Buon Anniversario!

[Illyricum65]

Ciao,

ogni anno (o quasi), me ne scordo. E me ne rammento in colpevole ritardo…

Quest’anno, complice una nota presente su testo donatomi da un amico del Forum (cui porgo ancora i miei ringraziamenti... e che così avrà conferma che ho sfogliato il testo ;) ), cerco di fare ammenda. In fondo è pur sempre un’occasione per vedere qualche bella moneta! Belle monete… va bene, ma su che tema numismatico/storico?

Semplice, il 21 aprile corre il Natalis Romae, l’anniversario della fondazione di Roma. 2766 anni di storia “ufficiale”… tra alti e bassi, eppure Roma esercita sempre il suo fascino … e chissà che non sia anche di buon augurio…

Rappresentata come una divinità femminile guerriera calzante un elmo, la città di Roma ha più leggende mitiche concernenti la sua fondazione. Secondo la più diffusa e antica, Roma era una delle prigioniere di guerra troiane segregate nella nave di Ulisse; quando queste furono costrette da una tempesta a sbarcare sulle coste del Lazio, Roma e le altre prigioniere, stanche di seguire Ulisse nei sui viaggi, decisero di incendiare le navi, costringendo Ulisse e i suoi uomini a stanziarsi nel Lazio, più precisamente sul colle Palatino. Qui venne fondata la città di Roma in onore della prigioniera che aveva costretto Ulisse e i suoi uomini a non partire per nuovi lidi, dando vita a una nuova civiltà. Un’altra la vede come figlia di Ascanio, e quindi nipote di Enea. In ricordo dei trionfi dei profughi troiani, che riuscirono nel corso delle guerre contro Turno a conquistare la zona dove sarebbe sorta la Città Eterna, Rome fece costruire sul luogo dove sorgerà l'Urbe un tempio in onore di Fides (la Fede).
Per questi motivi alla città venne dato il nome di Roma in onore della fanciulla che aveva fatto edificare il tempio.
Secondo altre versioni, Roma sarebbe stata la moglie di Ascanio oppure la moglie dello stesso Enea e figlia di Telefo e quindi nipote di Eracle.

Secondo la versione ellenizzante, l'eroina Roma avrebbe origini "greche", essendo una dei numerosi figli di Ulisse e della maga Circe e quindi sorella di Telegono, colui che avrebbe ucciso l'uomo dal multiforme ingegno. Secondo altre leggende sarebbe stata figlia di Telemaco e di Circe e sorella del Re Latino.

Roma rappresentata sull'Ara Pacis

[Illyricum65]

Le prime immagini della dea, su monete romane, risalgono al 269 a.C. Sulle monete era raffigurata come una donna in veste amazzonica, armata di spada, talvolta clipeata o coronata di alloro, con vicino unaVittoria alata o altri simboli.

Il culto di Roma era comunque presente nell’Urbe stessa dove Adriano fece costruire un tempio dedicato a Venere (Venus Victrix) e a Roma (Roma Aeterna) sulla via Sacra, accanto all'arco di Tito.

Tempio di Venere e Roma

(fonte Wiky)

Alla fondazione di Roma venivano dedicati i Ludii Saeculares, commemorazioni e festività compiute periodicamente e per i quali vi segnalo il link della precedente discussione dedicata.

http://www.lamoneta.it/topic/62247-monetazioni-imperiali-ed-i-ludi-seaculares/?hl=%2Bludi+%2Bsaeculares

[Illyricum65]

Ed ecco qualche moneta imperiale sul tema "Roma"...

Nero. AD 54-68. Æ Sestertius (35mm, 26.48 g). Lugdunum mint. Struck AD 65. Laureate head right; small globe at point of bust / Roma seated left on cuirass, holding Victory and parazonium; shields around. RIC I 398; BMCRE 324; WCN 409.

Galba. AD 68-69. Æ Sestertius (36mm, 26.70 g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck circa August-October AD 68. Laureate and draped bust right / Roma seated left on cuirass, holding scepter and leaning on shield set on shield. RIC I 311 var. (wearing oak wreath); ACG – (A–/P170). cngcoins.com

Vespasian, sestertius, 71, Æ 28.39 g. IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG PM TR P COS III Laureate head r., with aegis Rev. S – C Roma seated r. on the seven hills propping head on r. hand and holding sceptre in l.; to l., wolf and twins; to r., river Tiber. C 404. BMC 774 (these dies). RIC 108 (these dies). CBN 523.
Extremely rare, only one reverse die known of this important issue. Dark brown-green patina expertly smoothed with loss of Roma’s helmet-crest from former area of corrosion on reverse, otherwise about extremely fine
Ex Leu 50, 1990, 291, NAC 7, 1994, 706 and Vinchon 22 May 1995, 289 sales. From the Luc Girard collection.

Rome could hardly be better represented than by this remarkable type of Vespasian, which shows the eponymous Dea Roma seated rather at ease amongst the seven hills of Rome, her sword sheathed, with the river-god Tiberis at her feet, and at her side the she-wolf suckling Romulus and Remus.
This Roma renascens ('Rome reborn') type, is consciously antiquarian, and can be seen as a reflection of Rome's emergence from the violent civil war that raged from 68 to 69, the first such test of Rome in a century. As the victor in the contest and the restorer of stability to the empire, Vespasian could justly claim the privilege of using this type.
The design was used only for sestertii of the first and second issues of the Rome mint in 71. Its most unusual feature is the representation of the seven hills of Rome. The city was called Septicollis because seven hills were enclosed within the Servian Wall, representing the extent of the original city; only later would outlying areas, including the Vatican Hill, be enclosed within the larger circuit wall built by Aurelian. Represented on this coin are the Palatinus, Quirinalis, Aventinus, Coelius, Viminalius, Esquilinus, and Tarpeius (Capitolinus) hills.
According to popular mythology recorded by Livy, which the Romans took as national history, Rome was founded at the spot where the twins had been left to drown as infants, and subsequently were raised. When they began to build the city, Remus wished it to be named Remuria, and Romulus preferred Roma, and they quarrelled over who should rule the new city.
In one version of the tale they left the decision to the tutelary gods of the countryside. The signs of the augury were interpreted differently by supporters of each; blind with ambition, fraternal combat ensued in which Remus was killed. An alternative tradition suggests that Romulus killed Remus in an act of vengeance for his having mocked his brother by jumping over the half-built walls of the new settlement. Since Livy says in the first tradition that the disputed auspices were observed by Romulus from the Palatine and by Remus from the Aventine, we might presume those two hills are the ones beside the she-wolf and Romulus and Remus.
It can be seen as a precursor to aurei and denarii that Vespasian issued six or seven years later in the names of Titus and Domitian; the latter depicted the she-wolf and twins, usually above a boat, and the former showed Roma seated upon shields, accompanied by two birds and the she-wolf suckling the twins (a design that formerly appeared on anonymous Republican denarii of c. 115/4 B.C.).

NAC54, 361

[Illyricum65]

Una moneta di Settimio Severo dedicata alla Triade Caiptolina:

Septimius Severus, d=21 m, denarius 206, AR 3.37 g. SEVERVS – PIVS AVG Laureate head r. Rev. P M TR P XIII The Capitoline Triad: Jupiter seated facing, holding thunderbolt and sceptre; between, Minerva on his l., and Juno on his r., both holding sceptre; in exergue, COS III P P. RIC –. C –. BMC –. Hill –.

Apparently unique and unpublished. A very interesting issue, extremely fine.
On this rare and important denarius we see the Capitoline Triad – Jupiter, Juno and Minerva – in their canonical form as the sculptures housed within the Capitolium, the temple on the Capitoline Hill devoted to the sacred Triad. It was the most important religious center in the Roman world, and, on balance, it is surprising that the temple or its most familiar statues did not appear more frequently on Roman coins.

This piece is remarkable since the Triad usually was shown only on medallions, and even then only on rare occasions (notably under Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus). The Triad is here represented in its statuary form, and on other occasions it is represented by the three birds sacred to these gods: Jupiters eagle, Junos peacock and Minervas owl. Vespasian restored the temple after its virtual destruction in the last days of the civil war, and he issued sestertii and cistophori that showed the facade of the temple with the three statues visible (though only Jupiter is seated).

The occasion for this issue by Severus in 206 is not immediately apparent. One possibility is that Severus made restorations to the Capitolium that are not recorded by our sources, for he is known to have made many capital improvements in Rome. It could also relate to the crisis of January, 205, when the prefect Plautianus – virtual co-emperor of Severus and the father-in-law of Caracalla – was savagely executed by Caracalla in the presence of his father. Perhaps this denarius reflects vows or sacrifices made by Severus for the health of the empire following this shocking event?

More likely, though, it reflects a general celebration to the mores of Roman culture and religion. By the age of the Severans the gens of the ruling family was closely associated with the Capitoline Triad, and at Severus home town of Lepcis Magna we find some outstanding comparative evidence. A frieze from the Arch of the Severi at Lepcis depicts the Triad accompanied by Concordia; the facial features of Juno are a precise match for Julia Domna and though those of Jupiter do not survive, the diagnostic ‘cork screw beard of Severus remains, and we should not hesitate to presume the connection of Severus and Domna with Jupiter and Juno. Since the image on this denarius faithfully copies the images found on medallions of 2nd century emperors it may have a secondary function of reflecting the relationship Severus had fabricated between his own family and the Antonines.

NAC41, 116

ELAGABALUS, AD 218-222. AE Sestertius (31mm, 25.02 g, 1h). Rome mint. Struck AD 219. Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / Roma seated left, holding Victory and scepter; shield at side. RIC IV 284; Thirion 4; Banti 44. VF, dark brown patina, small edge split at 2 o'clock, minor flan flaws on reverse.

Severus Alexander. AD 222-235. Æ Sestertius (29mm, 20.70 g, 1h). Rome mint. 9th emission, AD 228. Laureate bust right, slight drapery on far shoulder / Roma seated left, holding Victory on globe and sceptre; shield at side. RIC IV 602; Banti 151; BMCRE 517. VF, wonderful green patina.

Modificato 20 Aprile, 2013 da Illyricum65

[Illyricum65]

Gordian II. AD 238. Æ Sestertius (30mm, 23.63 g, 12h). Rome mint. Struck March-April AD 238. IMP CAES M ANT GORDIANVS AFR AVG, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind / ROMAE AETERNAE, Roma seated left on round shield; holding crowning Victory and scepter; SC in exergue. RIC IV 5; Banti 4. Good VF, attractive

brown patina. Rare.

Philip I. AD 244-249. Æ Sestertius (26mm, 16.62 g, 6h). Commemorating the 1000th anniversary of Rome. Rome mint. 10th emission, AD 249. Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / SAECVLVM NOVVM, octastyle temple with statue of Roma seated facing in center. RIC IV 164; Banti 52. Good VF, dark gray-brown patina, areas of red, double strike on reverse.

Philip I. AD 244-249. Æ Sestertius (27mm, 16.41 g, 12h). Ludi Saeculares issue. Rome mint, 1st officina. 9th emission, AD 248. Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / Lion standing right. RIC IV 158a; Banti 45. Good VF, brown patina, typical squared flan.

Continuing the tradition of Claudius and Antoninus Pius before him, the celebration of the Secular Games at the end of every century since the founding of Rome culminated during the reign of Philip I, as the city celebrated her 1,000th anniversary in AD 248. The legends on these issues almost exclusively read SAECVLARES AVGG, and feature a similar iconography from previous games, such as the she-wolf suckling the twins, the various wild beasts paraded through the amphitheater, and a cippus inscribed for the preservation of the memory of these events.

Un sesterzio di Domiziano sul tema Ludi Saeculares:

Modificato 20 Aprile, 2013 da Illyricum65

[Illyricum65]

Probus, AR Antoninianus, 276-282, Rome, Officina 5. IMP PRO_BVS AVG Radiate, cuirassed bust left, holding eagle-tipped scepter. ROMAE AETER Cult image of Roma seated and holding Victory and scepter in hexastyle temple. R wreath E in exergue. RIC V, Part II, 185.

Maxentius augustus, d=20 mm, argenteus, Ostia circa 308-309, AR 2.91 g. MAXENTI – VS P F AVG Laureate head r. Rev. TEMPORVM FELICITAS AVG N She-wolf l., suckling twins; in exergue, M OSTA. RIC 13. C 107.

Extremely rare. Toned and good very fine
Ex Naville-Ars Classica XVII, 1934, Evans, 1874; Glendining’s Novemeber 1948, Sydenham, 573; NFA XXV, 1990, 485 and Sotheby’s July 1996, 176 sales.

This argenteus bears one of the most optimistic and patriotic of Maxentius’ coin types: the canonical scene of the wolf and twins – the emblem of Rome itself – and an inscription that proclaims the "happiness of the times of our emperor". Though this might have fit well with the earliest of this rebel’s coinage, it was struck in 308 or 309, a staggering low-point of his fortunes. Romans of the day who handled this coin must have considered Maxentius half mad for his tireless optimism in the face of what appeared to be the imminent collapse of his regime. The odds were strongly against Maxentius in this period, as he was struck with numerous setbacks: in 308 he survived a coup attempt by his own father and he was confirmed as an outlaw at Carnuntum, and in 309 his son Romulus died, Licinius wrested away some of his northeastern territory, and the rebellion of Alexander, vicar of North Africa, caused panic and starvation in Rome, where Maxentius had to send out the praetorian guards to suppress riots that resulted in the death of some six thousand citizens. But at the end of 309 Maxentius was still in command, and he had sent his prefect Volusianus on a naval expedition to reclaim North Africa from the rebel Alexander. The venture was a brutal success which allowed Maxentius to survive at least two years longer, achieving precisely six years of rule before he drowned in the Tiber during a retreat from the battle at the Milvian Bridge against Constantine.

NAC40, 849

Commemorative Series. AD 330-354. Æ Follis (16mm, 2.73 g, 12h). Aquileia mint, 1st officina. Struck under Constantine I, AD 335-336. VRBS ROMA, helmeted and mantled bust of Roma left / She-wolf standing left, suckling the twins (Romulus and Remus); two stars above; F//AQP. RIC VII 136; Paolucci 276; Kent -. Good VF, dark gray-brown patina, minor roughness.

Valentinian I. AD 364-375. AR Siliqua (17mm, 1.83 g, 12h). Treveri (Trier) mint. Struck AD 367-375. Pearl-diademed, draped, and cuirassed bust right / Roma seated left, holding scepter and Victory on globe; TRPS. RIC IX 27d.2; RSC 81†d. Good VF, toned.
Ex Classical Numismatic Group eAuction 261, lot 316.

Beh, che altro dire... Buon Compleanno, Roma!

Ciao

Illyricum

:)