Ostrogothic pentanummus FELIX RAVENNA: new variant?

[Vel Saties]

Good morning everyone, in the latest Sol Numismatic XXVI auction I found this example of an anonymous Ostrogothic pentanummus from the FELIX RAVENNA series with on the reverse a victory holding a laurel wreath and palm branch and the letters R V

Quote

OSTROGOTHS. Theoderic. 5 Nummi (bronze, 2.07 g, 12 mm), Ravenna, 493 AD. FELIX R[AVENNA] Mural-crowned and draped bust right. Rev. Victory walking left, holding wreath and palm branch; R(retrograde)-[V] across fields. Metlich 81; Ranieri 252-3. Nearly very fine. Very Rare.

This coin, not in excellent conservation, presents the clear type: on the obverse we clearly read FELIXR [AVENNA] and the turreted and draped bust of Ravenna on the right is clear.
My question is on the reverse: I can't find precise references to examples with the retrograde R. I consulted the main repertoires and catalogues: BMC (vandals), MEC, Metlich (COI), Demo, Ladich, Ranieri and the various works and articles by Prof Ermanno Arslan but I found no indication of a variant with retrograde "R".
What do you think?
Has anyone already encountered this variant?
Can anyone provide me with references to coins with this variant that have been auctioned?
A thousand thanks.

[Vel Saties]

Numismatica Ars Classica, Auction 93, Lot 1198

Roma Numismatics Limited, Auction 15, Lot 694

Sol Numismatik, Auction 19, Lot 707

 

 

 

[Tejas]

That is a rare type, especially in good condition. The inverted R is curious. I have not seen that before.

Here is a Pentanummus of Athalaricus, from my collection:

Obv.: IMVICTA ROMA

Rev.: + DNATHALARICVS

The coin is usually well preserved for the issue.

[TheTrachyEnjoyer]

21 hours ago, Vel Saties said:

Good morning everyone, in the latest Sol Numismatic XXVI auction I found this example of an anonymous Ostrogothic pentanummus from the FELIX RAVENNA series with on the reverse a victory holding a laurel wreath and palm branch and the letters R V

This coin, not in excellent conservation, presents the clear type: on the obverse we clearly read FELIXR [AVENNA] and the turreted and draped bust of Ravenna on the right is clear.
My question is on the reverse: I can't find precise references to examples with the retrograde R. I consulted the main repertoires and catalogues: BMC (vandals), MEC, Metlich (COI), Demo, Ladich, Ranieri and the various works and articles by Prof Ermanno Arslan but I found no indication of a variant with retrograde "R".
What do you think?
Has anyone already encountered this variant?
Can anyone provide me with references to coins with this variant that have been auctioned?
A thousand thanks.

This is not a variant I have encountered before. Congrats

[Vel Saties]

4 hours ago, Tejas said:

The inverted R is curious. I have not seen that before.

You're absolutely right: I haven't found anything in the literature either

4 hours ago, Tejas said:

Beautiful coin and excellent conservation for this issue. The depiction of helmeted Rome is truly beautiful and easily readable
I have in my collection the three variants of Atalaric's penta with the INVICTA ROMA on the obverse (the "N" of your example has an almost horizontal line which makes it similar to an "M") and on the reverse:
- + DNATHALARICVS (like yours but mine is not in optimal conditions but it is still an R3)
- + DNATHALARICVSREX
- + DNATHALARICVSRIX

[Tejas]

Interessting, the variant without the royal title probably dates to 526 AD, i.e. just after the death of Theoderic and before Athalaric had been made king. I have the three name variations only on the silver coins. The type without RIX or REX is by far the rarest (notwithstanding the fact that I have 4 of them):

 

[Tejas]

I think these ideosyncracies like RIX instead of REX and IMVICTA instead of INVICTA, may reflect trends in the pronounciation at the time and may also be evidence for the gradual deterioration of literacy standards even in places like Rome and Ravenna.

[Vel Saties]

6 hours ago, Tejas said:

I think these ideosyncracies like RIX instead of REX and IMVICTA instead of INVICTA, may reflect trends in the pronounciation at the time and may also be evidence for the gradual deterioration of literacy standards even in places like Rome and Ravenna.

I agree with you. The RIX was probably the result of a "reecs" pronunciation with a long open E

[Tejas]

The fact, that the first coins in the name of Athalaric were struck without the title of REX is very interesting and shows that the succession was not as smooth as later sources would have us believe. Athalaric was only 10 years old in 526 and from the Gothic point of view it was unthinkable that a child could be a Rex, which corresponds do the Gothic title of Reiks, meaning military leader/king. Thus, from their perspective, a Gothic Reiks could only be a warrior who had proved himself in battle. Worst still, was the suggestion that real power would be with Theoderic's daughter Amalasuntha, i.e. a woman, which was unheard of in Gothic history. 

Hence, there was probably a lot of bargaining going on at the time. The candidate, who was regarded as the most capable, by the Gothic nobles was Tuluin/Tulwin. He was given the command over the Gothic army and the title Patricius Praesentalis, probably to apease the Gothic faction. Theoderic's other grandson Amalaric, who would have been old enough to rule in his own right, was probably far away in Spain and could not make a bid for the throne. So for a short while after the 30th of August 526, coins were minted without the REX title, because at the time not everybody who mattered had agreed that the child Athalaric could be a Rex.

 

[John Conduitt]

Was Latin the language of the Gothic elite? It's interesting they used REX when the Romans didn't (as the Celts did). It would have made just as much sense to use RIX as a representation of their own language.

[Tejas]

That is an interesting question. By the time of Theoderic, the Goths certainly did still speak Gothic. The sources reported that one of the Roman senators engraced himself with Theoderic by proclaiming that he is learning the Gothic language. There would have been no need for that if the Goths didn't speak Gothic. By the end of the Gothic kingdom, the Goths would likely have been bilingual at best. Gothic was still the language of the Arian ritus in church, but it was likely no longer used in normal conversations. There is a deed from around 550, which was signed by Arian clerics using a formular in Gothic, which indicated that they didn't really understand the meaning of that formular.

The Gothic title "Reiks" corresponds to the Latin "REX". But "Reiks" was pronounced like "Rix or Reeks", so I think it is plausible that the variant "RIX" was introduced to approximate the pronounciation of the Gothic title "Reiks". However, I am not sure if Theoderic would have cherished the title "Reiks", or whether he regarded himself more like a "Thiudans". The latter title is ranked higher and implies something like "leader of the people (thiud)". A Thiudans usually came from an illustrious family like the Amals and inherited his position, while one or more Reiks were appointed in times of war and only for the duration of that war.