Le più belle rappresentazioni di guerrieri

[King John]

Leu Numismatik AG > Auction 4	Auction date: 25 May 2019
Lot number: 535
EGYPT. Uncertain. Gnostic Tessera (Lead, 16x25 mm, 2.95 g, 12 h), circa 2nd to 4th centuries. IAΩ PH - ABPACAΞ Abrasax-Anubis standing front, head to left, holding sistrum in his right hand and caduceus in his left. Rev. MI/XAHΛ / ΓABP/IHΛ in four lines. A very interesting syncrestic Gnostic tessera. Flan bent and straigthened, otherwise, very fine. For a longer note on the ancient demon Abrasax, whose worship rose to great prominence in Roman times through the teachings of the Christian Gnostic Basilides of Alexandria (circa 85-145), see Leu 3 (2018), 194. What makes the present Gnostic tessera or amulet especially interesting is the syncretism of the demon Abrasax, the Egyptian god Anubis, the Jewish archon Iao (Jahwe) and the archangels Michael and Gabriel. Such syncretism is typical for the gnosticism of the era and are perhaps most beautifully attested in the Apollonian invocation, a hymn in a Greek Magical Papyrus: 'O Lord Apollo, come with Paian / Give answers to my questions, lord. O master / Leave Mount Parnassos and the Delphic Pytho / Whene'er my priestly lips voice secret words, // First angel [of the god], great Zeus, Iao / And you, Michael, who rule heaven's realm, / I call, and you, archangel Gabriel. / Down from Olympos, Abrasax, delighting / In dawns, come gracious who view sunset from / The dawn' (PGM I.298-305). Estimate: 350 CHF

[VALTERI]

Attribuito al periodo della  breve rivolta dei Libici contro Cartagine dopo la I^ guerra punica, uno shekel ci propone 2 guerrieri : la testa di Eracle al diritto  ed un leone al rovescio .

Riconiato su moneta cartaginese non identificabile, il cui cavallo al rovescio è solo parzialmente ricoperto dal leone della nuova impronta, ne risulta, apparentemente, quasi una figurazione di combattimento tra i 2 animali . 

Passerà in asta CNG 111 al lotto 81  a fine Maggio .  

 

Modificato 29 Aprile, 2019 da VALTERI

[King John]

Vincenzo Gemito Medaglione di-Alessandro Magno 1920 argento

[eracle62]

5 ore fa, King John dice:

Vincenzo Gemito Medaglione di-Alessandro Magno 1920 argento

Mi hai fregato, con questo ritratto liberty...

Magnifico l'interpretazione figurativa di Alessandro, del buon Gemito..

Rendiamo omaggio a questo grande scultore Partenopeo.

Con una sua opera simbolo...

                                   

                               Vincenzo Gemito, Il Pescatorello, 1877, bronzo. Firenze, Museo Nazionale del Bargello

                                                                                

Modificato 30 Aprile, 2019 da eracle62

[King John]

Roma Numismatics Ltd > Auction XVII	Auction date: 28 March 2019
Lot number: 516 Price realized: 24,000 GBP   (Approx. 31,662 USD / 28,141 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description: Karia, Kos AR Triple Siglos. Circa 480-470 BC. Diskobolos, nude, hurling diskos right; tripod to left, KΩION to right / Crab in dotted square within incuse square. Barron, Diskoboloi in Essays Robinson, late group B, 17-18 (these dies not listed); BMC 9, pl. XXX, 5; Boston MFA 2016; Traité 1740, pl. 148, 13. 16.41g, 25mm, 11h. Very Fine. An apparently unique die set of this extremely rare issue - of considerable numismatic importance. From the collection of an antiquarian, Bavaria c. 1960s-1990s. Of a style akin to the archaicised figural representations on pottery (such as can be seen on a kylix in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts 01.8020), this depiction of a diskobolos exemplifies the skill of numismatic imagery at Kos towards the end of the Archaic and the beginning of the Classical period, as it points to a desire on the part of the die-engraver to attempt a novel and challenging type which required an understanding of movement and symmetria but was limited to the surface of a coin. The success of the die-engraver to capture the moment at which the athlete is about to turn about and release the discus is perhaps not recognised by modern viewers (in the eighteenth century the type was interpreted as Apollo dancing with a tambourine), but it is likely that the die engraver chose this particular pose having been inspired by a statue of a diskobolos made in the early fifth century possibly by Pythagoras of Rhegion, a precursor to Myron's famed Diskobolos. Known as the Ludovisi Diskobolos, two roman copies of this statue have been discovered which portray the exact same moment as depicted on this coin: one is a herm in the Ludovisi Collection in the Museum Nazionale Romano in Rome, the other is a torso in the Archaeological Museum at Side. These incomplete copies demonstrate an outstanding naturalism of the stretch of the torso muscles as the diskobolos lifts the discus above his head, paused forever in a remarkable moment of athletic tension and fate, an effect that is also achieved on this obverse type, which has the same sense of captivated momentum and includes in the background the prize for which this athlete is competing, a tripod.  Discussion about the origin of this type has centred on whether or not it commemorates the athletic contests held for the festival of Apollo at Triopion on the Knidian peninsula (see Herodotus, Histories 1.114) during which athletes would compete for bronze tripods and then dedicate them to the temple of Apollo at the site. The possibility that the coin was struck in direct association with the games, in a similar way to the coinage of Elis struck only for the Olympic games, is unlikely, however; it must be noted that Kos chose to produce this type as a triple siglos rather than a smaller denomination suggesting that it carried significant connotations with the city. Since none of the other Doric cities minted any coins for this festival, a more likely suggestion is that the coin could therefore relate to prestigious local games at Kos which are unattested elsewhere.  During this period, a great emphasis on individual athletes winning glory for themselves and their cities was apparent in the development of a new form of poetry called epinicion (literally meaning 'on victory'). This style of poetry highlights the attitude of the spectators and the civic importance of athletic contests. It shows that the games were more than just for sport, they tied in with the identity of the community and what it meant to be the best among others: "In such a way, amid the vast circling crowd of the Greeks, did he display his marvellous body, hurling the wheel-shaped discus, and raise a shout from the people as he flung the shaft of the dark-leaved elder-tree from his hand into the steep sky. He executed the flashing movement of wrestling, and brought strong-limbed bodies down to the earth with such high-spirited strength, then returned to the dark-whirling waters of the Asopus, whose fame has reached every land, even the farthest reaches of the Nile." (Bacchylides, Ode 9.30-41) Regarding the dating of this coin, an Athenian decree prohibiting allied minting would certainly have provided an end to coinage at Kos however, since the dating of this decree itself has been subject to debate, an exact date for this coin is difficult. As Barron notes, we are further restricted by the lack of hoard and overstrike evidence (see The Fifth-Century Diskoboloi of Kos in Kraay-Morkholm Essays). Further, the similarity of this coin to the Ludovisi Diskobolos is similarly unreliable for dating the coin since we cannot be certain that the similarity between the poses points precisely to one appearing before the other.  Therefore, the Diskboloi sigloi are not only among the rarest but are also some of the most exceptional Greek coins produced in the early fifth century due to their attempt to depict on a coin a challenging and novel subject in a style not seen on earlier coinage. They are also fascinating as the precise details of their purpose and date remain unanswered. Estimate: 25000 GBP

[King John]

Heritage World Coin Auctions > NYINC Signature Sale 3071	Auction date: 6 January 2019
Lot number: 32216 Price realized: 550 USD   (Approx. 482 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description: Ancients PAMPHYLIA. Perge. Gallienus (AD 253-268). AE 10 assaria (31mm, 16.62 gm, 8h). NGC Choice VF 4/5 - 3/5. AYT KAI ΠOA ΓAΛΛIHNO CЄB, laureate, draped bust of Gallienus right; I (mark of value) before / Π-EΡ-ΓAIΩ-N, three nude athletes below agnostic prize urn, center athlete reaches into amphora, athletes to right and left holding globes that they already retrieved from the amphora. BMC--. SNG France--. SNG Copenhagen--. Unpublished? This same type was also used by Severus Alexander and Elagabalus for other cities in Pamphylia. From the Morris Collection. Estimate: 500-800 USD illustrazione: mosaico raffigurante atleti olimpici

[King John]

Classical Numismatic Group > Auction 111 Auction date: 29 May 2019  lot 681 Domitian. AD 81-96. AV Aureus (19mm, 7.56 g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck AD 82. IMP CΛES DOMITIΛNVS ΛVG P M, laureate head right / TR POT IMP II COS VIII DES IX P P, cuirassed bust of Minerva left, wearing crested Corinthian helmet and aegis, showing breast and shoulders; transverse scepter over right shoulder. RIC II 138 (R2); Calicó 938 (same coin as illustration); BMCRE 33 (same rev. die); BN 36-7; Biaggi 438 (this coin); Jameson –; Mazzini 609 (same dies). Good VF, minor marks. Rare.  From the Brexit Collection. Ex Leo Biaggi de Blasys Collection (Numismatica Ars Classica 49, 21 October 2008), lot 168; V. J. E. Ryan Collection (Part IV, Glendining, 20 February 1951), lot 1715. Leo Biaggi de Blasys (1906-1979) was a Swiss sugar magnate and sportsman whose fascination with ancient Rome led to the creation of one of the world's greatest collections of Roman gold coins. Born in Genoa to a Swiss-Italian diplomat and a French mother, he became active in the Red Cross after 1943 and, with his father, he repeatedly helped Jews in Italy escape persecution in the later years of World War II. He was also alleged to have knowingly aided in the escape of high-ranking Nazis, a notion dismissed by his friends and relations. In 1961, he received the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic for his services. His collection focused on Roman gold from the Republic to late Empire, ultimately comprising over 2,000 specimens. The gold collection was purchased en bloc by Bank Leu (Zurich) in 1978, and slowly sold off to collectors over the next few decades. More than 500 ex-Biaggi coins were sold by Numismatica Ars Classica in their Auction 49 in 2008. The Biaggi pedigree remains highly prized among collectors of Roman gold.  Valentine John Eustance Ryan (1882-1947) was a wealthy Irish landowner who divided his time between his homeland, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. His early passion for coins benefited from his association with Herbert Seaby, and in 1926 he was instrumental in establishing B.A. Seaby Ltd. in London. A founding member of the British Numismatic Society, his interests spanned British, Scottish and ancient coins. His collection was sold posthumously by Glendining's 1950-1952, with the fourth sale devoted to Roman gold aurei and solidi. His coins consequently found their way into other important European and American collections, including Biaggi, Stack, Vermeule, Ebert, and de Wit.  Estimate: 7500 USD

 

Modificato 30 Aprile, 2019 da King John

[dabbene]

10 ore fa, King John dice:

Roma Numismatics Ltd > Auction XVII	Auction date: 28 March 2019
Lot number: 516 Price realized: 24,000 GBP   (Approx. 31,662 USD / 28,141 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description: Karia, Kos AR Triple Siglos. Circa 480-470 BC. Diskobolos, nude, hurling diskos right; tripod to left, KΩION to right / Crab in dotted square within incuse square. Barron, Diskoboloi in Essays Robinson, late group B, 17-18 (these dies not listed); BMC 9, pl. XXX, 5; Boston MFA 2016; Traité 1740, pl. 148, 13. 16.41g, 25mm, 11h. Very Fine. An apparently unique die set of this extremely rare issue - of considerable numismatic importance. From the collection of an antiquarian, Bavaria c. 1960s-1990s. Of a style akin to the archaicised figural representations on pottery (such as can be seen on a kylix in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts 01.8020), this depiction of a diskobolos exemplifies the skill of numismatic imagery at Kos towards the end of the Archaic and the beginning of the Classical period, as it points to a desire on the part of the die-engraver to attempt a novel and challenging type which required an understanding of movement and symmetria but was limited to the surface of a coin. The success of the die-engraver to capture the moment at which the athlete is about to turn about and release the discus is perhaps not recognised by modern viewers (in the eighteenth century the type was interpreted as Apollo dancing with a tambourine), but it is likely that the die engraver chose this particular pose having been inspired by a statue of a diskobolos made in the early fifth century possibly by Pythagoras of Rhegion, a precursor to Myron's famed Diskobolos. Known as the Ludovisi Diskobolos, two roman copies of this statue have been discovered which portray the exact same moment as depicted on this coin: one is a herm in the Ludovisi Collection in the Museum Nazionale Romano in Rome, the other is a torso in the Archaeological Museum at Side. These incomplete copies demonstrate an outstanding naturalism of the stretch of the torso muscles as the diskobolos lifts the discus above his head, paused forever in a remarkable moment of athletic tension and fate, an effect that is also achieved on this obverse type, which has the same sense of captivated momentum and includes in the background the prize for which this athlete is competing, a tripod.  Discussion about the origin of this type has centred on whether or not it commemorates the athletic contests held for the festival of Apollo at Triopion on the Knidian peninsula (see Herodotus, Histories 1.114) during which athletes would compete for bronze tripods and then dedicate them to the temple of Apollo at the site. The possibility that the coin was struck in direct association with the games, in a similar way to the coinage of Elis struck only for the Olympic games, is unlikely, however; it must be noted that Kos chose to produce this type as a triple siglos rather than a smaller denomination suggesting that it carried significant connotations with the city. Since none of the other Doric cities minted any coins for this festival, a more likely suggestion is that the coin could therefore relate to prestigious local games at Kos which are unattested elsewhere.  During this period, a great emphasis on individual athletes winning glory for themselves and their cities was apparent in the development of a new form of poetry called epinicion (literally meaning 'on victory'). This style of poetry highlights the attitude of the spectators and the civic importance of athletic contests. It shows that the games were more than just for sport, they tied in with the identity of the community and what it meant to be the best among others: "In such a way, amid the vast circling crowd of the Greeks, did he display his marvellous body, hurling the wheel-shaped discus, and raise a shout from the people as he flung the shaft of the dark-leaved elder-tree from his hand into the steep sky. He executed the flashing movement of wrestling, and brought strong-limbed bodies down to the earth with such high-spirited strength, then returned to the dark-whirling waters of the Asopus, whose fame has reached every land, even the farthest reaches of the Nile." (Bacchylides, Ode 9.30-41) Regarding the dating of this coin, an Athenian decree prohibiting allied minting would certainly have provided an end to coinage at Kos however, since the dating of this decree itself has been subject to debate, an exact date for this coin is difficult. As Barron notes, we are further restricted by the lack of hoard and overstrike evidence (see The Fifth-Century Diskoboloi of Kos in Kraay-Morkholm Essays). Further, the similarity of this coin to the Ludovisi Diskobolos is similarly unreliable for dating the coin since we cannot be certain that the similarity between the poses points precisely to one appearing before the other.  Therefore, the Diskboloi sigloi are not only among the rarest but are also some of the most exceptional Greek coins produced in the early fifth century due to their attempt to depict on a coin a challenging and novel subject in a style not seen on earlier coinage. They are also fascinating as the precise details of their purpose and date remain unanswered. Estimate: 25000 GBP

Discobolo con gesto plastico nel lancio, grande raffigurazione che non avevo mai visto e che sembra delineare anche gli aspetti fisici dell’atleta, dovresti fare il blogger caro Federico !

[dabbene]

6 ore fa, King John dice:

Classical Numismatic Group > Auction 111 Auction date: 29 May 2019  lot 681 Domitian. AD 81-96. AV Aureus (19mm, 7.56 g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck AD 82. IMP CΛES DOMITIΛNVS ΛVG P M, laureate head right / TR POT IMP II COS VIII DES IX P P, cuirassed bust of Minerva left, wearing crested Corinthian helmet and aegis, showing breast and shoulders; transverse scepter over right shoulder. RIC II 138 (R2); Calicó 938 (same coin as illustration); BMCRE 33 (same rev. die); BN 36-7; Biaggi 438 (this coin); Jameson –; Mazzini 609 (same dies). Good VF, minor marks. Rare.  From the Brexit Collection. Ex Leo Biaggi de Blasys Collection (Numismatica Ars Classica 49, 21 October 2008), lot 168; V. J. E. Ryan Collection (Part IV, Glendining, 20 February 1951), lot 1715. Leo Biaggi de Blasys (1906-1979) was a Swiss sugar magnate and sportsman whose fascination with ancient Rome led to the creation of one of the world's greatest collections of Roman gold coins. Born in Genoa to a Swiss-Italian diplomat and a French mother, he became active in the Red Cross after 1943 and, with his father, he repeatedly helped Jews in Italy escape persecution in the later years of World War II. He was also alleged to have knowingly aided in the escape of high-ranking Nazis, a notion dismissed by his friends and relations. In 1961, he received the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic for his services. His collection focused on Roman gold from the Republic to late Empire, ultimately comprising over 2,000 specimens. The gold collection was purchased en bloc by Bank Leu (Zurich) in 1978, and slowly sold off to collectors over the next few decades. More than 500 ex-Biaggi coins were sold by Numismatica Ars Classica in their Auction 49 in 2008. The Biaggi pedigree remains highly prized among collectors of Roman gold.  Valentine John Eustance Ryan (1882-1947) was a wealthy Irish landowner who divided his time between his homeland, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. His early passion for coins benefited from his association with Herbert Seaby, and in 1926 he was instrumental in establishing B.A. Seaby Ltd. in London. A founding member of the British Numismatic Society, his interests spanned British, Scottish and ancient coins. His collection was sold posthumously by Glendining's 1950-1952, with the fourth sale devoted to Roman gold aurei and solidi. His coins consequently found their way into other important European and American collections, including Biaggi, Stack, Vermeule, Ebert, and de Wit.  Estimate: 7500 USD

 

Minerva con elmo corinzio  di straordinaria precisione in una bellissima moneta da non avere nulla da invidiare all’immagine sottostante.

[eracle62]

13 ore fa, King John dice:

Roma Numismatics Ltd > Auction XVII	Auction date: 28 March 2019
Lot number: 516 Price realized: 24,000 GBP   (Approx. 31,662 USD / 28,141 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description: Karia, Kos AR Triple Siglos. Circa 480-470 BC. Diskobolos, nude, hurling diskos right; tripod to left, KΩION to right / Crab in dotted square within incuse square. Barron, Diskoboloi in Essays Robinson, late group B, 17-18 (these dies not listed); BMC 9, pl. XXX, 5; Boston MFA 2016; Traité 1740, pl. 148, 13. 16.41g, 25mm, 11h. Very Fine. An apparently unique die set of this extremely rare issue - of considerable numismatic importance. From the collection of an antiquarian, Bavaria c. 1960s-1990s. Of a style akin to the archaicised figural representations on pottery (such as can be seen on a kylix in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts 01.8020), this depiction of a diskobolos exemplifies the skill of numismatic imagery at Kos towards the end of the Archaic and the beginning of the Classical period, as it points to a desire on the part of the die-engraver to attempt a novel and challenging type which required an understanding of movement and symmetria but was limited to the surface of a coin. The success of the die-engraver to capture the moment at which the athlete is about to turn about and release the discus is perhaps not recognised by modern viewers (in the eighteenth century the type was interpreted as Apollo dancing with a tambourine), but it is likely that the die engraver chose this particular pose having been inspired by a statue of a diskobolos made in the early fifth century possibly by Pythagoras of Rhegion, a precursor to Myron's famed Diskobolos. Known as the Ludovisi Diskobolos, two roman copies of this statue have been discovered which portray the exact same moment as depicted on this coin: one is a herm in the Ludovisi Collection in the Museum Nazionale Romano in Rome, the other is a torso in the Archaeological Museum at Side. These incomplete copies demonstrate an outstanding naturalism of the stretch of the torso muscles as the diskobolos lifts the discus above his head, paused forever in a remarkable moment of athletic tension and fate, an effect that is also achieved on this obverse type, which has the same sense of captivated momentum and includes in the background the prize for which this athlete is competing, a tripod.  Discussion about the origin of this type has centred on whether or not it commemorates the athletic contests held for the festival of Apollo at Triopion on the Knidian peninsula (see Herodotus, Histories 1.114) during which athletes would compete for bronze tripods and then dedicate them to the temple of Apollo at the site. The possibility that the coin was struck in direct association with the games, in a similar way to the coinage of Elis struck only for the Olympic games, is unlikely, however; it must be noted that Kos chose to produce this type as a triple siglos rather than a smaller denomination suggesting that it carried significant connotations with the city. Since none of the other Doric cities minted any coins for this festival, a more likely suggestion is that the coin could therefore relate to prestigious local games at Kos which are unattested elsewhere.  During this period, a great emphasis on individual athletes winning glory for themselves and their cities was apparent in the development of a new form of poetry called epinicion (literally meaning 'on victory'). This style of poetry highlights the attitude of the spectators and the civic importance of athletic contests. It shows that the games were more than just for sport, they tied in with the identity of the community and what it meant to be the best among others: "In such a way, amid the vast circling crowd of the Greeks, did he display his marvellous body, hurling the wheel-shaped discus, and raise a shout from the people as he flung the shaft of the dark-leaved elder-tree from his hand into the steep sky. He executed the flashing movement of wrestling, and brought strong-limbed bodies down to the earth with such high-spirited strength, then returned to the dark-whirling waters of the Asopus, whose fame has reached every land, even the farthest reaches of the Nile." (Bacchylides, Ode 9.30-41) Regarding the dating of this coin, an Athenian decree prohibiting allied minting would certainly have provided an end to coinage at Kos however, since the dating of this decree itself has been subject to debate, an exact date for this coin is difficult. As Barron notes, we are further restricted by the lack of hoard and overstrike evidence (see The Fifth-Century Diskoboloi of Kos in Kraay-Morkholm Essays). Further, the similarity of this coin to the Ludovisi Diskobolos is similarly unreliable for dating the coin since we cannot be certain that the similarity between the poses points precisely to one appearing before the other.  Therefore, the Diskboloi sigloi are not only among the rarest but are also some of the most exceptional Greek coins produced in the early fifth century due to their attempt to depict on a coin a challenging and novel subject in a style not seen on earlier coinage. They are also fascinating as the precise details of their purpose and date remain unanswered. Estimate: 25000 GBP

Beh qui dovremo scomodare il grandissimo  Mirone di Eleutère (attivo tra il 480-440 a.c.)

Ammazza importantino come tondello...

 

                                            

                                                      Il Discobolo Lancellotti – Mirone – Originale in bronzo del 455 a.c.

[eracle62]

1 ora fa, eracle62 dice:

Beh qui dovremo scomodare il grandissimo  Mirone di Eleutère (attivo tra il 480-440 a.c.)

Ammazza importantino come tondello...

 

                                            

                                                      Il Discobolo Lancellotti – Mirone – Originale in bronzo del 455 a.c.

A scuola fu un'ossessione ce lo facevano disegnare spesso...

Era stupendo in ogni classe copie di gessi classici...avevo un nome Greco e amavo la Grecia rappresentandola ogni giorno attraverso il mio linguaggio espressivo..

[King John]

Classical Numismatic Group > Electronic Auction 443	Auction date: 1 May 2019
Lot number: 220
THRACE, Perinthus. Septimius Severus. AD 193-211. Æ Assarion (19mm, 3.46 g, 7h). Laureate head right / Athlete standing facing, head right, placing crown on head and cradling palm frond. same dies)V1/R1). VF, dark brown patina, worn at high points. Rare. Estimate: 100 USD ILLUSTRAZIONE: RILIEVO RAFFIGURANTE UN ATLETA VITTORIOSO, MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, BOSTON

Modificato 1 Maggio, 2019 da King John

[King John]

Classical Numismatic Group, Triton XX, lot 519, 10/01/2017

A. Manlius A.f. 80 BC. AV Aureus (20mm, 10.75 g, 8h). Uncertain Eastern mint. Draped bust of Roma right, wearing crested helmet ornamented with two plumes, and earrings; A • MAN downward to left, LI • A • F • Q upward to right / Sulla, laureate and wearing sagum, left on horseback, raising right hand in acclamation; L • SVLL • FE in exergue, LI • DIC • upward to right. Crawford 381/1a (same rev. die); Sydenham 762 = BMCRR East 16; Calicó 20 (this coin illustrated); Biaggi 13 = Bahrfeldt 12/4 = A. Blanchet, Les monnaies romaines (Paris: 1896), p. 121, 9 = Babelon II 9 (this coin); Kestner –; RBW –. Near EF, warm reddish toning. Extremely rare, and the only issue naming Sulla as dictator.
From the collection of a director. Ex Leo Biaggi de Blasys Collection, 13.
This aureus, struck during the third consulship of the dictator Sulla in 80 BC, offers an intriguing glimpse of the Realpolitik of the Roman Republic in the early first century BC. The obverse depicts a purely Roman version of the goddess Roma, complete with the archaic Republican helmet decorated with a pair of plumes. The reverse features the statua Sullae , which was located near the Rostra in the Roman Forum, and which was dedicated by King Bocchus I of Mauretania to commemorate the role of Sulla (and Bocchus) in the capture of Jugurtha. It was the Jugurthine War (112-106 BC) that set in motion the subsequent period of internal political conflict between various generals and deep division within the Senate between the patricians and the novi homines , or "new men," all of which culminated in the civil wars of the second half of the century and the establishment of the Principate under Augustus.
The coin's moneyer, A. Manlius A. f., also participated in the Jugurthine War. In addition to serving as a legatus to the Roman commander-in-chief, Gaius Marius (Sall. Iug. 86.1; 90.2; 102.23), he was appointed by Marius – along with Sulla – to meet with Bocchus, which resulted in the betrayal and capture of Jugurtha. Although his cognomen is unknown, Aulus Manlius was a member of the gens Manlia , one of the oldest and most patrician families of Rome. The gens boasted numerous holders of high office throughout the Republic, including a number of consuls. When the bloody civil war between Marius and Sulla broke out following the Social War (91-88 BC), Manlius allied himself with the conservative patricians who supported Sulla, rather than his old commander Marius, who was a novus homo . Nothing more is known of Manlius until 80 BC, when he struck this aureus. Why he did so remains the subject of speculation. A explanation is that the coin commemorates Sulla's resignation of the dictatorship he held the previous year. In keeping with his traditionalist sentiments, Sulla resigned his office (including disbanding his legions) and re-established consular government; he then dismissed his lictors and entered the Forum unprotected to give an account of himself to any citizen (Plut. Vit. Sull. 34). Thus, his action may have been viewed by his adherents (and certainly Manlius), as the victorious denouement of a great man who fought to preserve the values of the ancient Republic.

ILLUSTRAZIONE: TESTA MARMOREA DI LUCIO CORNELIO SILLA

[eracle62]

10 ore fa, King John dice:

Classical Numismatic Group, Triton XX, lot 519, 10/01/2017

A. Manlius A.f. 80 BC. AV Aureus (20mm, 10.75 g, 8h). Uncertain Eastern mint. Draped bust of Roma right, wearing crested helmet ornamented with two plumes, and earrings; A • MAN downward to left, LI • A • F • Q upward to right / Sulla, laureate and wearing sagum, left on horseback, raising right hand in acclamation; L • SVLL • FE in exergue, LI • DIC • upward to right. Crawford 381/1a (same rev. die); Sydenham 762 = BMCRR East 16; Calicó 20 (this coin illustrated); Biaggi 13 = Bahrfeldt 12/4 = A. Blanchet, Les monnaies romaines (Paris: 1896), p. 121, 9 = Babelon II 9 (this coin); Kestner –; RBW –. Near EF, warm reddish toning. Extremely rare, and the only issue naming Sulla as dictator.
From the collection of a director. Ex Leo Biaggi de Blasys Collection, 13.
This aureus, struck during the third consulship of the dictator Sulla in 80 BC, offers an intriguing glimpse of the Realpolitik of the Roman Republic in the early first century BC. The obverse depicts a purely Roman version of the goddess Roma, complete with the archaic Republican helmet decorated with a pair of plumes. The reverse features the statua Sullae , which was located near the Rostra in the Roman Forum, and which was dedicated by King Bocchus I of Mauretania to commemorate the role of Sulla (and Bocchus) in the capture of Jugurtha. It was the Jugurthine War (112-106 BC) that set in motion the subsequent period of internal political conflict between various generals and deep division within the Senate between the patricians and the novi homines , or "new men," all of which culminated in the civil wars of the second half of the century and the establishment of the Principate under Augustus.
The coin's moneyer, A. Manlius A. f., also participated in the Jugurthine War. In addition to serving as a legatus to the Roman commander-in-chief, Gaius Marius (Sall. Iug. 86.1; 90.2; 102.23), he was appointed by Marius – along with Sulla – to meet with Bocchus, which resulted in the betrayal and capture of Jugurtha. Although his cognomen is unknown, Aulus Manlius was a member of the gens Manlia , one of the oldest and most patrician families of Rome. The gens boasted numerous holders of high office throughout the Republic, including a number of consuls. When the bloody civil war between Marius and Sulla broke out following the Social War (91-88 BC), Manlius allied himself with the conservative patricians who supported Sulla, rather than his old commander Marius, who was a novus homo . Nothing more is known of Manlius until 80 BC, when he struck this aureus. Why he did so remains the subject of speculation. A explanation is that the coin commemorates Sulla's resignation of the dictatorship he held the previous year. In keeping with his traditionalist sentiments, Sulla resigned his office (including disbanding his legions) and re-established consular government; he then dismissed his lictors and entered the Forum unprotected to give an account of himself to any citizen (Plut. Vit. Sull. 34). Thus, his action may have been viewed by his adherents (and certainly Manlius), as the victorious denouement of a great man who fought to preserve the values of the ancient Republic.

ILLUSTRAZIONE: TESTA MARMOREA DI LUCIO CORNELIO SILLA

Mi piace questo aureo di Manlius, quelli Repubblicani hanno più fascino, anche se più arcaici, conservano più identità..

Il ritratto favoloso ovviamente..

ti seguo! 

[King John]

Roma Numismatics Ltd > Auction XVII	Auction date: 28 March 2019
Lot number: 357 Price realized: 3,700 GBP   (Approx. 4,881 USD / 4,338 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description: Sicily, Herbessos Æ Litra. Circa 344-339/8 BC. Wreathed head of female nymph or deity (Sikelia?) to right; EPBHΣΣINΩN around / Forepart of man-headed bull to right. Castrizio series II, 1 (D1/R1); CNS 4; SNG Morcom 593; SNG Lloyd 1002; Rizzo pl. LIX, 17; Basel 29; SNG ANS Appendix 2, 1336; HGC 2, 411. 18.67g, 28mm, 3h. Extremely Fine; rev. lightly smoothed. Very Rare; exceptional for the type. From a private European collection, outside of Italy prior to December 1992. Estimate: 2000 GBP ILLUSTRAZIONE UN DIO FLUVIALE CHE PORTA IN DORSO UNA NINFA NAIADE

Modificato 2 Maggio, 2019 da King John

[King John]

P. Accoleius Lariscolus AR denarius, 43 BC, 3.72gm, 18.6mm. Obv: P. ACCOLE[IVS] LARISCOLVS; draped bust of Diana Nemorensis (or Acca Larentia) right. Rev: Triple cult statue of Diana Nemorensis (the Nymphae Querquetulanae: Diana, Hecate, Selene) facing, supporting on their hands and shoulders a beam, above which are five cypress trees; the figure on the left holds a poppy in her right hand; the nymph on the right holds a lily in her left. Crawford 486/1; Sydenham 1148; Accoleia 1. gVF it is unusual to find examples of this interesting type as evenly struck as this  almost always there are significant areas of flatness on surviving specimens.

ILLUSTRAZIONE: DIANA

Modificato 2 Maggio, 2019 da King John

[King John]

Numismatica Ars Classica > Auction 114	Auction date: 6 May 2019
Lot number: 663
The Roman Empire  Domitian augustus, 81 – 96. Sestertius 95-96, Æ 27.47 g. IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM COS XVII CENS PER P P Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust r. Rev. S – C Two triumphal arch surmounted by quadriga driven by elephants. C 531. BMC p. 407, note +. RIC 796. CBN 509. Extremely rare. A very interesting reverse type and a lovely green patina. A small area of restoration on the cheek of Domitian, otherwise good very fine Ex NFA-Leu sale 16-18 May 1984, Garrett, 769.The precise identity of the remarkable arch shown in three-quarter view on this sestertius of Domitian is uncertain, although it is probably the same arch mentioned in an epigram of the Latin poet Martial (Ep. 8.65). Martial's arch attributed to Domitian was also notable for its inclusion of two statues of quadrigae drawn by elephants on the top. The occasion for which the arch of Domitian was erected is unknown, but since elephant quadrigae have both a triumphal aspect (perhaps ultimately derived from Ptolemaic depictions of Alexander the Great in a similar chariot drawn by elephants) and a funerary aspect (elephants are often associated with the concept of aeternitas) in Roman art, it is tempting to suggest that the arch was intended to honour his deceased father and brother, Vespasian and Titus. Both men had celebrated great triumphs in the Year of the Four Emperors (AD 69) and over the Jewish rebels of Judaea (AD 71), respectively, and were elevated as gods after their deaths. Much of Domitian's reign was spent commemorating Vespasian and Titus as a means of advertising his own legitimacy as their successor to the imperial purple. Thus, in c. AD 82, Domitian erected the celebrated Arch of Titus dedicated to honouring the victories of Titus in the Jewish War-a different monument from the arch depicted on the coin. In AD 87, Domitian also completed and dedicated the Temple of Vespasian and Titus in the Roman Forum for the public worship of his predecessors. On the other hand, it is not entirely impossible that the arch was triumphal in nature, perhaps celebrating the triumph(s) that Domitian claimed over the Germanic Chatti in AD 82 and/or over the Dacians in AD 87. He is not known to have celebrated any other triumphs during his reign. If the arch was intended to commemorate two triumphs this might perhaps explain the two statues of elephant quadrigae since only a single emperor claimed the triumphs. However, it is unclear why a monument ostensibly celebrating an event or events from early in Domitian's reign should appear on a coin datable by the imperial titulature to the period AD 95-96 unless we assume that it took a decade or more for the commemorative arch to be built. Only further research combined with new discoveries are likely to elucidate the true context of this mysterious arch. ILLUSTRAZIONE: RILIEVO TORLONIA IN CUI E' VISIBILE L'ARCO TRIONFALE DI DOMIZIANO SORMONTATO DA UNA QUADRIGA DI ELEFANTI

[eracle62]

13 ore fa, King John dice:

Roma Numismatics Ltd > Auction XVII	Auction date: 28 March 2019
Lot number: 357 Price realized: 3,700 GBP   (Approx. 4,881 USD / 4,338 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description: Sicily, Herbessos Æ Litra. Circa 344-339/8 BC. Wreathed head of female nymph or deity (Sikelia?) to right; EPBHΣΣINΩN around / Forepart of man-headed bull to right. Castrizio series II, 1 (D1/R1); CNS 4; SNG Morcom 593; SNG Lloyd 1002; Rizzo pl. LIX, 17; Basel 29; SNG ANS Appendix 2, 1336; HGC 2, 411. 18.67g, 28mm, 3h. Extremely Fine; rev. lightly smoothed. Very Rare; exceptional for the type. From a private European collection, outside of Italy prior to December 1992. Estimate: 2000 GBP ILLUSTRAZIONE UN DIO FLUVIALE CHE PORTA IN DORSO UNA NINFA NAIADE

Una Litra cosi è solo da sognare...

 

[King John]

Roma Numismatics Limited, Auction 12, lot 668, 29/09/2016

Nero Æ Sestertius. Rome, AD 65. NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GER P M TR P IMP P P, laureate bust right, slight drapery / Roma, helmeted and draped, seated left on cuirass, right foot on helmet, holding Victory in outstretched right hand and resting left hand on parazonium; to right, shields set on ground, S-C across field, ROMA in exergue. RIC 275 var. (wearing aegis); WCN 137 var. (same); BMCRE 180 var. (same); BN 364 var. (same). 27.90g, 35mm, 6h. 
Extremely Fine. Engraved in fine style; superbly detailed reverse. 
Ex MoneyMuseum Zurich Collection;
Ex Kurt P. Wyprächtiger Collection, Leu 7, 9 May 1973, lot 346.
The reverse of this magnificent sestertius displays a finely detailed depiction of Roma. Conceived of by Romans as ‘Amazonian’, militaristic by nature, holding Victory in her palm and gripping the parazonium (a leaf-shaped blade that was a ceremonial mark of rank and used to rally troops), she is the embodiment of the city of Rome, and more broadly the Roman state.
Unexpectedly, the cult of dea Roma had emerged not at Rome, but in the Greek East. The earliest appearances of Roma are most likely found in the helmeted figure appearing on Roman cast bronze coins dating from 280-276 BC, however the identification is contestable. Other early Roman coinage displays a similarly warlike ‘Amazon’ type, who is also possibly Roma, but more likely a genius (defined as the individual instance of a general divine nature that is present in every individual person, place, or thing) of Rome than a distinct goddess. Certainly, Roma was in the time of the Republic not the subject of cult worship at Rome itself. The earliest attested temple dedicated specifically to Roma appears in Smyrna around 195, and around the same time the cult of Roma appeared at Rhodes and other cities nearby. Such democratic city-states accepted Roma as analogous to their traditional cult personifications of the demos (the people). The cult of Roma spread relatively quickly within the provinces, and is accepted as having been the precursor for the later principate era state-sanctioned worship of living emperors as gods.
When in 30/29 BC the koina of Asia and Bithynia requested permission to honour Augustus as a living god, a cautious solution was devised; republican values held monarchy and Hellenic honours in contempt (the courting of both had proved fatal for Caesar), but refusal might offend loyal allies. Thus it was determined that non-Romans could only offer worship to Augustus as divus jointly with dea Roma. This dual worship of the State together with the head of state was a political and religious expedient, but while Augustus, Tiberius and Claudius were careful to refuse divine honours within Rome itself, subsequent rulers of arguably less stern moral fibre allowed or actively promoted worship of their own person. Indeed, Nero had in AD 64, the year before this coin was struck, instituted his depiction on the Roman coinage with the radiate crown previously reserved for deified (and deceased) emperors. 

ILLUSTRAZIONE: LA DEA ROMA

[King John]

Classical Numismatic Group, Mail Bid Sale 72, lot 1155, 14/06/2006

MYSIA, Apollonia ad Rhyndacum. Marcus Aurelius. AD 161-180. Æ Medallion (36mm, 34.12 g, 8h). Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind / Apollo standing facing, pointing to head and being crowned by Artemis standing left; to left of Apollo, filleted and serpent-entwined tripod. SNG France 99 (same dies); SNG Copenhagen -; SNG von Aulock -. Good VF, black-green patina, minor roughness. Very rare.
Ex Numismatica Ars Classica 21 (17 May 2001), lot 477.
What the reverse of this issue commemorates is rather perplexing. One obvious possibility is the Pythian Games, held during the reign of Marcus Aurelius in AD 162, 166, 174, and 178. The evidence for such a conclusion is largely circumstantial. The serpent Python entwined about the Delphic tripod makes it quite clear that this is the Pythian Apollo; his being crowned would support an association with the Games. However, the god is being crowned by his twin sister Artemis, who has no known association with the games. Another possibility is that this reverse refers to some special “victory” of the city. Apollo would be an appropriate allusion to his namesake city. The Artemis here, however, is not the later Olympian version of the goddess, but the much older, Anatolian mother-goddess, whose cult site at Ephesus, the Artemision, went back to the late Bronze Age. Therefore, rather than the god’s more well-known sister, the reverse may depict the chief-goddess of western Asia Minor recognizing one of her regional centers represented here by Apollo.
Estimate: $2500

ILLUSTRAZIONE: ARTEMIDE (PRIMA FIGURA A SINISTRA ACEFALA), APOLLO PIZIO E LETO, RILIEVO AL MUSEO ARCHEOLOGICO DI ATENE

Modificato 3 Maggio, 2019 da King John

[eracle62]

14 ore fa, King John dice:

Roma Numismatics Limited, Auction 12, lot 668, 29/09/2016

Nero Æ Sestertius. Rome, AD 65. NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GER P M TR P IMP P P, laureate bust right, slight drapery / Roma, helmeted and draped, seated left on cuirass, right foot on helmet, holding Victory in outstretched right hand and resting left hand on parazonium; to right, shields set on ground, S-C across field, ROMA in exergue. RIC 275 var. (wearing aegis); WCN 137 var. (same); BMCRE 180 var. (same); BN 364 var. (same). 27.90g, 35mm, 6h. 
Extremely Fine. Engraved in fine style; superbly detailed reverse. 
Ex MoneyMuseum Zurich Collection;
Ex Kurt P. Wyprächtiger Collection, Leu 7, 9 May 1973, lot 346.
The reverse of this magnificent sestertius displays a finely detailed depiction of Roma. Conceived of by Romans as ‘Amazonian’, militaristic by nature, holding Victory in her palm and gripping the parazonium (a leaf-shaped blade that was a ceremonial mark of rank and used to rally troops), she is the embodiment of the city of Rome, and more broadly the Roman state.
Unexpectedly, the cult of dea Roma had emerged not at Rome, but in the Greek East. The earliest appearances of Roma are most likely found in the helmeted figure appearing on Roman cast bronze coins dating from 280-276 BC, however the identification is contestable. Other early Roman coinage displays a similarly warlike ‘Amazon’ type, who is also possibly Roma, but more likely a genius (defined as the individual instance of a general divine nature that is present in every individual person, place, or thing) of Rome than a distinct goddess. Certainly, Roma was in the time of the Republic not the subject of cult worship at Rome itself. The earliest attested temple dedicated specifically to Roma appears in Smyrna around 195, and around the same time the cult of Roma appeared at Rhodes and other cities nearby. Such democratic city-states accepted Roma as analogous to their traditional cult personifications of the demos (the people). The cult of Roma spread relatively quickly within the provinces, and is accepted as having been the precursor for the later principate era state-sanctioned worship of living emperors as gods.
When in 30/29 BC the koina of Asia and Bithynia requested permission to honour Augustus as a living god, a cautious solution was devised; republican values held monarchy and Hellenic honours in contempt (the courting of both had proved fatal for Caesar), but refusal might offend loyal allies. Thus it was determined that non-Romans could only offer worship to Augustus as divus jointly with dea Roma. This dual worship of the State together with the head of state was a political and religious expedient, but while Augustus, Tiberius and Claudius were careful to refuse divine honours within Rome itself, subsequent rulers of arguably less stern moral fibre allowed or actively promoted worship of their own person. Indeed, Nero had in AD 64, the year before this coin was struck, instituted his depiction on the Roman coinage with the radiate crown previously reserved for deified (and deceased) emperors. 

ILLUSTRAZIONE: LA DEA ROMA

Non so perchè ma i sesterzi di Nerone hanno un'altro impatto..

Questo poi con quei rilievi di Roma seduta..e per in tondello in se, affascina, affascina...

Continuo a seguirti e a ringraziarti per i tuoi contributi...

 

[King John]

Roman Silver Denarius of Augustus (27 B.C.E.-14 C.E.), in Commemoration of the conquest of Armenia. On the reverse an Armenian Archer, standing facing, holding spear in right hand and resting left on a bow set on the ground. Notice the Mithraic cap he is wearing.

ILLUSTRAZIONE: ARCIERE ARMENO

[King John]

passerà presto in asta..

Leu Numismatik AG > Auction 4	Auction date: 25 May 2019
Lot number: 598
Lot description: Augustus, 27 BC-AD 14. Denarius (Silver, 19 mm, 3.37 g, 2 h), Pergamum, circa 19-18 BC. Bare head of Augustus to right. Rev. CAESAR - DIV F / ARMEN - CAPT[A] / IMP - VIII Armenian standing facing, wearing bashlyk and long garnments, holding spear in his right hand and bow set on ground in his left. BMC 678 and pl. 16, 19 = RIC 519 corr. (reverse legend) and pl. 9 (same dies). Cohen 59. Very rare and among the finest of very few known examples. A beautifully toned coin and of the greatest historical importance. Minor area of weakness on the obverse, otherwise, about extremely fine. From an important collection of Armenian coins, ex Numismatica Ars Classica 86, 8 October 2015, 67 and from the R. Prideaux Collection of coins of Augustus, Triton XI, 8 January 2008, 719. The history of this coin is the history of two Roman emperors, two Armenian kings and a Parthian royal couple, for in 20 BC, Augustus' stepson and future heir Tiberius led a military campaign to Armenia to replace the Armenian king Artaxias II with his brother Tigranes III. The swift Roman reaction to an Armenian embassy expressing their discontent with Artaxias II impressed the Parthian king Phraates IV (38-2 BC) so much that he accepted the Roman supremacy over the long contested Kingdom of Armenia. The king also returned the legionary eagles captured from Crassus in the battle of Carrhae in 51 BC, in exchange for the return of one of his sons who had been held hostage in Rome. It was one of the major diplomatic victories of Augustus, who celebrated the success with a broad propagandistic campaign, which included this very rare coin emission depicting Armenia not as an ally, but as a captured and subjugated kingdom. Aside from concluding peace between the two superpowers of their time, the diplomatic embassies between Augustus and Phraates had a certainly unexpected consequence: in his son's entourage, there was a beautiful slave girl named Musa, whom Phraates would eventually marry and accept as his queen. To his fatal misfortune, Musa turned out to be a highly talented but ruthless power seeker, and in 2 BC, she poisoned her husband and replaced him with their mutual son Phraatakes, whom she married as his mother-wife. Estimate: 15000 CHF

[King John]

Numismatica Ars Classica > Auction 114	Auction date: 6 May 2019
Lot number: 464
Lot description: The Roman Republic  P. Licinius Crassus. Denarius 55, AR 3.72 g. Laureate, diademed and draped bust of Venus r.; behind, S·C. Rev. P·CRASSVS· – M·F Female figure leading horse l. with r. hand and holding spear in l. hand; at her feet, cuirass and shield. Babelon Licinia 18. Sydenham 929. RBW 1539. Crawford 430/1. Struck on a very broad flan and with a lovely old cabinet tone, test cut at eleven o'clock on obverse, otherwise about extremely fine Ex Triton sale XVII, 2014, 550. From the Archer M. Huntington collection, ANS 1001.1.25549. Estimate: 1000 CHF illustrazione: MARCO LICINIO CRASSO, CADUTO NELLA BATTAGLIA DI CARRE DEL 53 A.C. CONTRO I PARTI

Modificato 4 Maggio, 2019 da King John

[King John]

Roma Numismatics Limited, Auction 11, lot 715, 7/04/2016

Q. Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio AR Denarius. Utica, 47/46 BC. P. Licinius Crassus Junianus, legatus pro praetore. Q•METEL•PIVS on right, SCIPIO•IMP on left, lion-headed figure of Genius of Africa (Sekhmet or leontocephalic Tanit?) standing facing, holding symbol of Tanit; above, G•T•A / Victory standing left, holding winged caduceus and small round shield; P•CRASSVS•IVN on right, LEG•PRO•P•R on left. Crawford 460/4; RSC Caecilia 51. 3.88g, 20mm, 8h.
Good Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare - the rarest of Scipio's denarii, and exceptionally complete and well preserved for the issue. Arguably the best example on CoinArchives.
From the Eucharius Collection.
This coin is traditionally described as depicting the Genius Terrae Africae, or Sekhmet holding an ankh, however this remarkable statue is not Egyptian - the coin is struck in Africa and therefore an ankh symbol makes no sense in a Punic Carthaginian context. Actually, the symbol is quite obviously that of Tanit who was commonly represented by a simple linear female abstract. The identity of the figure must therefore also be called into question in light of statues recovered from Carthage and Tunis which some academics take to represent the Carthaginian deity herself in leontocephalic form.
Either way, the coinage of Scipio shows a dramatic break with Republican tradition. No local or city goddess had previously been portrayed on the obverse of Roman coinage other than Roma herself, and certainly never a foreign one! In this case it was made all the more objectionable by either being or holding the symbol of Tanit - a god whose people had slain hundreds of thousands of Roman soldiers and nearly vanquished Rome entirely. Nor indeed was there any precedent for the depiction of a Genius other than the Genius Populi Romani. In no way does Scipio use his coinage to champion the cause of the Republic; though it might have been designed to curry favour with the populace of their last remaining territory, the effect is that it nonetheless appears utterly in the style of an Eastern ruler. Caesar must not have been able to believe his luck, as nothing could better demonstrate to the rank and file the justness of their cause than the thoroughly un-Roman depths to which Scipio had lowered himself.
Needless to say then, Scipio’s coinage stands in stark contrast to the traditional republican types of his colleague Cato, whose types replicated those of his ancestor, another M. Porcius Cato, moneyer of 89 BC. Perhaps we should not be surprised. Classical scholar John H. Collins summed up the character and reputation of Metellus Scipio thusly:
“From all that can be learned of this Scipio, he was as personally despicable and as politically reactionary as they come: a defender of C. Verres (In Ver. II. 4. 79–81), a debauchee of singular repulsiveness (Valerius Maximus, 9.1.8), an incompetent and bull-headed commander (Plutarch, Cato Min. 58), an undisciplined tyrant in the possession of authority (Bell. Afr. 44–46), an extortioner of the provinces (BC 3.31–33), a proscription-thirsty bankrupt (Att. 9.11), a worthy great grandson des hochmütigen, plebejerfeindlichen Junkers (Münzer, RE 4.1502) who had led the lynching of Tiberius Gracchus, and a most unworthy father of the gentle Cornelia. Only in the ‘Imperator se bene habet’ with which he met death is there any trace of the nobler character of his great forebears (Seneca Rhet., Suas. 7.8).

ILLUSTRAZIONE: STATUA DELLA DEA EGIZIA SEKHMET (MUSEO EGIZIO DI TORINO) E STATUETTE LEONTECEFALE DELLA DEA PUNICA TANIT

Modificato 4 Maggio, 2019 da King John