Post it and pick it!

[El Cazador]

On 2/15/2023 at 6:08 AM, IanG said:

Aeolis, Myrina.

 

 AR Tetradrachm, circa 155-145 BC.

 

Stephanophoric type. Laureate head of Apollo right / Apollo Grynios standing right, holding phiale and filleted laurel branch; three monograms to left, omphalos and amphora at feet; all within laurel wreath.

 

Sacks Issue 30; de Luynes 2530; McClean 7946.

 

Next: Omphalos

 

Nice

[El Cazador]

1 hour ago, filolif said:

 Lysimachos Tetradrachm featuring Alexander the Great.

next: anything from Kyrene

 

Solid

[El Cazador]

On 1/24/2023 at 5:02 PM, filolif said:

I think this qualifies? It looks like Zeus Karneios just took a swim.

Next: Any coin with a plant on it.

Really nice for the type

[shanxi]

5 hours ago, filolif said:

next: anything from Kyrene

Cyrenaica - Cyrene
Æ 22, ca. 250BC
Obv.: Diademed head of Zeus Ammon right
Rev.: Κ-Ο/Ι-Ν/Ο-Ν Silphium plant Monogram
Æ, 9.15g, 21.9mm
Ref.: SNG Cop 1278 var.

 

Next: Zeus Ammon or Silphium

[TuckHard]

Ptolemaic Dynasty of Egypt
180 to 145 BC
AE chalkon | 8.22 grams | 22mm wide | 3mm thick
Obv: Zeus-Ammon right
Rev: Two eagles standing left
Ref: Svoronos #1426

Next: more from Africa (Axum, Ptolemaic, Carthage, later Islamic)

[Prieure de Sion]

15 minutes ago, TuckHard said:

Next: more from Africa

 

Juba II and Cleopatra Selene
Denarius of the Mauretania and Numidia Kingdom Period 25 BC / 23 AD; Material: Silver; Diameter: 18mm; Weight: 2.91g; Mint: Caesarea Mauretaniae; Reference: SNG Copenhagen 572; Provenance: Ex Chaponnière & Firmenich Numismatique Genf, Switzerland; Obverse: diademed head of Juba right. The Inscription reads: REX IVBA for Rex Juba (King Juba); Reverse: Headdress of Isis and sistrum. The Inscription reads: ΒΑΣΙΛΙΣΣΑ KΛEOΠATΡ for Basilea Kleopatra (Queen Cleopatra).

 

Next: more Africa.

[TuckHard]

Carthage
c. 220 to 210 BC
AE shekel | 2.03 grams | 21.5mm wide
Obv: Bust of Tanit facing left
Rev: Horse with 'ghost legs' standing right, head turned back left, staff in background
Cf. Jenkins-Lewis pl. 28 8

Next: same theme!

 

[Phil Davis]

Crawford 461/1. Q. Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio and Eppius, military mint traveling with Scipio in Africa, 47-46 BC.

Next: Another Roman Imperatorial coin from Africa.

[Prieure de Sion]

15 minutes ago, Phil Davis said:

Next: Another Roman Imperatorial coin from Africa.

 

Gaius Iulius Caesar
Denarius of the Roman Republic Period 47/46 BC; Material: Silver; Diameter: 19mm; Weight: 3.84g; Mint: Military mint in North Africa; Reference: Crawford RRC 458/1; Obverse: Head of Venus, right, wearing diadem. Border of dots; Reverse: Aeneas, left, carrying palladium in right hand and Anchises on left shoulder. Border of dots. The Inscription reads: CAESAR for Caesar ([Gaius Iulius] Caesar).

 

Next: more Africa minting.

[DonnaML]

Here's some more Africa minting. Next will be: another elephant from the Metellus family.

Roman Republic, Q. Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio, 47/46 BCE, N. Africa, Utica (provincial capital 30 mi. NW of site of Carthage) or mobile military mint traveling with Scipio’s camp [see Sear Imperatorial (CRI), infra at p. 34]. Obv. Laureate head of Jupiter right, Q. METEL around to right, PIVS in exergue (PI ligate)/ Rev. African elephant walking right, SCIPIO above, IMP in exergue. Crawford 459/1, Sear Imperatorial (CRI) 45 (pp. 33-34) [David Sear, The History and Coinage of the Roman Imperators 49-27 BC (1998)], RSC I Caecilia [Babelon] 47 (ill. p. 21), Sear RCV I 1379 (ill. p. 262), RBW Collection 1601 (ill. p. 337), BMCRR Africa 1, Claire Rowan, From Caesar to Augustus (c. 49 BC - AD 14), Using Coins as Sources (Cambridge 2019) at pp. 44-45 & Fig. 2.22. 19.5 mm., 3.78 g. Purchased from Germania Inferior Numismatics, Netherlands, Dec. 2021.*

*Issued by Q. Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio (ca. 95-46 BCE), a great-great-great-grandson of Scipio Africanus [see Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quintus_Caecilius_Metellus_Pius_Scipio], and also a member of the Caecilii Metelli family by testamentary adoption [id.]. He issued this coin as the commander-in-chief of the remaining Pompeian forces in North Africa after Pompey’s defeat at Pharsalus and subsequent assassination, leading up to their defeat by Caesar at the Battle of Thapsus (in present-day Tunisia) on 6 Feb. 46 BCE. In CRI at p. 34, Sear states as follows about this coin: “Both stylistically and in volume this coinage stands apart from the rather limited issues in Scipio’s name which can safely be attributed to the provincial capital of Utica (nos. 40-43). The inescapable conclusion is that this type, which is in the sole name of the commander-in-chief, is a product of the military mint operating within the security of Scipio’s camp. It would appear to belong to the latter stages of the campaign as the Pompeian army was moving around the province prior to being enticed into the fatal engagement at Thapsus.” 

See Metellus Scipio’s biography in Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th edition, Vol. XVIII, pp. 258-259 (1911):

“QUINTUS CAECILIUS METELLUS PIUS SCIPIO, son of P. Scipio Nasia, was adopted by [Q. Caecilius Metellus Pius (d. ca. 64 BCE), issuer of Crawford 374/1 in 81 BCE, through the latter's will.]. He was accused of bribery in 60 B.C., and defended by Cicero, to whom he had rendered valuable assistance during the Catilinarian conspiracy. In August 52, he became consul through the influence of [his son-in-law] Pompey, who had married his daughter Cornelia [as his fifth wife. Pompey was Cornelia's second husband; her first, the son of Crassus, died at Carrhae.].  In 49 [Metellus Scipio] proposed that Caesar should disband his army within a definite time, under pain of being declared an enemy of the state. Afte the outbreak of the civil war, the province of Syria was assigned to him, and he was about to plunder the temple of Artemis at Ephesus when he was recalled by Pompey. He commanded the centre at Pharsalus, and afterwards went to Africa, where by Cato's influence he received the command. In 46 he was defeated at Thapsus; while endeavoring to escape to Spain he fell into the hands of P. Sittius, and put himself to death. His connexion with two great families gave him importance, but he was selfish and licentious, wanting in personal courage, and his violence drove many from his party.”

Clare Rowan discusses Metellus Scipio and his coinage, including this type, at length at pp. 42-46 of her book (see citation above):

“After the defeat at Pharsalus and Pompey's death in Egypt in 48 BC, opposition to Caesar continued in Africa under the command of Metellus Scipio, who had previously commanded forces in Syria. Along with other Pompeian commanders, Scipio was subjected to criticism by the Caesarian side -- in The Civil War Caesar attacked their legitimacy, noting that Scipio (and others) did not wait for the ratification of the appointments by the assembly and left Rome without taking the appropriate auspices, amongst other irregularities (Caes. BCiv. 1.6.6-7). Caesar wrote ‘all rights, divine and human, were thrown into confusion.’ Whether Caesar's accusations are true or not, we find a clear response to them on Scipio's coinage, which display an inordinate emphasis on Scipio's offices, and their legitimacy. . .  [Citing, among other things, obverse references to Jupiter as "underlining Scipio's divine support."]. . . .[Discussion of Scipio's other coins omitted.] Th[e] combination of familial history and contemporary politics can also be seen on Fig. 2.22 [illustration of Crawford 459/1, this type], which has a reverse decorated with an elephant accompanied by the legend SCIPIO IMP. Although one might be tempted to see this as a 'reply' to Caesar's elephant (Fig. 2.1, Crawford 443/1), there is little to support this hypothesis. The elephant had been a symbol of the Metelli since the victory of L. Caecilius Metellus over Hasdrubal at Panormus during the First Punic War in 250 BC, and elephants had previously appeared on the coinage of several moneyers from the family. [See Crawford 262/1, Crawford 263/1a-1b, Crawford 269/1, and Crawford 374/1] . . . . Indeed, Q. Caecilius Metellus Pius [Scipio's father by testamentary adoption] . . . released an issue displaying an elephant with the initials of his name in the exergue: Q.C.M.P.I. (the ‘I’ referring to his title as imperator).” [See Crawford 374/1]: [insert photo]

See also, e.g., Crawford Vol. I at p. 287, explaining the significance of depictions of elephants to the Caecilii Metelli family, recalling the victory of L. Caecilius Metellus, Cos. 251, over Hasdrubal at Panormus in 250 BCE, and the capture of Hasdrubal’s elephants.

Rowan continues at pp. 45-46: 

“Scipio may have been using an ancestral type in keeping with Republican tradition. Nonetheless, the elephant was a topical motif, particularly since Casear's own elephant issue [Crawford 443/1] was very large, and so others may have interpreted the image within the competing claims of the civil war (particularly if they didn't have an intimate knowledge of Roman elite family symbols). Since the issue was struck in Africa, the image might also have been interpreted as a reference to the elephants of King Juba I, who supported Scipio against Caesar (Dio 43.3.5-4.1). Juba himself released coins with an elephant on the reverse (Fig. 2.24), and so any users of Scipio's currency in Africa may have seen the elephant as a local symbol rather than (or in addition to) a reference to the Roman general.

Metellus Scipio had a strong client base in Africa, assuring him local support. Literary sources mention prophecies that a Scipio could not be defeated in the region (Suetonius, Julius Caesar 59; Plutarch, Life of Julius Caesar 52.2, Dio 42.57.5.)  Pro-Caesarian literature attempted to blacken Scipio by suggesting that the commander and his supporters were deferring to Juba, going so far as to suggest that Scipio had promised the province of Africa to the king [citations omitted]. It is clear that we cannot take this tradition at face value, but Scipio's coinage does reveal that he actively sought and/or commemorated local support.”

In CRI, at pp. 24-25, David Sear takes a highly negative view of Metellus Scipio:

"The guiding spirit in the anti-Caesarian movement [in Africa after Pharsalus] was Marcus Porcius Cato, later known as Cato Uticensis, the great-grandson of the famous Cato the Censor. . . . The universal respect which Cato commanded amongst his contemporaries enabled him to arbitrate in the rivalries and disputes which arose between the military leaders of the Pompeian party. Probably the general who came closest to matching Caesar's genius as a strategist was Titus Labenius, formerly Caesar's legate in Gaul though subsequently an ardent supporter of Pompey and his cause. But Labenius was a man of relatively low birth, his family having originated from the Picenium region of Italy, and this counted against him in the aristocratic hierarchy of the Pompeian leadership. Merely because of this brilliant tactician's lack of an illustrious ancestry Cato foolishly insisted on passing him over and bestowing the overall command on Q. Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio. Although certainly the possessor of an awe-inspiring name, and formerly the father-in-law of Pompey himself, this did not, unfortunately for his cause, compensate for his total unfitness to confront an opponent of the calibre of Caesar.  [List of other leaders of the Pompeian army in Africa -- as well as its "powerful, though unstable, ally, King Juba of Numidia, who, "if he could be counted on, added greatly to the manpower ranged against Caesar and could even contribute a large contingent of war-elephants" -- is omitted, as is Sear's detailed discussion of the Battle of Thapsus itself.]  [After the defeat,] [o]f the Pompeian leaders only Sextus Pompey, Labienus, and Varus survived to join Gnaeus Pompey in Spain. Scipio fled by ship but was overtaken by enemy forces and took his own life rather than surrender and become Caesar's prisoner." [See pp. 26-27 for discussion of suicides of Juba and Cato.]
 

[Ryro]

Next: Roman Republic 

[Qcumbor]

54 minutes ago, Ryro said:

Next: Roman Republic 

 

C. Piso L.f. Frugi, Rome mint, 67 BCE
Laureate head of Apollo right, behind, heron right
C•PISO L•F•FRVGI Naked horseman galloping right, holding whip in his right hand; above, lituus.

3,75 gr - 16 mm - 6h

Ref : RCV # 348, RSC (Calpurnia) # 24, Crawford # 408/1a, Sydenham # 865c, RBW -, Hersh, Piso # 29 (O10/R1005)

 

Next : a bird (any bird) as a control mark

Q

[DonnaML]

4 hours ago, Ryro said:

Next: Roman Republic 

Just pointing out that my "next" prompt was an elephant from the Metellus family. That's a strange-looking elephant!

[Ryro]

31 minutes ago, DonnaML said:

Just pointing out that my "next" prompt was an elephant from the Metellus family. That's a strange-looking elephant!

Apologies. My refresh game is not so, fresh... but thanks for the chance to share an MSC:

Next: elephant

 

[TuckHard]

Kingdom of Mysore of south India
1811 to 1833 AD
Issued under Krishnaraja Wadiyar III
AE twenty cash

Next: more India

[Edessa]

Indo-Scythians. Azes, 58-12 BC. AR Drachm (14mm, 2.48g, 2h). Taxila mint. Obv: BASILEWE BASILEWN MEGALOU/AZOU; Armored Skythian king advancing right on horseback, holding elephant goad;  “Sa” in Kharosthi to right. Rev: Diademed Zeus Nikephoros standing left, holding Nike and scepter; Monograms to left and right. Ref: Mitchiner 2412-2419 (Azes II); Hoover HGC 12, 655. 

Next: Another Zeus.

[Roman Collector]

Lydia, Philadelphia, early-mid 2nd century BC.
Greek Æ 17 mm, 5.84 g, 12 h.
Obv: Head of Zeus, right, wearing tainia.
Rev: ΦΙΛΑΔΕΛ / ΦΕⲰΝ either side of lyre (or kithara), monogram above, plectrum below; all within laurel-wreath.
Refs: BMC 22.187, 5-7; Sear 4720; cf. SNG Cop 348-50; cf. SNG von Aulock 3061.

Next: More Philadelphia.

[shanxi]

 

LYDIA. Philadelphia.
Hermippos, son of Hermogenes, archieros.
2nd-1st century BC.
Obv.: Diademed and draped bust of Artemis to right, with bow and quiver over her shoulder.
Rev. ΦΙΛΑΔΕΛΦΕΩΝ - ΑΡΧΙΕΡΩΣ - EPMIΠΠΩΣ / EPMOΓΕΝΟΥΣ, Apollo seated left, holding patera in his right hand and leaning left on lyre; above, owl seated right on back of the throne.
AE, 21mm, 8.88g, 12 h
Ref.: BMC 10. SNG Copenhagen 337-338.

 

Next: Holding Owl or any other bird as long as it is not an eagle

Edited February 18, 2023 by shanxi

[TuckHard]

6 hours

Southern Han Dynasty of China
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period
917 to 942 AD
Lead cash | 3.67 grams | 25.5mm wide | 1mm thick
Obv: Qian Heng Zhong Bao (top-bottom-right-left)
Rev: Blank
Ref: Hartill #15.108

Next: more unusual metal - anything but AE, AR, AV

[Ryro]

Next: nymph

[Sulla80]

1 hour ago, Ryro said:

Next: nymph

A nymph from Phalanna (rev) with Apollo (obv):

Thessaly, Phalanna, late 4th century BC, AE trichalkon

Obv: Head of Apollo to left; behind, Θ

Rev: ΦΑΛΑΝΝΑ-ΙΩ-Ν Head of nymph to right.

 

Next: Thessaly

Edited February 18, 2023 by Sulla80

[shanxi]

Larissa, Thessaly
AE Dichalkon
Obv.: Head of nymph Larissa facing, head turned slightly to left, wreathed with grain, wearing double strand plain necklace
Rev: ΛAPIΣAIΩN, Cavalryman on horse prancing right, lance in right, wearing Boiotian helmet, ∆A monogram
AE, 5.45g, 17.1mm
Ref.: BCD Thessaly I 1171.1, BCD Thessaly II 393.3, SNG Cop 140, cf. Rogers 285

 

Next: Cavalryman

Edited February 18, 2023 by shanxi

[TuckHard]

This is a so-called Bull and Horseman jital from the north India // Pakistan // Afghanistan region. Neither the bull nor the horseman are too clear on this (abstract and largely off-flan) unless you are familiar with the type, this flan is awfully small for the die.

 

Post-Shahi Dynasty of north India
Circa 850 to 1000 AD
AE jital | 3.36 grams | 13x13.5mm
Obv: Bull facing left
Rev: Horseman facing right
Ref: Tye#33.5var

Next: a horseman or a bull

[AncientOne]

 

Pisidia, Isinda. AE19. Pseudo-autonomous, 2nd-3rd c.

Obv: Diademed head of Zeus right.
Rev: ICINΔЄΩN. Warrior riding horse right, thrusting spear at serpent to lower right.

 

Next: Poseidon bust. 

[TuckHard]

The sources I found online for this coin called the obverse a bust of Zeus or Poseidon.

Thessaly, Krannon
Circa 350 to 300 BC
AE dichalkon | 3.92 grams | 12mm wide
Obv: Zeus or Poseidon right
Rev: Horseman right, KP-A-N around

Next: an unsure element of a coin (who is on it, what is an object, etc)