Faustina Friday – The Provincials of Abila in the Decapolis Issued for Faustina the Younger

[Roman Collector]

Friday felicitations, fellow Faustina fanatics! I hope you have a coin-filled weekend. Today I'm going to discuss the coins issued for Faustina the Younger by the obscure city of Abila in the Decapolis. The British Museum had no coins from the city when BMC 20 was published in 1899. The city is not mentioned by name in the Bible, either.

Abila was founded under the Seleucids and was known for a time as Seleucia. It was later ruled by the Kingdom of Judaea. Under Rome it was included in the province Palaestina Secunda. It was one of the cities of the Decapolis, east of the Jordan river, and known in ancient times as Ἄβιλα Δεκαπόλεως (Abila of the Decapolis)[1] to distinguish it from the Abila near Leucas in Coele-Syria.[2]

The town was located 12 miles east of Gadara[3] and about three miles south of the Yarmuk River (nahr el-Yarmuk), the modern border between Jordan and Syria.[4] The site, now referred to as Qweilbeh, occupies two tells, Tell al-Abila and Khirbet Tell Umm al-Amad.[5]

Abila lies east-southeast of the Sea of Galilee in modern day Jordan.[6]

Photograph taken between 1890 and 1900 of Suk-Wady-Barada (Abila). Public Domain.[7]

The first known European to visit the site was Ulrich Jasper Seetzen in 1806 and there has been intermittent archaeological activity at the site since.[8]

The city issued coins for only a short period, from the time of Marcus Aurelius to the early third century.[9] There are three reverse types for Faustina the Younger: tiny bronzes (14-15 mm) depicting a bunch of grapes, and larger bronzes (20-22 mm) featuring Athena standing, as well as a large cornucopiae from which overflows grapes and corn ears. The grape bunch as a design element undoubtedly refers to the vineyards of Abila, described by Eusebius in his Onomasticon as πόλις οἰνοφόρος (wine-bearing city).[10] The coins bear the date ϚΚϹ (226) of the Pompeian era, which corresponds to 162/3 CE.[11]

The three reverse types issued by Abila for Faustina II in the Sofaer Collection, ANS.[12]

I have examples of all three reverse types in my collection.

Faustina II, 147-175 CE.
Roman provincial Æ 21.0 mm, 5.73 g, 12 h.
Syria: Decapolis, Abila, 162/3 CE.
Obv: ΦΑΥϹΤЄΙΝΑ ϹЄΒΑϹΗ, bare-headed and draped bust, right.
Rev: ϹЄΛЄΥΚ ϚΚϹ, Athena standing facing, head left, holding branch and spear.
Refs: RPC IV.3, 6507 (temp); Spijkerman 4, SNG ANS 1120.
 

Faustina II, 147-175 CE.
Roman provincial Æ 20.5 mm, 7.15 g, 12 h.
Syria: Decapolis, Abila, 162/3 CE.
Obv: ΦΑΥϹΤЄΙΝΑ ϹЄΒΑϹΗ, bare-headed and draped bust, right.
Rev: ϹЄΛ-ABI ϚΚϹ, Cornucopiae overflowing with three bunches of grapes and three grain ears.
Refs: RPC IV.3, 6508 (temp); Spijkerman 5, SNG ANS 1119.

Faustina II, 147-175 CE.
Roman provincial Æ 15 mm, 1.62 g, 6 h.
Syria: Decapolis, Abila, 162/3 CE.
Obv: ΦΑYϹΤЄΙΝΑ ϹЄΒΑϹΤΗ, bare-headed and draped bust, right.
Rev: ϹЄΛЄYΚ ΑΒΙΛΑ ϚΚϹ, bunch of grapes.
Refs: RPC IV.3, 6509 (temp); Spijkerman 6.
Notes: cf. an undated variety with the reverse legend ϹЄΛ ΑΒΙΛΑЄⲰΝ, RPC IV.3, 10131 (temporary).

Do you have any coins of Abila? Please post comments, coins, or anything you feel is relevant!

~~~

Notes

1. "Abila (Decapolis)."Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 27 January 2024, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abila_(Decapolis).

2. Wroth, Warwick. Catalogue of the Greek Coins of Galatia, Cappadocia, and Syria. Trustees of the British Museum, 1899, p. lxxxiii.

3. Ibid.

4. John Brown University. "Project History."John Brown University, 27 January 2024, https://www.jbu.edu/abila/history/.

5. Gibson, Shimon, and Avraham Negev. Archaeological Encyclopedia of the Holy Land. Continuum, 2001, pp. 11-12.

6. Cahill, Tim. "Abila."Mapcarta, https://mapcarta.com/12838508.

7. "Abila (Decapolis)."Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 27 January 2024, Suk-Wady-Barada (Abila), Suk-Wady-Barada, Holy Land,-LCCN2002725063 - Abila (Decapolis) - Wikipedia.

8. John Brown University, op. cit.

9. Wroth, op. cit.

10. As cited by Wroth, op. cit.

11. Search for “Faustina Abila”. Roman Provincial Coinage Online, Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford., RPC — Search: Browse (ox.ac.uk).

12. Meshorer, Yaʿaḳov, et al. Coins of the Holy Land: The Abraham and Marian Sofaer Collection at the American Numismatic Society and the Israel Museum. American Numismatic Soc, 2013, p. 142 & pl. 124, 6-8.

Edited February 3 by Roman Collector

[shanxi]

Nice erite up. I have only one Faustina from Abila.

Faustina II
Arabia, Decapolis, Abila
Circa AD 147-175
Obv.: ΦΑΥСΤƐΙΝΑ СƐΒΑСΤΗ, draped bust of Faustina right
Rev.: СƐΛƐΥΚ ΑΒΙΛΑ ϚΚС, bunch of grapes
AE, 3.41g, 16mm
Ref.: RPC IV, № 6509 (temporary), reverse die match with 6509-1, Spijkerman 6 (obverse and reverse die match), Sofaer 8

 

[Roman Collector]

9 minutes ago, shanxi said:

Nice erite up. I have only one Faustina from Abila.

Faustina II
Arabia, Decapolis, Abila
Circa AD 147-175
Obv.: ΦΑΥСΤƐΙΝΑ СƐΒΑСΤΗ, draped bust of Faustina right
Rev.: СƐΛƐΥΚ ΑΒΙΛΑ ϚΚС, bunch of grapes
AE, 3.41g, 16mm
Ref.: RPC IV, № 6509 (temporary), reverse die match with 6509-1, Spijkerman 6 (obverse and reverse die match), Sofaer 8

 

An unsually nice example of a tiny coin. 

[LONGINUS]

 

Excellent Faustina II post, @Roman Collector!

 

Great Abila, Decapolis collection. Here’s my very first Faustina II coin and although it is not from Abila it is from 10 or so miles away.

 

[Roman Collector]

9 hours ago, LONGINUS said:

 

Excellent Faustina II post, @Roman Collector!

 

Great Abila, Decapolis collection. Here’s my very first Faustina II coin and although it is not from Abila it is from 10 or so miles away.

 

Gorgeous! A great first Faustina II acquisition! 

[seth77]

I considered bidding on one of the Faustina grapes spec last week but in the end went for something else.

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

Very interesting.

I'm pleased that I joined the Faustina club (not counting bagged bulk coins) at Saturnalia-time.