, their capital was Venta Icenorum at modern-day Caistor St Edmund.
Julius Caesar did not mention the Iceni in his account of his invasions of Britain in 55 and 54 BC, though they may have been related to the Cenimagni, whom Caesar notes as living north of the River Thames at that time. The Iceni were a significant power in eastern Britain during Claudius I's conquest of Britain in AD 43, in which they allied with Rome. Increasing Roman influence on their affairs led to a revolt in AD 47, though they remained nominally independent under king Prasutagus up until his death around AD 60. Roman encroachment after Prasutagus' death led his wife Boudica to launch a major revolt from 60–61. Boudica's uprising seriously endangered Roman rule in Britain and resulted in the burning of Londinium and other cities. The Romans finally crushed the rebellion, and the Iceni were eventually incorporated into the Roman province.
Archaeological evidence of the Iceni includes torcs, which are heavy rings of gold, silver or electrum worn around the neck and shoulders. The Iceni began producing coins around 10 BC. Their coins were a distinctive adaptation of the Gallo-Belgic "face/horse" design, and in some early issues, most numerous near Norwich, the horse was replaced with a boar. Some coins are inscribed ECENI, making them the only coin-producing group to use their tribal name on coins. The earliest personal name to appear on coins is Antedios (about 10 BC), and other abbreviated names like AESU and SAEMU followed. The name of Prasutagus also appears on some coins as PRASTO.

QUEEN BOUDICA
Queen Boudica was married to Prasutagus, ruler of the Iceni people of East Anglia. When the Romans conquered southern England in AD 43, they allowed Prasutagus to continue to rule. However, when Prasutagus died he left a will dividing his lands between the Roman emperor and his family. The Romans decided to rule the Iceni directly and confiscated all the king's property. When this was contested they are said to have stripped and flogged Boudica and raped her daughters. These actions exacerbated the widespread resentment at Roman rule.
In 60 or 61 AD, while the Roman governor Gaius Suetonius Paullinus was leading a campaign in North Wales, the Iceni rebelled, other tribes joined them, and Boudica led a major uprising against the occupying Roman forces.
Boudica's warriors defeated the Roman Ninth Legion and destroyed the then capital of Roman Britain, Camulodunum (Colchester). They then went on to destroy Londinium (London) and Verulamium (St Albans) killing thousands in the process. Finally, Boudica was defeated by a Roman army led by Paulinus. A great number of her army were killed and, though Boudica's fate is unknown, she is alleged to have either died in battle or poisoned herself to avoid capture. The site of the battle which brought an end to her uprising is also unknown.
The photograph below is of the Victorian statue of Boudica (Boadicea) situated on the Thames embankment in London.

CLICK ON THE IMAGES BELOW TO ENLARGE THEM
3 comments*Alex
Nero_Den_RIC_60_reimaged.jpg
6 NeroNERO
AR Denarius (19mm, 3.43 g, 6h)
Rome mint. Struck ~65-66 AD

O: Laureate head right

R: Salus seated left on throne, holding patera.

RIC I 60; RSC 314. aVF

Ex-CNG Sale 35, Lot 737, 9/20/95

In AD 65-66 two new types appear on the coins of Nero, Jupiter Custos- “Guardian”, and Salus- “Well-Being” (of the emperor). Nero gave thanks for surviving the Pisonian Conspiracy, which got its name from G. Calpurnius Piso, a senator put forward as an alternative emperor by senior military officers and government officials who feared the increasingly erratic Nero. The plot was discovered, many prominent Romans were executed, and others, such as the philosopher Seneca, were forced to commit suicide. This delayed the emperor’s fate for a few years.

RI0043
1 commentsSosius
Vindex_denarius.jpg
6.75 Revolt of VindexRevolt Against Nero, Gaius Iulius Vindex, Governor of Gallia Lugdunensis, c. Late 67 - May 68 A.D.

Struck by Gaius Iulius Vindex, the Roman governor of Gallia Lugdunensis, who rebelled against Nero's tax policy and declared allegiance to Galba, the governor of Hispania Tarraconensis, as the new emperor. Vindex was defeated and killed in battle near Vesontio (modern Besançon), but the military continued to support Galba. On 9 June 68, deserted by the Praetorian Guard, Nero stabbed himself in the throat.

Silver denarius, Unpublished, civil war restitution of Augustus, gF, porosity, marks, uncertain (Lugdunum?) mint, weight 3.167g, maximum diameter 19.0mm, die axis 180o, c. late 67 - May 68 A.D.; obverse CAESAR, bare head of Augustus right; reverse AVGVSTVS, young bull walking right, head turned facing; ex Roma Numismatics e-auction 6, lot 321; only two examples known to Forum

Purchased from FORVM
2 commentsSosius
rjb_car_69_10_05.jpg
69Carausius 287-93AD
AE antoninianus
Obv "IMP CARAVSIVS PF AVG"
Radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right
Rev "LEG IIII FL"
Lion walking right, head turned to viewer
-/-//-
Unmerked London mint
RIC 69
mauseus
336_-_323_BC_ALEXANDER_III_Quarter-Obol.JPG
Alexander the Great, 336 - 323 BC. AE Tetartemorion (Dichalkon / Quarter Obol). Lifetime issue struck 336 - 323 BC at Amphipolis, Macedonia Obverse: No legend. Head of Herakles, wearing lion skin headdress, facing right.
Reverse: AΛEΞANΔPOY. Eagle facing right, it's head turned to left, standing on a thunderbolt; mint-mark, A in right field before the eagle's breast.
Diameter: 15mm | Weight: 3.9gms | Die Axis: 6
Sear: 6743 | Weber: 2142 | Liampi: 6-8 | Price: 0159
RARE

This coin is a Type 3 (eagle type) bronze Quarter-Obol (two chalkoi). Alexander's Eagle bronzes are part of his Eagle coinage that also includes various silver denominations, including a stater, drachm, hemidrachm, diobol, and obol. Alexander's Eagle coins are much rarer than his issues of Herakles and Zeus imperial silver coins and his Herakles and weapons bronze coins.
*Alex
Justinian_I_AE_10_Nummi~0.JPG
JUSTINIAN I, AE Decanummium (10 Nummi), struck 548/549 at CarthageObverse: D N IVSTINIANVS P P AG. Diademed, draped and cuirassed bust of Justinian I facing right.
Reverse: VICTORIA AG. Victory advancing facing holding wreath in right hand and globus cruciger in left, in exergue X with star either side. (The X indicates the mark of value, i.e. 10 Nummi).
Diameter: 20.7mm | Weight: 4.24gms | Die Axis: 9
SBCV: 271 | DOC: 304
SCARCE

548: On June 28th of this year, at the age of 48, the Empress Theodora died. Her body is buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople.
Also in this year Justinian I relieved Belisarius from military command in favour of the elderly Byzantine general Narses.
549: This year, after Belisarius had returned to Constantinople, the Ostrogoths under Totila besieged Rome for a third time. The Ostrogoths then conquered the city of Perugia in central Italy and stationed a Gothic garrison there.
549 was the year that the last ever chariot races were held in the Circus Maximus in Rome.

*Alex
550_-_551_JUSTINIAN_I__Decannumium.JPG
JUSTINIAN I, AE Decanummium (10 Nummi), struck 550/551 at AntiochObverse: D N IVSTINIANVS P P AVG. Helmeted and cuirassed facing bust of Justinian I, holding globus cruciger in his right hand and shield in his left; cross in right field.
Reverse: Large I surmounted by cross, A/N/N/O in field to left and regnal year X/X/IIII in field to right; in exergue, THU followed by • over Π with a slash through the last letter's right side.
Diameter: 24mm | Weight: 4.79gms | Die Axis: 6
SBCV: 237 | DOC: 255 Class D | MIB: 158

Regarding the mintmark in the exergue, the letter Π with a slash through its right side and tiny o or • above is an abbreviation for "polis". The slash is like the English apostrophe denoting omission of letters, as in the word "can't". Therefore, together with the letters T (Tau) and H (Eta), the mint-mark reads as an abbreviation of "Theoupolis"

550
In January of this year the Ostrogoths under king Totila recaptured Rome after a long siege by bribing the Isaurian garrison. Then, in the summer, the Goths, under Totila, plundered Sicily after they had subdued Corsica and Sardinia, whilst the Gothic fleet also raided the coasts of Greece.
551
In this year Justinian I appointed Narses new supreme commander, who then returned to Italy. In Salona on the Adriatic coast, Narses assembled a Byzantine expeditionary force of around 20,000 to 30,000 men and a contingent of foreign allies which included Lombards, Herulii and Bulgars
When Narses arrived in Venetia he discovered that a powerful Gothic-Frank army of around 50,000 men, under the joint command of the kings Totila and Theudebald, had blocked the principal route to the Po Valley. Not wishing to engage such a formidable force and confident that the Franks would avoid a direct confrontation, Narses skirted the lagoons along the Adriatic shore, using vessels to convey his army from point to point along the coast and thereby arrived at the capital, Ravenna, without encountering any opposition. He then attacked and crushed a small Gothic force at Ariminum, modern Rimini.
In the Autumn of this year the Byzantine fleet of 50 warships destroyed the Gothic naval force under Indulf near Sena Gallica, some 17 miles (27 km) north of Ancona. The Battle of Sena Gallica marked the end of Gothic supremacy in the Mediterranean Sea.
*Alex
Louis_XIII_and_Anne_of_Austria_AE_(Brass)_Jeton.JPG
Louis XIII and Anne d'Autriche. AE (Brass) Jeton struck c.1615 - 1616Obverse: LVDO•XIII D G FR•ET•NA•ANNA•AVSTR•HISPAN. Crowned jugate busts of Louis XIII and Anne facing right, both wearing ruffs.
Reverse: Crown and two branches above two hearts, between which are the scrolled words CARITAS / *SPES* / *FIDES* in three lines above * L * - * A * (for Louis and Anne) either side of facing eagle. Below, scroll bearing the words •HANS•LAVFER•; in exergue H – L (for Hans Laufer) either side of floral device.

Struck at Nuremburg, Germany
Die engraver: Hans Laufer
Dimensions: 27.1mm | Weight: 3.87gms | Die Axis: 12
Ref. M: 3714 | Feuardent: 12329

Hans Laufer became Guild master at Nuremburg in 1611, though he had been responsible for issuing jetons from 1607. He died in 1632.

Louis XIII became king of France and Navarre in 1610, shortly before his ninth birthday, after his father Henry IV was assassinated. He ruled France until he died of Tuberculosis in 1643. Anne was betrothed to him at the age of eleven and, on 24th November 1615, they were married by proxy in Burgos. The marriage following the tradition of cementing military and political alliances between France and Spain that had begun with the marriage of Philip II of Spain to Elisabeth of Valois in 1559 as part of the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis. Anne and Louis, both fourteen years old, were pressured to consummate their marriage in order to forestall any possibility of future annulment, but this was ignored and Louis' mother, Marie de Medici, continued to conduct herself as Queen of France, without showing any deference to her daughter-in-law. However, in 1617, Louis conspired with Charles d'Albert, Duke of Luynes, to dispense with his mother's influence and she was ousted in a palace coup d'état which also saw her favourite, Concino Concini, assassinated. Louis turned now to Cardinal Richelieu as his advisor but Anne was opposed to Richelieu and became embroiled in several intrigues against him. This inevitably created tension between Louis and Anne. But despite this, and after having endured several stillbirths, in 1638 Anne finally gave birth to a son, the future Louis XIV, and the Bourbon line was further secured when in 1640 she gave birth to a second son, Philippe.
*Alex
323_-_315_BC_ALEXANDER_III_AE_Quarter-Obol.JPG
Philip III Arrhidaios, 323 - 317 BC. Bronze Tetartemorion (Dichalkon / Quarter Obol). Struck 323 - 315 BC under Nikokreon at Salamis, Cyprus.Obverse: No legend. Macedonian shield with Gorgoneion (Medusa) head as the boss in the centre. The shield boss is sometimes called the episema, the Greek name for a symbol of a particular city or clan which was placed in the centre of a soldier's shield.
Reverse: Macedonian helmet surmounted with a horse hair crest; B - A (for BAΣIΛEOΣ AΛEΞANΔPOY = King Alexander) above; mint marks below the helmet, to left, a kerykeion (caduceus) and to the right, the monogram NK (for Nikokreon).
Diameter: 14mm | Weight: 4.6gms | Die Axis: 1
Price: 3162 | Liampi, Chronologie 170-92

This coin is a Type 7 (Macedonian shield type) bronze Quarter-Obol (two chalkoi). Price dated the Macedonian Shield coins as beginning during the latter part of Alexander's life, c.325 BC, and ending c.310 BC. Liampi later argued, based on new hoard evidence, that they were minted as early as 334 BC. This particular coin is dated from c.323 to 315 BC during the reign of Philip III Arrhidaios.

Salamis was founded around 1100 BC by the inhabitants of Enkomi, a Late Bronze Age city on Cyprus, though in Homeric tradition, the city was established by Teucer, one of the Greek princes who fought in the Trojan War. After Alexander the Great conquered the Persian Empire, of which Salamis was a part, Greek culture and art flourished in the city and, as well as being the seat of the governor of Cyprus, it was the island's most important port.
Nikokreon had succeeded Pnytagoras on the throne of Salamis and is reported to have paid homage to Alexander after the conqueror's return from Egypt to Tyre in 331 BC. After Alexander's death, his empire was split between his generals, Cyprus falling to Ptolomy I of Egypt. In 315 BC during the war between Antigonos and Ptolemy, Nikokreon supported the latter and was rewarded by being made governor of all Cyprus. However, in 311 BC Ptolemy forced Nikokreon to commit suicide because he no longer trusted him. Ptolemy's brother, King Menelaus, was made governor in Nikokreon's stead.
In 306 BC, Salamis was the scene of a naval battle between the fleets of Ptolemy and Demetrius I of Macedon. Demetrius won the battle and captured the island.
*Alex
rjb_2010_01_64.jpg
182bisCarausius 287-93AD
AE Antoninianus
Obv: "IMPP CAES PII FF FR AVGGG"
Radiate, cuirassed, jugate busts right
Rev: "VIRTVS AVGGG"
Three emperors standing left holding batons and globes
London mint
-/-//MLXXI
RIC -; Bourne (2009) - (cf 24 obverse & 6 reverse)
1 commentsmauseus
rjb_2016_05_06.jpg
18bisAllectus 293-6
Antoninianus
IMP C ALLECTVS PF AVG
Radiate, draped & cuirassed bust right viewed from rear
FELICITAS AVG
Felicitas standing left holding caduceus and cornucopia
RIC lists FELICITAS SEC as a reverse, however this looks to read AVG. Similarly Burnett only lists FELICITAS SEC but then only with a cuirassed bust on the obverse
London mint
S/A//ML
RIC - (cf 18)
mauseus
Septimius_Severus.JPG
195 - 211, SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS, AR Denarius, Struck 210 at Rome, alluding to BritanniaObverse: SEVERVS PIVS AVG BRIT. Laureate head of Septimius Severus facing right.
Reverse: VICTORIAE BRIT. Victory standing right, holding palm branch in her right hand and placing uninscribed shield on palm tree with her left.
Diameter: 20mm | Weight: 2.83gms | Die Axis: 7h
RIC IV: 336 | RSC: 730 | SRCV: 6384 | SPINK: 651A
SCARCE

This coin commemorates the success of the Roman campaigns in Scotland during 209 and 210 culminating in the death of Severus at York, England, in February 211.

SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS
Lucius Septimius Severus was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna in the Roman province of Africa.
Severus seized power after the death of the emperor Pertinax in 193 (the Year of the Five Emperors).
After consolidating his rule over the western provinces, Severus waged a brief, successful war in the east against the Parthian Empire, sacked their capital Ctesiphon, expanded the eastern frontier to the Tigris and enlarged and fortified the Limes Arabicus in Arabia Petraea. In 202, he campaigned in Africa and Mauretania against the Garamantes, captured their capital Garama and expanded the Limes Tripolitanus along the southern desert frontier of the empire. In 198 he raised his elder son Caracalla to Augustus and in 209 did the same to his younger son, Geta.
In AD 209 Severus invaded Caledonia (modern Scotland) with an army of 50,000 men, but he fell fatally ill of an infectious disease in late 210 and died at Eboracum (York, England) early in 211.

SEVERUS' CAMPAIGNS IN BRITAIN
In 208 Septimius Severus travelled to Britain with the intention of conquering Caledonia (Scotland). Modern archaeological discoveries have helped to throw some light on the scope and direction of this northern campaign.
Severus began by occupying the territory up to the Antonine Wall, this is evidenced by extensive Severan era fortifications and the likely reoccupation of some of the forts on that wall. Over the previous years Hadrian's Wall had fallen into disrepair and Severus strengthened and repaired much of it, he did this to such an extent that many early Antiquarians thought that he was the emperor who had actually built it. Severus constructed a 165-acre (67 ha) camp south of the Antonine Wall at Trimontium, probably assembling the main body of his forces there. Severus then thrust north across the Antonine Wall into Caledonian territory, supported and supplied by a strong naval force. He retraced the steps of Agricola of over a century before, rebuilding many abandoned Roman forts along the east coast, and he re-garrisoned the naval base at Carpow, likely built by Commodus in 185, and possibly the place named as "Horrea Classis" or "Poreo Classis" in the Ravenna Cosmography.
By 210 Severus' campaigning had made significant gains, despite Caledonian guerrilla tactics and purportedly heavy Roman casualties.
According to Cassius Dio: “Severus did not desist until he approached the extremity of the island. Here he observed most accurately the variation of the sun's motion and the length of the days and the nights in summer and winter respectively. Having thus been conveyed through practically the whole of the hostile country (for he actually was conveyed in a covered litter most of the way, on account of his infirmity), he returned to the friendly portion, after he had forced the Britons to come to terms, on the condition that they should abandon a large part of their territory.”
The Caledonians had sued for peace, which Severus had granted on the condition that they relinquished control of the Central Lowlands of Scotland, but later that year (210), they, along with the Maeatae, revolted. Severus prepared for another campaign, now intent on exterminating the Caledonians. However the campaign was cut short when Severus fell ill and withdrew south to Eboracum (York) where he died on 4 February 211. Severus was succeeded by his sons, Caracalla and Geta. Caracalla continued campaigning in Caledonia during 212 but soon settled for peace, and shortly after that the frontier was withdrawn south to Hadrian's Wall.
On his death, Severus was deified by the Senate and his remains were buried in the Mausoleum of Hadrian in Rome.

CLICK ON IMAGES BELOW TO ENLARGE THEM

*Alex
SEPTIMIUS_SEVERUS_VICTORIAE_BRIT.JPG
195 - 211, SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS, AR Denarius, Struck 210 at Rome, alluding to BritanniaObverse: SEVERVS PIVS AVG BRIT. Laureate head of Septimius Severus facing right.
Reverse: VICTORIAE BRIT. Victory seated on shield facing left, holding another shield resting on her knee in her right hand and palm branch in her left.
Diameter: 19mm | Weight: 2.35gms | Die Axis: 12h
RIC IV: 335 | RSC: 731 | SRCV: 6385 | SPINK: 651C
SCARCE

This coin commemorates the success of the Roman campaigns in Scotland during 209 and 210 culminating in the death of Severus at York, England, in February 211.

SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS
Lucius Septimius Severus was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna in the Roman province of Africa.
Severus seized power after the death of the emperor Pertinax in 193 (the Year of the Five Emperors).
After consolidating his rule over the western provinces, Severus waged a brief, successful war in the east against the Parthian Empire, sacked their capital Ctesiphon, expanded the eastern frontier to the Tigris and enlarged and fortified the Limes Arabicus in Arabia Petraea. In 202, he campaigned in Africa and Mauretania against the Garamantes, captured their capital Garama and expanded the Limes Tripolitanus along the southern desert frontier of the empire. In 198 he raised his elder son Caracalla to Augustus and in 209 did the same to his younger son, Geta.
In AD 209 Severus invaded Caledonia (modern Scotland) with an army of 50,000 men, but he fell fatally ill of an infectious disease in late 210 and died at Eboracum (York, England) early in 211.

SEVERUS' CAMPAIGNS IN BRITAIN
In 208 Septimius Severus travelled to Britain with the intention of conquering Caledonia (Scotland). Modern archaeological discoveries have helped to throw some light on the scope and direction of this northern campaign.
Severus began by occupying the territory up to the Antonine Wall, this is evidenced by extensive Severan era fortifications and the likely reoccupation of some of the forts on that wall. Over the previous years Hadrian's Wall had fallen into disrepair and Severus strengthened and repaired much of it, he did this to such an extent that many early Antiquarians thought that he was the emperor who had actually built it. Severus constructed a 165-acre (67 ha) camp south of the Antonine Wall at Trimontium, probably assembling the main body of his forces there. Severus then thrust north across the Antonine Wall into Caledonian territory, supported and supplied by a strong naval force. He retraced the steps of Agricola of over a century before, rebuilding many abandoned Roman forts along the east coast, and he re-garrisoned the naval base at Carpow, likely built by Commodus in 185, and possibly the place named as "Horrea Classis" or "Poreo Classis" in the Ravenna Cosmography.
By 210 Severus' campaigning had made significant gains, despite Caledonian guerrilla tactics and purportedly heavy Roman casualties.
According to Cassius Dio: “Severus did not desist until he approached the extremity of the island. Here he observed most accurately the variation of the sun's motion and the length of the days and the nights in summer and winter respectively. Having thus been conveyed through practically the whole of the hostile country (for he actually was conveyed in a covered litter most of the way, on account of his infirmity), he returned to the friendly portion, after he had forced the Britons to come to terms, on the condition that they should abandon a large part of their territory.”
The Caledonians had sued for peace, which Severus had granted on the condition that they relinquished control of the Central Lowlands of Scotland, but later that year (210), they, along with the Maeatae, revolted. Severus prepared for another campaign, now intent on exterminating the Caledonians. However the campaign was cut short when Severus fell ill and withdrew south to Eboracum (York) where he died on 4 February 211. Severus was succeeded by his sons, Caracalla and Geta. Caracalla continued campaigning in Caledonia during 212 but soon settled for peace, and shortly after that the frontier was withdrawn south to Hadrian's Wall.
On his death, Severus was deified by the Senate and his remains were buried in the Mausoleum of Hadrian in Rome.

CLICK ON IMAGES BELOW TO ENLARGE THEM

5 comments*Alex
193_-_211_Sept_Severus_VICTORIAE_BRIT.JPG
195 - 211, SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS, AR Denarius, Struck 210 at Rome, alluding to BritanniaObverse: SEVERVS PIVS AVG BRIT. Laureate head of Septimius Severus facing right.
Reverse: VICTORIAE BRIT. Victory advancing right, holding wreath in her outstretched right hand and palm branch in her left.
Diameter: 19mm | Weight: 3.5gms | Die Axis: 6h
RIC IV: 332 | RSC: 727 | SRCV: 6382 | SPINK: 650
SCARCE

This coin commemorates the success of the Roman campaigns in Scotland during 209 and 210 culminating in the death of Severus at York, England, in February 211.

SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS
Lucius Septimius Severus was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna in the Roman province of Africa.
Severus seized power after the death of the emperor Pertinax in 193 (the Year of the Five Emperors).
After consolidating his rule over the western provinces, Severus waged a brief, successful war in the east against the Parthian Empire, sacked their capital Ctesiphon, expanded the eastern frontier to the Tigris and enlarged and fortified the Limes Arabicus in Arabia Petraea. In 202, he campaigned in Africa and Mauretania against the Garamantes, captured their capital Garama and expanded the Limes Tripolitanus along the southern desert frontier of the empire. In 198 he raised his elder son Caracalla to Augustus and in 209 did the same to his younger son, Geta.
In AD 209 Severus invaded Caledonia (modern Scotland) with an army of 50,000 men, but he fell fatally ill of an infectious disease in late 210 and died at Eboracum (York, England) early in 211.

SEVERUS' CAMPAIGNS IN BRITAIN
In 208 Septimius Severus travelled to Britain with the intention of conquering Caledonia (Scotland). Modern archaeological discoveries have helped to throw some light on the scope and direction of this northern campaign.
Severus began by occupying the territory up to the Antonine Wall, this is evidenced by extensive Severan era fortifications and the likely reoccupation of some of the forts on that wall. Over the previous years Hadrian's Wall had fallen into disrepair and Severus strengthened and repaired much of it, he did this to such an extent that many early Antiquarians thought that he was the emperor who had actually built it. Severus constructed a 165-acre (67 ha) camp south of the Antonine Wall at Trimontium, probably assembling the main body of his forces there. Severus then thrust north across the Antonine Wall into Caledonian territory, supported and supplied by a strong naval force. He retraced the steps of Agricola of over a century before, rebuilding many abandoned Roman forts along the east coast, and he re-garrisoned the naval base at Carpow, likely built by Commodus in 185, and possibly the place named as "Horrea Classis" or "Poreo Classis" in the Ravenna Cosmography.
By 210 Severus' campaigning had made significant gains, despite Caledonian guerrilla tactics and purportedly heavy Roman casualties.
According to Cassius Dio: “Severus did not desist until he approached the extremity of the island. Here he observed most accurately the variation of the sun's motion and the length of the days and the nights in summer and winter respectively. Having thus been conveyed through practically the whole of the hostile country (for he actually was conveyed in a covered litter most of the way, on account of his infirmity), he returned to the friendly portion, after he had forced the Britons to come to terms, on the condition that they should abandon a large part of their territory.”
The Caledonians had sued for peace, which Severus had granted on the condition that they relinquished control of the Central Lowlands of Scotland, but later that year (210), they, along with the Maeatae, revolted. Severus prepared for another campaign, now intent on exterminating the Caledonians. However the campaign was cut short when Severus fell ill and withdrew south to Eboracum (York) where he died on 4 February 211. Severus was succeeded by his sons, Caracalla and Geta. Caracalla continued campaigning in Caledonia during 212 but soon settled for peace, and shortly after that the frontier was withdrawn south to Hadrian's Wall.
On his death, Severus was deified by the Senate and his remains were buried in the Mausoleum of Hadrian in Rome.

CLICK ON IMAGES BELOW TO ENLARGE THEM


1 comments*Alex
Philip_AE_25_of_Antioch.jpg
2 Philip IPhilip I
Æ25 of Antiochia, Pisidia
244-249 AD

Radiate, draped and cuirassed bust r. / The river-god Anthios reclining l. on urn, holding reed and cornucopia.

SNG von Aulock 4971. VF

This coin may be a die match with this coin: http://www.acsearch.info/record.html?id=602309
Sosius
AUGUDU03-2.jpg
28 BC Colony established at Nemausus by Augustus' armymedium bronze (dupondius or as?) (12.6g, 25mm, 2h) Nemausus mint. Struck 10 BC - 10 AD.
IMP DIVI F Agrippa laureate head left and Augustus laureate head right, back to back
COL NEM crocodile chained to palm tree top bent to right, wreath at top.
RIC (Augustus) 158

Denomination uncertain. COL NEM stands for COLONIA AVGVSTA NEMAVSVS (present Nîmes, France), built by Augustus' army after their conquest and return from Egypt. The crocodile chained to the palm tree symbolizes the defeat of the Cleopatra and Marc Antony at Actium.
3 commentsCharles S
Elagabalus_Moush_1620.jpg
29 ElagabalusELAGABALUS
AE27 of Odessos, Thrace.

AVT K M AVPHLI ANTWNEINOC, laureate head right / ODHCCEITWN, Serapis with kalathos on head, standing facing, head left, holding patera over burning altar and cornucopiae.

Moushmov 1620
Sosius
rjb_2010_07_03~0.jpg
291cfCarausius 287-93AD
Antoninianus
Obv "IMP C CARAVSIVS PF AVG"
Radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right
Rev "MONETA AVGGG"
Moneta standing left holding cornucopia and scales
Camulodunum mint
S/P//C
RIC - (cf 291); Carson -; Bourne -
mauseus
Aurelian_RIC_63_Rome.jpg
3 AurelianAURELIAN
AE Antoninianus, Rome Mint, Late 274 A.D.
IMP AVRELIANVS AVG, Bust right, radiate, cuirassed / ORIENS AVG, Sol stg. facing, head l., with r. hand raised and holding globe in l. hand; at feet, on each side, a bound and std. captive, both head turned back; the captive on the l. is in oriental dress, the captive on the r. is bearded and in Gallic costume. ∈XXIR in emerge.
RIC temp 1795: http://www.ric.mom.fr/en/coin/1795
1 commentsSosius
Constantine_II_Killingholme_Hoard_(1993).JPG
317 - 337, CONSTANTINE II as Caesar, AE3 struck 321 at Londinium (London), EnglandObverse: CONSTANTINVS IVN N C. Radiate and cuirassed bust of Constantine II facing left.
Reverse: BEATA TRANQVILLITAS. Altar, inscribed VOT IS XX in three lines, surmounted by cosmic globe with three stars above; across field, P - A; in exergue, PLON.
Diameter: 20mm | Weight: 2.9gms | Die Axis: 6h
RIC VII : 219
Rare
Ex Killingholme Hoard (1993)

Claudius Constantinus was the eldest son of Constantine and Fausta, he was given the rank of Caesar in A.D.316, at the same time as Crispus and Licinius II.
This coin was struck in connection with the fifteenth anniversary of Constantine II's father, Constantine the great.


THE KILLINGHOLME HOARD
The Killingholme Hoard was discovered in a field between Killingholme and Habrough on the south bank of the Humber Estuary by a pair of metal detectorists in the Autumn of 1993.
The initial coins of the hoard were surface finds, many of which were found before the hoard itself was discovered. In total, there were 1504 coins found in the topsoil, and another 2753 found buried in a single clay pot.
The top of the pot had been cut off by ploughing, which had caused a large number of coins to be scattered around the field. Nevertheless, the remains of the pot were found when the coins packed in it were detected. The pot had a diameter of about 20cm and within it were thousands of coins.
One of the finders reported that the coins appeared to have been carefully arranged inside the pot, and seemed to produce a spiralling pattern. Unfortunately, the coins were emptied into a bath for cleaning so any chance of researching this arrangement was lost forever.
The coins that constituted the hoard were bronze reduced folles, most of which were struck between the 320s and the early 330s, during the time of the emperor Constantine. Though the coins came from several mints in the Western part of the Roman Empire, most of them were from the London mint. It is thought that the hoard was probably deposited around 333/334 AD.
Because, in 1993, base metal coins were not counted as treasure, the coins were returned to the finders who sent the bulk of the coins to be auctioned off by Spink of London. Fortunately, prior to being sold, the coins were recorded by the British Museum which acquired for itself 86 coins from the hoard.
After the recordings were completed, though the finders kept a few coins for themselves, the remainder of the coins were sold off in batches. It has been rumoured that many of these coins went to the Italian luxury goods producer Bulgari, who used them to make jewellery.
Such a process would not be permitted in England today as, following the enactment of the Treasure Act in 1996, the Killingholme Hoard would now fulfil the criteria for "treasure" as outlined by the Act.

CONTEMPORARY PHOTO OF THE KILLINGHOLM HOARD, CLICK ON THUMBNAIL TO ENLARGE IT
*Alex
rjb_2014_01_08.jpg
337cfCarausius 287-93AD
Antoninianus
Obv "IMP C M AV M CARAVSIVS P AVG"
Radiate, draped & cuirassed bust right
Rev "PAX AVGGG"
Pax stg left holding vertical sceptre
Camulodunum mint
S/P//C
RIC - (cf 337ff), Bourne (2009) 72
mauseus
rjb_2011_02_03.jpg
339cfCarausius 287-93AD
Antoninianus
Obv "IMP C CARAVSIVS P AVG"
Radiate, draped & cuirassed bust right
Rev "PAX AVGGG"
Pax stg left holding transverse sceptre
Camulodunum mint
S/P//MC
RIC - (cf 339ff); Bourne (2009) -
mauseus
rjb_2016_06_09.jpg
34Allectus 293-6
Antoninianus
IMP C ALLECTVS PF AVG
Radiate & cuirassed bust right
PIETAS AVG
Pietas standing left holding patera over altar and cornucopia
London mint
S/A//MSL
RIC 34, Burnett -
mauseus
rjb_2022_04_06.jpg
371cfCarausius 287-93AD
Antoninianus
Obv "IMP C CARAVSIVS P AVG"
Radiate, draped & cuirassed bust right
Rev "PROVID AVGGG"
Providentia standing left holding globe and transverse sceptre
Camulodunum mint
S/P//MC
RIC - (cf371ff), Carson -, Bourne 2009 -
mauseus
rjb_2010_01_65.jpg
424cfCarausius 287-93AD
AE Antoninianus
Obv: "IMP C CARAVSIVS PF INV AVG"
Radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right
Rev: "VICTOR AVGGG"
Victory walking right holding wreath
Colchester mint
S/P//C
RIC - (424cf); Bourne (2009) -
mauseus
rjb_2010_08_02.jpg
45bisAllectus 293-6
Antoninianus
IMP C ALLECTVS PF AVG
Radiate & cuirassed bust right
SOLI I[NV]ICTO
Sol standing left, hand raised and holding globe, between two captives
London mint
-/-//ML
RIC - ; Burnett -; Hunter - ; ANS -
mauseus
IMG_20240121_183220.png
48cfAllectus 293-6
Antoninianus
IMP C ALLECTVS PF AVG
Radiate & cuirassed bust right
VICTORIA AVG
Victory standing left holding wreath and branch
London mint
S/A//ML
RIC - (cf 48); RIC (2024) 13854; Burnett -
mauseus
rjb_2012_09_05.jpg
56Anonymous; c.211 BC
AE semis
Obv "S"
Laureate head of Saturn right
Rev "S ROMA"
Prow right
Rome mint
Crawford 56/3
mauseus
Valerian_II_RIC_20.jpg
6.5 Valerian IIVALERIAN II
AR Antoninianus, Rome Mint
254-255 AD

P C L VALERIANVS NOB CAES, Radiate draped bust r. / PIETAS AVGG, Sacrificial implements, including, lituus, knife, fluted jug turned left, simpulum and aspergillum

RIC V-1, 20; Cohen 56
Sosius
Constantine_I_RIC_VII_Trier_435_no_2.jpg
65 Constantine I, Sarmatia DevictaCONSTANTINE I
AE Follis, Trier c. 323-324 AD

O: CONSTAN-TINVS AVG, laureate head right.

R: SARMATIA-DEVICTA, Victory advancing r., holding trophy on r. arm, branch in l. hand, captive on ground r., head turned back. PTR Crescent in ex.

RIC VII Trier 435; Sear 3880. EF

Weight: 3.6g

Diameter: 20mm
Sosius
2550340.jpg
70.5 HanniballianusROMAN IMPERIAL
Hanniballianus
Rex Regum, AD 335-337. Æ Follis (15mm, 1.73 g, 12h). Const. mint, 6th officina. Struck AD 336-337.

O: Bareheaded, draped, and cuirassed bust right.
R: Euphrates reclining right, leaning upon scepter; reed behind, overturned urn below, CONSÏ‚.

RIC VII 147; LRBC 1036. Good Fine, dark green patina with some earthen deposits.

Ex CNG
Sosius
796_-835_EANBALD_II.JPG
796 – c.835, EANBALD II, Archbishop of York, Northumbria, AE Styca, struck c.830 - 835 at York, EnglandObverse: + EANBALD AR around small Greek cross. Greek cross in legend.
Reverse: + EDILVARD around cross pommée. Cross pommée in legend. Moneyer: Aethelweard
Phase 1b issue
Diameter: 13mm | Weight: 1.0gms | Die Axis: 6h
SPINK: 861 | British Numismatic Journal (1916) – (H A Parsons, The coins of Archbishop Eanbald II of York): 60

Initially a base silver coin, after the devastating Viking attack on Lindisfarne in 793, with its subsequent commercial impact on the kingdom of Northumberland, the second issue of stycas under King Eanred were debased by having their silver content replaced by zinc. There was a further debasement of the coinage in 829 after Eanred's submission to Ecgberht of Wessex, such that the styca became basically a copper alloy coin.

Eanbald II was, prior to his elevation to the archiepiscopate, a priest of the Church of York. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records his consecration as Archbishop on 14th August, 796, immediately after the death of the first prelate of the same name.
In the year 797, Eanbald II is recorded as having assisted in the recovery of the rights of the see of Canterbury, which had been much impaired during the reign of King Offa of Mercia in order that his new primacy at Lichfield might be promoted. In this work of restitution, Eanbald collaborated with Æthelhard, Archbishop of Canterbury, who had appealed to Rome over the matter. The case was also presented to Coenwulf, the successor of Offa, and he was persuaded by the two prelates to refer the question to the Pope which resulted in Offa's new archiepiscopal see of Lichfield being abolished.
In 798 Eanbald convened a great synod at Finchale, near Durham. There, he enacted a number of regulations relating to the ecclesiastical courts and the observance of Easter.
Early on Eanbald became estranged from Eardwulf, King of Northumbria, after denouncing Eardwulf's adulteries and sheltering Eardwulf's enemies by giving them church sanctuary. But Eardwulf seems to have been deposed in around 806 and was eventually succeeded by Eanred around 810.
No record of Eanbald II's death survives and the time of his death has been variously estimated to range from as early as 808 to as late as 835, the latter date based on numismatic evidence.

The Kingdom of Northumbria was a medieval Anglian kingdom in what is now Northern England and South-east Scotland. The name derives from the Old English Norþan-hymbre meaning "the people or province north of the Humber", Northumbria started to consolidate into one kingdom in the early seventh century when the two earlier territories of Deira and Bernicia united. At its height, the kingdom extended from the Humber Estuary in the south to the Firth of Forth (now in Scotland) in the north.
Northumbria ceased to be an independent kingdom in the mid-tenth century.
*Alex
Leo_RIC_X_666.jpg
91 Leo RIC X 666-679LEO I
AE4, Cyzicus Mint
457-474 AD

O: DN LEO P F AVG, , pearl diademed, draped, cuirassed bust bust right

R: Lion crouching left, head turned right, within wreath.

RIC X 678. Sear (2014) 21462. F/aVF
Sosius
rjb_traj2_06_09.jpg
98Trajan 98-117 AD
AR denarius
Obv "IMP TRAIANO AVG GER DAC PM TRP COS V PP"
Laureate bust right with aegis on left shoulder
Rev "SPQR OPTIMO PRINCIPI"
Dacia seated right on shield in mournful attitude, curved sword below
Rome mint
RIC 216
3 commentsmauseus
Antiochus_IX.jpg
Antiochus IX Cyzicenus, 114 - 95 B.C.Seleukid Kingdom, Antiochus IX Cyzicenus, 114 - 95 B.C. Ae 18. Weight 5.2g. Obv: Diademed head rt. Rev: Pallas Athena rt. holding shield and spear ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ ΦΙΛΟΠΑΤΟΡΟΣ. BMC 93.23
Antiochus IX Eusebes, ruler of the Greek Seleucid kingdom, was the son of Antiochus VII Sidetes and Cleopatra Thea. Upon the death of his father in Parthia and his uncle Demetrius II Nicator's return to power (129 BC), his mother sent him to Cyzicus on the Bosporus, thus giving him his nickname. He returned to Syria in 116 BC to claim the Seleucid throne from half-brother/cousin Antiochus VIII Grypus, with whom he eventually divided Syria. He was killed in battle by the son of Grypus, Seleucus VI Epiphanes in 96 BC.
ddwau
den1s.jpg
Antoninus Pius 131-168 CESilver denarius, RSC II 155, RIC III 430, VF, Rome mint, 2.8 g, 18.4mm, 161 CE Obverse: DIVVS ANTONININVS, Bare head right.
Reverse: CONSECRATIO, eagle standing right on altar head turned.
NORMAN K
COCK_BOTH.jpg
Athens New Style Tetradrachm 146/5 BCObs : Athena Parthenos right in tri-form helmet
34 mm Thompson issue 19
Thompson catalogue:Obs Gaziantep 146?:Rev NEW?
Rev : ΑΘΕ ethnic
Owl standing on overturned panathenaic amphora
below control mark ME
2 magistrates : XAPΙ ΗPA
RF symbol : Cock with Palm
All within a surrounding olive wreath
cicerokid
Jesus_Vico_NIKE_BOTH.jpg
Athens New Style Tetradrachm c 140/39 BC Obs : Athena Parthenos right in tri-form helmet-No Pegassos
16.60 gm 31 mm
Thompson catalogue : Obs 278 : REV not in plates?
Rev : ΑΘΕ ethnic
Owl standing on overturned panathenaic amphora
Upon which Amphora mark : M
Below control mark : ΕΜΦ
2 magistrates : ΚΤΗΣΙ ΕΥΜΑ
RF symbol : Nike presenting Wreath
All within a surrounding olive wreath

1 commentscicerokid
AUGUSTUS_Cistophorus_Pergamum.JPG
AUGUSTUS. AR Cistophorus (3 denarii) of Pergamum. Struck c.19 - 18 B.C.Obverse: IMP IX TR PO V. Bare head of Augustus facing right.
Reverse: Triumphal arch surmounted by Augustus in facing triumphal quadriga; IMP IX TR POT V on architrave; S P R SIGNIS RECEPTIS in three lines within arch opening, standards at either side.
RIC I : 510 | BMC : 703 | RSC : 298.

This coin commemorates Augustus' triumphant agreement with the Parthians in 20 B.C. under which they returned the legionary standards captured from Crassus who was defeated and killed at Carrhae thirty-three years earlier (53 B.C.) Augustus installed these standards in the Temple of Mars Ultor.
The reverse of the coin shows the triumphal arch which was awarded to Augustus on the occasion of his recovery of the standards. This was the second triumphal arch awarded to Augustus and, like the earlier arch which had been constructed in 29 BC to honour his victory over Cleopatra, this second arch, which archaeological evidence suggests may actually have incorporated the first arch, stood in close proximity to the Temple of Divus Julius at the southern entrance to the Roman Forum.

This is the rarest cistophorus struck during the reign of Augustus with the exception of the exceedingly rare issues featuring a sphinx.
6 comments*Alex
AUGUSTUS,_Marcus_Ambibulus.jpg
Biblical/Judean / AUGUSTUS, Marcus Ambibulus , Hendin-1329Augustus / Marcus Ambibulus, procurator of Judea under Augustus.
Marcus Ambibulus, procurator of Judea under Augustus, 9-12 AD, bronze prutah of 16 mm, 2.14 grams. Struck in the year 9 AD.
Jerusalem mint.
Obverse: Ear of grain, KAICA POC.
Reverse: Palm tree with 2 bunches of dates and date : LMO
Reference: Hendin-1329.

*Jesus was born sometime between 6 B.C. and 4 B.C.
According to St. Matthew, King Herod as the ruler during the time of the Nativity, and Herod died in 4 B.C. , according the dates of the later on struck coins with the new ruler name and dates (see note)
Later, to kill Jesus and eliminate him as a rival king, Herod ordered the "Massacre of the Innocents" - the killing of all male children in Bethlehem aged two years and under. This means that Jesus may have been up to two years old already by that time, and this sets the Nativity between 6 and 4 B.C.
**Surely All coins at that time were struck under the Roman emperor (who happened to be the first Roman emperor in history Augustus (Octavian) Not Julius Caesar as commonly known, Julius was only a dictator and Caesar during the Roman Republic time, never considered Emperor despite the title IMP on some of his coins).
The dates on coins struck during the time of Nativity, before that time, and even later, completely different story depends on the mint home , the ruler year and the kingdom or empire. Using AD (Anno Domini) was much later.

“Swear to me, young women of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the does of the field, that you won’t awaken or arouse love before its proper time.” Song of Solomon.

The Sam Mansourati Collection.
Given as a souvenir to a great man, a dear friend and brother Rev. Robert E. Burnock , on 2/25/2020.
2 commentsSam
T1118LG.jpg
C POBLICIUS Q F. 80 BCHelmeted bust of Roma right / Hercules strangling the Nemean lion; bow and quiver at left; club below. Cr. 380/1.

POBLICIA, a plebian family, but of consular rank. Its cognomen on coins is Malleolus. There are fifteen varieties, all of silver, on some of which a small hammer or mallett is engraved, evidently alluding to the surname Malleolus.

The first of Heracles' twelve labours, set by King Eurystheus (his cousin) was to slay the Nemean lion.

According to one version of the myth, the Nemean lion took women as hostages to its lair in a cave near Nemea, luring warriors from nearby towns to save the damsel in distress. After entering the cave, the warrior would see the woman (usually feigning injury) and rush to her side. Once he was close, the woman would turn into a lion and kill the warrior, devouring his remains and giving the bones to Hades.

Heracles wandered the area until he came to the town of Cleonae. There he met a boy who said that if Heracles slew the Nemean lion and returned alive within 30 days, the town would sacrifice a lion to Zeus; but if he did not return within 30 days or he died, the boy would sacrifice himself to Zeus.[3] Another version claims that he met Molorchos, a shepherd who had lost his son to the lion, saying that if he came back within 30 days, a ram would be sacrificed to Zeus. If he did not return within 30 days, it would be sacrificed to the dead Heracles as a mourning offering.

While searching for the lion, Heracles fetched some arrows to use against it, not knowing that its golden fur was impenetrable; when he found and shot the lion and firing at it with his bow, he discovered the fur's protective property when the arrow bounced harmlessly off the creature's thigh. After some time, Heracles made the lion return to his cave. The cave had two entrances, one of which Heracles blocked; he then entered the other. In those dark and close quarters, Heracles stunned the beast with his club and, using his immense strength, strangled it to death. During the fight the lion bit off one of his fingers. Others say that he shot arrows at it, eventually shooting it in the unarmoured mouth.

After slaying the lion, he tried to skin it with a knife from his belt, but failed. He then tried sharpening the knife with a stone and even tried with the stone itself. Finally, Athena, noticing the hero's plight, told Heracles to use one of the lion's own claws to skin the pelt.

When he returned on the thirtieth day carrying the carcass of the lion on his shoulders, King Eurystheus was amazed and terrified. Eurystheus forbade him ever again to enter the city; in future he was to display the fruits of his labours outside the city gates. Eurystheus warned him that the tasks set for him would become increasingly difficult. He then sent Heracles off to complete his next quest, which was to destroy the Lernaean hydra.

The Nemean lion's coat was impervious to the elements and all but the most powerful weapons. Others say that Heracles' armour was, in fact, the hide of the lion of Cithaeron.
ecoli
CARUS_DIV_ALTAR_TET.JPG
CARUS. Posthumous commemorative AE Tetradrachm struck AD 283 - 284 under Carinus and Numerian at AlexandriaObverse: ΘEW KAPW CEB. Laureate head of Carus facing right.
Reverse: AΦIEPOCIC. Round, burning and garlanded altar on base, star in upper left field.
Diameter: 18mm | Weight: 7.1gms | Die Axis: 12
GICV : 4777 | Emmett 3995

This coin is an undated posthumous type bearing the legend AΦIEPOCIC, one of the most interesting features of the Alexandrian coinage of Marcus Aurelius Carus.
*Alex
comm2.jpg
Commodus, Moesia inferior, Nikopolis ad Istrum 177-192 CE.Obverse: M ANTWNEIN - OC KOMODOC, laureate, cuirassed bust right.
Reverse: NEIKOPOLEI - TWN / PROC I, river god, bearded, leaning left, left hand with patera(?) on his knees, resting with left arm on urn from which water flows.
22 mm, 7.9 g
Reference a) AMNG 1/1, 1238 (1 ex., wien)
b) Hristova/Hoeft/Jekov (2015) 8.10.32.8
NORMAN K
constantine261.jpg
Constantine I AE3, RIC VII 261 Siscia 306-337 CE Obverse: CONSTANTI-NVS MAX AVG, Rosette diademed bust right, draped and cuirassed.
Reverse: GLOR-IA EXERC-ITVS, Two Soldiers standing to the front, their heads turned inward at standard, both holding a spear and leaning on shield.
Exe: ASIS (star) Siscia mint: 335-336 = RIC VII, 261 17.1 mm., 1.5 g.
NORMAN K
HUN_Lajos_I_Huszar_547_Pohl_89-7.JPG
Huszár 547, Pohl 89-7, Unger 432h, Réthy II 89ALouis I (Lajos I, in Hun.) (1342-1382). AR denar, .49 g., 13.94 mm. max., .28 gr., 90°

Obv: + [MO]nETA LODOVICI, Saracen head left, pellets flanking.

Rev: + REGIS hVnGARIE, Patriarchal cross with random pellets.

The type was struck 1373-1382 (per Huszár, Pohl & Unger, although Huszár later wrote that the Saracen-head coinage incepted in 1372). This privy mark was struck at Pécs by one of the Saracenus brothers, probably by Johannes, who took over the mint after the death of Jacobus (per Pohl).

Huszár/Pohl rarity rating 3.

The Saracen's head is a pun on the surname of Jacobus Saracenus (Szerechen, in Hun.) and his brother, Johannes, courtiers of Italian descent who were ennobled by Louis. The image of a Saracen's head appeared on their coat of arms. Jacobus became the kammergraf at the Pécs mint in 1352, and the Comes Camerarum Regalium in 1369. He died in the early 1370s, at which time Johannes succeeded him as kammergraf.
Stkp
LOUIS_XIV_Louvre.JPG
Louis XIV and Marie-Thérèse, AE (Copper) Jeton struck c.1667Obverse: +LVD•XIIII•ET•MAR•THER•D•G•FRA•ET•NAV•REX•ET•REG. Busts of Louis XIV and Marie Therese facing one another. To the left, draped and laureate bust of Louis XVI facing right. To the right, draped bust of Marie Therese facing left, small crown on the back of her head.
Reverse: MAIESTATI•AC•AETERNIT•GALL•IMPERII•SACRVM+. Front view of the new Louvre Palace in Paris.
Diameter: 27.5mm | Weight: 5.7gms | Die Axis: 6
Ref. Feuardent: 13082

Struck at indeterminate mint, possibly Lisse, Netherlands
Engraved by Jean Varin or faithfully copied from his dies


The site of the Louvre was originally a fortress, built in the middle ages by King Philippe-Auguste (1165-1223). Between 1364 and 1380, Charles V (1338-1380) undertook work on this building to transform it into a castle, turning the old fort into a comfortable residence.
François I (1494-1547), known as the sovereign of the Renaissance, demolished the castle begun by Charles V and rebuilt it as the Louvre Palace and Catherine de Medici (1519-1589) had the Tuileries Palace built alongside.
Then King Henri IV (1553-1610), began further modernisations and had a large gallery built between the Louvre Palace and Tuileries Palace to facilitate movement between the seat of power and his apartments. The modernisation work begun by Henri IV was not completed until the reign of Louis XIV, and it is this that is commemorated on this jeton. It was Louis XIV who, before moving on to his work at Versailles, entrusted the development of the gardens to André Le Nôtre. But when the court of the Sun King moved to his new Palace of Versailles the Louvre Palace became somewhat run down and was occupied by a variety of intellectuals and artists who took up residence there.
*Alex
maxmin.jpg
Maximianus I, RIC 292 LugdunumMAXIMIANUS HERCULIUS, 286-305
Obverse: IMP MAXIMIANVS AVG Radiate, cuirassed bust right.
Reverse: COMES - AVGG / C Minerva, wearing long dress, mantle and helmet, standing facing, head turned left., holding shield with her left hand, lance with her right hand.
RIC 292, 23.9 mm., 3.2 g.
NORMAN K
caracallathrace.jpg
THRACE, PHILIPPOPOLIS. Caracalla as Caesar, 196-198 CE.Obverse: M.AV.KAI ANTWNEINOC, bare head right
Reverse: ΦIΛIΠΠO-ΠOΛEITΩN, Apollo standing facing, head turned to the left, holding laurel branch in his lowered right hand.
18 mm, 3.3 g.
NORMAN K
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Δ and NIKOMOESIA INFERIOR. Nikopolis ad Istrum. Septimius Severus. Æ 27. A.D. 193-211. Obv: (VK)ΛCEΠ•-CEVHPOC (...) or similar. Laureate bust right; countermark (1) on shoulder. Rev: VΠAVP•Î“AΛΛOV•NIKOΠOΛITΠPOCIC. River-god reclining left, leaning against urn (?), holding branch in right hand; Countermark (2) to left. Ref: BMC -. Axis: 60°. Weight: 11.68 g. CM(1): Δ, incuse punch, 7 x 6 mm. Howgego 782 (3 pcs). CM(2): NIKO, incuse, 14 x 5 mm. Howgego 553 (3 pcs, 2 of which on reverse). Note: All coins that have the Δ c/m apparently also bear the NIKO c/m and vice-versa, so they must have been applied at the same time. Collection Automan.Automan
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SPAIN
PB Tessera (14mm, 2.62 g)
Fly, seen from above
Blank
Stannard, Evidence 26-7 = Stannard, Parallels 99-100; Minturnae 34-5

Found in Southern Spain

This type is found both in Baetica and in central Italy, at Minturnae, demonstrating the close economic ties between the two areas. Stannard notes numerous parallels in the lead tokens and unofficial bronze coinage in the two areas. He also sees a stylistic difference between issues of the two regions, but I have not personally seen enough specimens from both regions to say.
Ardatirion
00005x00~5.jpg
ROME
PB Tessera (20mm, 4.57 g, 12h). Saturnalia issue
Palm frond; IO S(AT) across fields
Wreath
Rostowzew 504; Rostowzew & Prou 100

Ex Classical Numismatic Group 55 (13 September 2000), lot 1201 (part of)
Ardatirion
00062x00.jpg
ROME
PB Tessera (14mm, 3.31 g)
Phallus
Two-pronged pitchfork
Rostovstev 919 corr. (rev. description); Minturnae 49
1 commentsArdatirion
kyHWAyT.jpg
UNITED STATES, Hard Times. Political issues.
CU Token (28.5mm, 8.53 g, 12h). Belleville (New Jersey) mint. Dated 1838.
AM I NOT A WOMAN & A SISTER, hained female slave kneeling right, raising arms in supplication; * 1838 * below UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, LIBERTY/ 1838 within wreath
Rulau HT 81; Low 54

Ex Album 33 (17 January 2019), lot 2542

June 1900 saw a brief flurry of journalistic interest in the "Am I Not A Woman & A Sister" tokens. A specimen had been found in a garden in Indiana, apparently in one of the many towns that claim a connection to the Underground Railroad, and received a glowing and fanciful write up in the local newspaper. The paper claimed that it was a "Talisman of Slavery," and used as a token to ensure safe passage along the escaped slave's route, and that it was a very rare piece. The following week a newspaper in Maine recorded that a local collector had another example, again drawing a purported connection to the Underground Railroad. Astutely, the July 1900 edition of the American Journal of Numismatics pointed out that, while an isolated use like this was possible, it was not what the tokens were originally intended for.
Ardatirion
00009x00~1.jpg
EGYPT, Uncertain
PB Tessera
Two confronted peacocks standing on urn
Nilus reclining left, holding cornucopia and reeds
Milne -; Dattari (Savio) -; Köln -
Ardatirion
00091x00.jpg
CANADA, Tokens. Nova Scotia. William IV. King of Great Britain, 1830-1837.
CU Penny Token (34.5 mm, 14.27 g, 6 h)
Belleville (New Jersey) mint. Dated 1832, but struck circa 1835.
PROVINCE OF NOVA SCOTIA
Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right
ONE PENNY TOKEN, thistle with two leaves; 1832 below
Charlton NS-4A2; Breton 870

Canadian catalogs traditionally give this issue to an illicit mint in Montreal. Wayne Jacobs1 argues that these were struck in Belleville. While his methodology is somewhat questionable - most of his theory is based off a unreliable editorial in an 1893 edition of the Newark Sunday Call - his reasoning regarding this series is sound. He is able to clearly demonstrate that the halfpenny and penny tokens in question are a product of a single, cohesive establishment which could not have been located in Lower Canada. Finally, Jacobs' claim can be supported by documentary evidence from the Belleville mint's primary competitor, the Scoville Company of Waterbury, Connecticut. A letter from J.M.L. to W.H. Scoville, dated April 4 1839, states that, "a competitor was stamping Canada Nova Scotia and Southern coins at 35 cents a pound."

1. Jacobs, Wayne. 1996. “The Shadowy Issues of the Belleville Mint.” Canadian Numismatic Journal 41 1: 13–26.
1 commentsArdatirion
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UNITED STATES, Native proto-currency. Seneca tribe.
Ganounata village (Honeoye Falls, NY)
. Circa AD 1625-1687
White wampum beads (apx. 5mm, 0.10g each)
Carved white shell beads with lateral hole for suspension in belt
Cf. William Martin Beauchamp, Wampum and Shell Articles Used by the New York Indians, p. 369

Found at the Dann Farm site in Honeoye Falls, NY.


In 1687 combined French and Huron forces, lead by the Marquis de Denonville, set out to undermine the strength of the Iriquois Confederacy. The main strike was made against Seneca villages in Western New York. Ganounata was burned during the campaign. This episode was only one in a long line of conflicts fought over control of the North American fur trade.

Wampum was used by Native Americans in woven belts of white and black beads. The white beads were crafted from the columella of the Channeled Whelk, the black from the quahog. Traditionally, wampum belts were used as a ceremonial object to initiate a trade contract. It was only with the coming of the Europeans that wampum began to function as coinage. In 1673, New York state officially set the value of wampum at six white beads to the Dutch stuiver, or three black until they fell out of use.
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UNITED STATES TOKENS, Hard Times. Political issues
CU Cent Token (28mm, 8.11 g, 5 h)
Dies by William Eaves for the Scoville Co. of Waterbury, Connecticut.
Dually dated 1827 and 1835. Struck 1837.
MERCHANT EXCHANGE WALL ST N. YORK, facade of bank, BUILT 1827/ BURNT 1835
MILLIONS FOR DEFENCE, NOT/ ONE/ CENT/ FOR TRIBUTE within wreath
Rulau HT 293; Low -
1 commentsArdatirion
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D.611 Louis the Pious (denier, Melle, class 2)Louis the Pious, king of the Franks and Holy Roman emperor (813-840)
Denier (Melle, class 2, 819-822)

Silver, 1.77 g, 20 mm diameter, die axis 6 h

O/ +HLVDOVVICVS IMP; cross pattée
R/ +METALLVM; cross pattée

The obsverse is similar to the previous denier. The difference is that the mint name is around a cross pattée on the reverse. This type is scarer than the one with the mint name in the field. The presence of both types in a hoard shows that both date from the beginning of Louis' reign and belong to the same Class 2.
Grierson and Blackburn suggest that this difference is due to a misunderstanding of the mint instructions.
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D.627 Charles II the Bald (denier ?, class 1d, Melle)Charles the Bald, king of the Franks (840-877)
Denier (Melle ?, class 1d, 840-864)

Silver, 1.35 g, 20.5 mm diameter, die axis 12h

O/ +CΛRLVS REX R; cross pattée
R/ +METxVLLO; carolingian monogram

The x in METxVLLO on the reverse has been widely discussed.
For instance, Depeyrot understands it as an immobilization/feudal issue. The crude style of theses deniers and the lightly degenerate legend of this one (CARLVS REX R instead of REX FR) seems in coherence with this hypothesis. However, the x is always at the same place.
Moreover, this type of coin has been found in the Brioux hoard, which may be datable to the beginning of Charles the Bald's reign. Grierson and Blackburn suggest that these coins with x were mainly minted in Poitiers. Using the legend of the close Melle mint allowed to take advantage of the reputation of Melle coinage.
Coupland proposes that this METxVLLO type came after the METVLLO type after 860 and until round 925. Then, it was replaced by the MET/ALO type. In order to explain the differences of interpretation, Coupland thinks that several hoards were wrongly dated or described.
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D.375 Charles II the Bald (denier, class 2, Courcessin?)Charles the Bald, king of the Franks (840-877)
GDR denier (Courcessin?, class 2, 864-875)

Silver, 1.43 g, 19 mm diameter, die axis 12h

O/ +GRΛTIΛ D-I REX; carolingian monogram
R/ +I.CVRTISΛSONIEH; cross pattée

In 864, Charles the Bald promulgated the edict of Pîtres, huge reform whose aim was to protect the kingdom from Viking raids. It also reinforced royal authority on minting, and created a new type of deniers . The new coins could be only struck at 10 mints (Palace, Chalon sur Saône, Melle, Narbonne, Orléans, Paris, Quentovic, Reims, Rouen and Sens). This limitation had never been applied, more than 110 mints struck the new coinage. This can be understood as a lack of control of the central autority. However it seems that several mints shared dies... Grierson and Blackburn proposed that only 10 main mints produced dies and partially outsourced coinage production ?
On the obverse is written GRATIA D-I REX (GDR) around a carolingian monogram. The alliance with Roman Church goes on... The reverse already existed for Class 1, with the mint name around a cross pattée.
Class 2 of Charles' coinage is made of these GDR deniers.

The precise localization of the mint in Normandie (north of France) is still not clear. According to Grierson and Blackburn, Courti(s) Sasonien(sis) may come from some groups of Saxons settled in northern part of Gaul.
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Dy.176 Philip II (Augustus): denier tournois (Saint Martin de Tours)Philip II, king of France (1180-1223)
Denier tournois (Saint Martin de Tours)

Billon, 0.96 g, diameter 18.5 mm, die axis 7h
O: PHILIPVS REX; croix pattée
R: +SCS MARTINVS; châtel tournois

The livre parisis was a standard for minting coins (and for unit of accounts) inherited from the Carolingians.
In 1203, John (Lackland) lost Anjou to Philip II. The deniers minted at the Saint Martin abbey in Touraine were considered as very stable. So Philip II decided to adopt the livre tournois (tournois means "of Tours", Tours is a French city in Anjou close to Saint Martin abbey) as a new standard denier and unit of account. Livre parisis and livre tournois coexisted for some time but the livre tournois quickly outstripped the livre parisis as a unit of account. Deniers parisis ceased to be struck a little more than a century later, but livre parisis existed till 17th century.
SCS MARTINVS means Sanctus Martinus (Saint Martin). The name of the abbey was temporarily kept on the deniers tournois, but was soon replaced by the name of the city of Tours.
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Dy.177 Philip II (Augustus): denier tournois (Tours)Philip II, king of France (1180-1223)
Denier tournois (Tours)

Billon, 0.92 g, diameter 19 mm, die axis 10h30
O: PHILIPVS REX; croix pattée
R: +TVRONVS CIVI; châtel tournois

This is the first denier tournois, nearly with the standard and final legend TVRONVS CIVI(S).
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Dy.187 Louis VIII (the Lion) or IX (Saint Louis): denier tournoisLouis VIII, king of France (1223-1226) or Louis IX, king of France (1226-1270)
Denier tournois (1223-1250)

Billon, 0.81 g, diameter 19 mm, die axis 4h30
O: +LVDOVICVS REX; cross pattée
R: +TVRONVS CIVI; châtel tournois

The question of the attribution of this denier to Louis VIII or to the first part of Louis IX's reign is difficult. Indeed, Louis VIII only ruled for 3 years and both the father and the son have the same name...
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Dy.188 Louis VIII (the Lion) or IX (Saint Louis): denier tournoisLouis VIII, king of France (1223-1226) or Louis IX, king of France (1226-1270)
Denier tournois (1223-1250)

Billon, 0.70 g, diameter 19 mm, die axis 11h
O: +LVDOVICVS REX; cross pattée
R: +TVRONIS CIVI; châtel tournois

Just a slightly modified legend (TVRONIS instead of TVRONVS) with respect to the previous denier.
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