Judaea Capta Grail Added!

[David Atherton]

This 'Ephesian' Judaea Capta small bronze struck for Titus Caesar has been on my 'grail coin' want list for many years. Not often seen in trade and with only one specimen in the public collections, it's one of the most elusive Judaea Capta varieties out there.

 

Titus as Caesar [Vespasian]
Æ18, 2.95g
Ephesus (?) mint, 77-78 AD
Obv: T CAESAR IMPEP (sic) PONT; Head of Titus, laureate, bearded, r.
Rev: No legend; S C in field; Palm tree; to r. Judaea std. r. on cuirass; to l., arms
RIC 1515 (R2). BMC -. BNC -. RPC 1483 (1 spec.). Hendin 1574.
Ex SPQR Collection Auction 4, 28-29 November 2024, lot 998.

Late in Vespasian's reign a rare series of orichalcum bronze coins were struck in Asia Minor at an unknown mint. Although imperial in appearance, the style, odd weight system, and metal used all point to a mint other than Rome. Due to their extreme rarity today, they could not have been struck for any great length of time (the date cannot be narrowed down any further than Vespasian's COS VIII, 77-78 AD). The types consist of ones variously copied from either Rome or local provincial issues. A stylistic similarity with the earlier 'o' mint denarii possibly struck at Ephesus has been noted by both RIC and RPC. Admittedly, the link to the infamous 'o' mint is tenuous at best, but it is the most sound theory proposed so far (M. Grant, 'Asses of Orichalcum', Centennial Publication of the American Numismatic Study, pp. 285-302). Further, metal analyses by Carradice and Cowell ('The minting of Roman Imperial Bronze Coins for Circulation in the East: Vespasian to Trajan', NC 147, pp. 26-50) strongly supports an Asia Minor origin for the issue. This exceedingly rare Judaea Capta type struck for Titus Caesar copies a similar design seen on the middle bronzes at Rome and Lyon. The obverse legend contains an error - IMPEP instead of the correct IMPER. RIC and RPC cite one specimen at Oxford, an obverse die match with this coin.

In hand.

 

Please share your 'grails'!

Any comments are greatly appreciated. Thanks for looking!

Edited December 9, 2024 by David Atherton

[CPK]

Congrats on acquiring such a cool rarity! I've always liked those small AE "Judaea Capta" coins...but so far I've never come out on top in the bidding. (No I didn't bid on this one. 😉)

My "holy grail" coin still has to be my lifetime Julius Caesar denarius:

JULIUS CAESAR, 49-44 BC
AR Denarius (18.91mm, 3.53g, 12h)
Struck late February to early March, 44 BC. Rome mint
Obverse: CAESAR DICT PERPETVO, wreathed head of Julius Caesar right
Reverse: L·BVCA, fasces and winged caduceus in saltire; axe, clasped hands, and globe in three quarters
References: RRC 480/6, RCV 1409
Toned. A scarce, late-lifetime portrait denarius of Julius Caesar. Caesar received the title of Dictator Perpetuo (Dictator for Life) in February of 44 BC; this coin would have been struck mere weeks before his assassination on the ides of March that same year.

[Curtisimo]

You’ve added a few grail coins to your collection in the last few years, David. Fantastic addition!

[Julius Germanicus]

Great find! My substitute is this cast of a Paduan Sestertius: