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Boscoreale treasure
The Boscoreale treasure was buried by its owner prior to the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79. It included a remarkable set of tableware reflecting the quality of Roman silverwork in the 1st century AD. The decoration on these two cups illustrates the fragility and vanity of the human condition: Epicurean maxims (engraved in dots) and the skeletons of poets and Greek philosophers represent an invitation to enjoy the present.
Description
The Boscoreale treasure
In 1895, excavations at a Roman villa at Boscoreale on the slopes of Vesuvius unearthed a remarkable hoard of silver treasure, including 109 items of tableware, which the owner had stashed in a wine tank prior to the eruption that buried the region of Naples in AD 79. This prestigious collection, dating from between the late 1st century BC and the early 1st century AD, testifies to one of the finest periods in Roman silverware and reflects the taste of wealthy Campanians for drinking cups with relief decoration. These two silver cups, famous for their strange decoration, are embellished with gold. They formed a pair of modioli (from the Latin, meaning “small measures”), so called because their shape is reminiscent of the modius, a container used to measure wheat. A Latin inscription on the base of one of the cups gives their weight and the name of their owner, Gavia.
A ring of skeletons
The two cups have similar and complementary repoussé decoration depicting the skeletons of tragic and comic poets and famous Greek philosophers, beneath a garland of roses. Greek inscriptions engraved in dots form captions, and are accompanied by Epicurean maxims such as: "Enjoy life while you can, for tomorrow is uncertain." Clotho, one of the Fates, looks on as Menander, Euripides, Archilochus, Monimus the Cynic, Demetrius of Phalera, Sophocles, and Moschion provide a caustic and ironic illustration of the fragility and vanity of the human condition. But the main message of the cups' decoration is that life should be enjoyed to the full: Zeno and Epicurus, the founders of the Stoic and Epicurean philosophies in the 4th century BC, confront each other before two mating dogs—a detail of some significance, as it represents the triumph of Epicureanism.
A hymn to life
Drinking cups like these were used at the verbal sparring matches held at Roman banquets. As at Trimalchio's feast (described by Petronius in the Satyricon), the guests sought to outdo each other in erudition, using Greek philosophical and literary references to promote sensual and intellectual pleasures. The choice of a ring of skeletons to decorate these modioli is neither macabre nor particularly surprising, but is on the contrary a hymn to life—an incitement to enjoy the present. This same theme is often represented—admittedly with less panache—on everyday items such as earthenware goblets, lamps, mosaics, or funerary monuments. Trimalchio himself had articulated silver skeletons placed on the table for his guests (Satyricon, 34, 8-10), reminding them that humans should be humble, as even the most enlightened poet or philosopher cannot avoid death.
EDUCATIONAL USE ONLY
Mark Antony. 39/8 BC. Æ 24mm (9.41 g, 1h). Ace-Ptolemais (Phoenicia) mint. Dated CY 11 (39/8 BC). Bare head right within laurel wreath / ΠTOΛ[E]/MAЄ[ΩN]/IEP[AΣ] to right, KAI AΣY to left, Tyche Euploea standing left, holding aplustre, cornucopia, and palm; L IA (date) to upper left. RPC I 4740; Seyrig, Ptolémaïs 19; Kadman, Akko 73; Rouvier 993.
Beginning in the Caesarian period (circa 49/8 BC or 48/7 BC) the city of Ace resumed the name of Ptolemais, which recalled an association with Ptolemaic Egypt. Following his rapprochment with Octavian at Tarentum in 38 BC, Antony was given command of Rome’s eastern territories: the city of Ptolemais with its large harbor made it a particularly strategic site, providing a base of supply from which Antony could move north from Alexandria to take control of Cilicia and Syria. As the CY date places this coin within the period of his return to the east from Italy and features a portrait of Antony framed by a wreath of olive on the obverse and the figure of Tyche Euploea, or “Good Sailing” on its reverse, it may signify the Triumvir’s successful arrival at the port city to inspect its works following the peace established with Octavian.
If you are interested in Julio Claudian Iconography and portrait study you may enjoy these two links:
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association- Joe Geranio- Administrator at groups.yahoo.com/group/julioclaudian/
The Portraiture of Caligula- Joe Geranio- Administrator- at
Both are non-profit sites and for educational use only.
Relief of Claudius and Britannia, South Portico of the Sebasteion, Aphrodisias, ca. 14–68 CE, Greek marble Aphrodisias, Turkey, originally Aphrodisias Cariae
educational use only
www.mart.trento.it/antonellodamessina
Il Mart di Rovereto propone un’indagine articolata e uno sguardo originale sulla figura del grande pittore del Quattrocento e sul suo tempo, attraverso lo studio degli intrecci storico-artistici e delle controversie ancora aperte, presentati in questa sede come punti di forza attraverso i quali approfondire nuovi percorsi di interpretazione critica.
Il progetto espositivo, a cura di Ferdinando Bologna e Federico De Melis, ha l’ambizione di ricostruire l’ampia scena storica e geografica dalla quale emerge l’eccezionale individualità di Antonello: un pittore che, a metà del Quattrocento, si fa interprete di un fermento creativo mediterraneo ed europeo incentrato sull’incontro-scontro tra la civiltà fiamminga e quella italiana.
Photo by Fernando Guerra
Photo courtesy Prof. John Pollini
Portrait statues left to right:
Uncertain identity of seated female figure, cuirassed statue of a Julio Claudian prince (Agrippa?); statue wearing a hip mantle and shown with a star carved in relief over the forehead (Divus Julius?) Female portrait characterized as venus genetrix by the tiny figure of cupid (sometimes identified as Livia?) Augustus wearing his hip mantle and corona civica and rayed crown, with his left foot on globe; he once held a sceptre in his raised hand; in his left is preserved traces of a thunderbolt.
Usually dated to the reign of Claudius (41-54 A.D.)
Height 1.04 m.
Ravenna Musuem
There were two marble fragments found from the Claudian period? that now reside at the Museo National in Ravenna Italy. It could have been an altar or other monument, it was found near or in the mausoleum of Galla Placidia in the sixteenth century. The fragment relief was meant to depict a dynastic statuary group from the Julio Claudian dynasty. Who were these figures and what did they represent?
www.flickr.com/photos/julio-c...14320/sizes/o/
This is the first public relief (monument) to show the imperial family in full portrait frontality. There were republican funerary monuments that showed full frontality, but not of the imperial family. We can clearly see Augustus as Mars (Far Right) idnetified by his hairstyle and pyhsiognomy Augustus is also wearing the "Corona Civicta". (To the left) of Augustus we have Livia as Venus, Eros is on her left shoulder, and wearing a tiara. Her dress is based on Venus Genetrix of the fifth century B.C. (To the left) of Livia we have Germanicus, brother of Claudius. The figure to the left of Germanicus appears to be Drusus the elder, Patriae Claudiu. The seated figure on the (far left) has been identified as either Antonia (mother of Claudius or a representation of pietas.
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In 1723, an incomplete slab of Purbeck marble bearing a Roman inscription was found below ground at Chichester in West Sussex where it is now displayed under glass outside the Assembly Rooms in North Street. The tablet was broken during recovery and poorly repaired, which has since hindered transcription, but it clearly records the dedication of a temple to Neptune and Minerva by a group of craftsmen, and by the authority of the hitherto unknown --- Claudius Cogidubnus.
There has since been much speculation as to the identity, status and life-span of this obviously important individual. For many years, historians accepted an early interpretation of the inscription which described Cogidubnus as 'King and Legate in Britain' but in 1979 a comprehensive account was compiled by J.E. Bogaers in 'King Cogidubnus in Chichester: Another Reading of RIB 91 (Britannia X) with the reinterpretation 'Great King in Britain'. No further evidence has emerged, and apart from the tablet there is only one allusion by Tacitus (Agricola 14) to Cogidumnus which is generally accepted by historians as an alternative spelling of Cogidubnus:-
"quaedam civitates Cogidumno regi donatae (is ad nostram usque memoriam fidissimus mansit), vetere ac iam pridem recepta populi Romani consuetudine, ut haberet instrumenta servitutis et reges".
--- " certain states were given to Cogidumnus King (who according to our own records remained thoroughly loyal) reflecting the long established Roman custom of having even kings as instruments of servitude".
However, this small passage yields important clues to the person behind the name. Firstly, he must be well-known since Tacitus offers no explanation relevant to an obscure British king. Secondly, he may be Roman for although he was given certain 'civitates' he remained 'thoroughly loyal', presumably to Rome and not to any Romano-British pact which would have been specified were he British. Thirdly, the word 'regi' following 'Cogidumno’ matches the arrangement on the tablet, implying that REX is part of his title. Lastly, there is a reason for the inconsistency of spelling between Cogidubnus and Cogidumnus which is key. There are also two clues on the tablet; firstly a reference to DOMUS
DIVINAE or 'Divine House' which represents the family of a deified emperor, dating the temple to either the Julio-Claudian dynasty ending with the death of Nero in AD 68 or to the later Flavian dynasty commencing with the death and deification of Vespasian in AD 79. Secondly, the word BRIT, assumed to denote BRITANNIA, may have another meaning. Thus the assembled clues to the identity of Cogidubnus are as follows: he is important, well-known, referred to as REX and associated with BRIT; he has remained loyal to Rome despite receiving the submission of various states, and his authority is linked to the 'Divine House' of a period before AD 68 or after AD 79, indicating that he is Roman.
The temple to Neptune and Minerva can therefore have been authorised by only one man: Tiberius Claudius Drusus Nero Germanicus, known as the emperor Claudius I, for the words COGIDUBNUS and COGIDUMNUS are both contractions of Latin COGI-DUOMINUS followed by REX, meaning Combined Emperor-King, from the verb COGERE = to unite or combine, and DUOMINUS (later DOMINUS) = lord, master, emperor. However, Tacitus renders the written contraction of COGI-DUOMINUS as COGIDUMNUS whereas the author of the tablet inscribes the spoken contraction as COGIDUBNUS, where the letter M so closely followed by N is vocalised as a B. The relevant and still extant original lettering on the tablet has never been in dispute:-
The cognomen 'Britannicus' was awarded to Claudius by the Roman senate for his conquest of Britain in AD 43: it was one of their highest honours granted for some remarkable achievement. He would have been the first emperor to assume such a hereditary title, had he not elected to transfer it to his son Drusus (AD 41-55) who became the first and last of that name, being murdered following the assassination of his father. Claudius did not celebrate his triumph and associated honours until AD 44, so the temple to Neptune and Minerva would have been dedicated between then and his death in AD 54, with the earlier period more likely when ‘Britannicus’ still referred to Claudius. Its exact location is unknown, but the inscription implies that Chichester was one of the ‘civitates’ that embraced Roman rule, probably becoming the capital of an area recorded in the Antonine Itinerary as A REGNO but locally referred to as REGNUM. Corroboration that this is the kingdom of Claudius lies in the Anglo Saxon Chronicle, reference to CISSECEASTER which derives from CAESAR-CASTRA, meaning Caesar’s fort.
The precise link between Claudius and Chichester is obscure: many historians have assumed that a local British king called Verica invited Roman intervention. However, according to the Greek historian Cassius Dio who wrote his 'History of the Romans' in the third century AD, it was Bericus (Berikos) from the Catuvellauni tribe of the Colchester region who petitioned Claudius for Roman aid. An account is given by Robert Graves in 'Claudius The God' 1934, that his elder brother had earlier failed in his attempt to seize the throne from their father Cunobelin and so fled to France to negotiate an invasion with Caligula, who had him killed; when Cunobelin died in AD 41, Bericus became king but was rejected by his two remaining brothers Togodumnus and Caractacus, ending in civil war, so he sought assistance from the new emperor Claudius in Rome: during the subsequent invasion, both Bericus and Togodumnus died on the battlefields of Kent. Yet Verica from the Chichester region may also have had good reason to seek Roman protection. His father Commius had been made king of the Atrebates in Gaul by Julius Caesar, but had led a revolt and decamped with his followers to southern Britain where he gradually carved out a kingdom extending across Berkshire, Surrey, The Isle of Wight and parts of Hampshire and Sussex. (see W.E.P. Done 'Looking Back in Sussex' 1953). When he died c.20BC, his domain was divided between his sons Verica, Tincommius and Eppillus, but at some stage, Verica became ruler of the Sussex region. We have no information as to the situation at the time of the invasion, but Verica would have been fairly old if still alive, since his father's promotion by Julius Caesar (assassinated 44 BC) was at least 87 years earlier. However, many coins of father and sons have surfaced locally, and one in particular may be relevant, recorded by Alec Down in 'Roman Chichester'1988. It is a silver minim bearing the name Verica and (we are told) an ox-head, which more resembles a death’s-head: the reverse displays a tomb flanked by the letters C and F which may indicate that Verica, Commi Filius (son of Commius), is now dead and entombed. If so, the Atrebates may have welcomed the enforced peace of Roman rule, to which they were no strangers, having originated from Roman Gaul; other coin evidence also suggests that they were trading with the continent.
However, the Isle of Wight was not at that time receptive to Roman rule, since it was subjugated by the future emperor Vespasian when commanding the Second Legion (Legio II Augusta) in preparation for his conquest of the south-west, following the Roman victory at Colchester under Aulus Plautius. The Chichester area offered an advantage for this attack, supported by the local tradition that Vespasian had a base at Fishbourne, about a mile to the west of Chichester. Nearby are the famous remains of a large Roman edifice recorded by the excavator Professor Barry Cunliffe in 'Fishbourne, A Roman Palace and Its Garden' 1971. The evidence reveals that it began as a large timber construction dating to the first decade following the invasion, to be replaced by a fine masonry ‘proto-palace’ early in the 60s, which was eventually incorporated into a much greater structure between AD 75-80. These three phases of activity are contemporary with the reigns of Claudius, Nero and Vespasian, all of whom are associated with the area: Claudius is recorded on the Neptune and Minerva stone, Vespasian commanded the Second Legion nearby, and Nero was venerated on another Chichester slab of Purbeck marble found in 1740. Although it was lost soon after, the inscription had been recorded and the tablet dated to AD 58-60. It was a dedication to Nero, displaying his illustrious and divine lineage as 'son of the Divine Claudius' down to ‘great-great grandson of the Divine Augustus’ etc. But Nero had only become emperor through the machinations of his mother Agrippina, who had married her Uncle Claudius and then persuaded him to officially adopt her son Nero, later having both Claudius and Britannicus murdered to make way for her seventeen year old protégé. Yet Claudius had conquered Britain and was therefore part of the imperial thread which ran through the development of Fishbourne Roman Palace: he had needed to consolidate his new and unexpected position as emperor by some major achievement, and he succeeded incredibly well. Britain became the most northern province of Rome and remained so for over 350 years, but Claudius has left his hallmark on Chichester: from the myth of the tribal king Cogidubnus rises the victorious TIBERIUS CLAUDIUS COMBINED EMPEROR - GREAT KING BRITANNICUS !
Text from Wire
If you are interested in Julio Claudian Iconography and portrait study you may enjoy these two links:
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association- Joe Geranio- Administrator at groups.yahoo.com/group/julioclaudian/
The Portraiture of Caligula- Joe Geranio- Administrator- at
Both are non-profit sites and for educational use only.
Unknown
Description English: Portrait of Augustus, Prima Porta type. Marble, 1st century CE. From Gigthis (Tunisia).
Français : Portrait d'Auguste du type de la Prima Porta. Tête en marbre, Ier siècle ap. J.-C. Provenance: Gigthis, en Tunisie.
Accession number Inv. Babelon 33
Source/Photographer Jastrow (2006)
Tiberius. AD 14-37. AV Aureus (19mm, 7.70 g, 3h). “Tribute Penny” type. Lugdunum (Lyon) mint. Group 1, AD 15-18. TI CΛESΛR DIVI ΛVG F ΛVGVSTVS, laureate head right / PONTIF MΛXIM, Livia (as Pax) seated right on chair, holding scepter in right hand and olive branch in left; plain chair legs, double line below. RIC I 25; Lyon 143; Calicó 305d; BMCRE 30-3; BN 13-5. cngcoins.com
Julius Caesar. January-February 44 BC. AR Denarius (17mm, 4.00 g, 6h). Lifetime issue. Rome mint. P. Sepullius Macer, moneyer. Laureate head right / Venus standing left, holding Victory and scepter set on star. Crawford 480/11; Alföldi Type VI, - (A14/R- [unlisted rev. die]); CRI 107b; Sydenham 1072; RSC 40.
The palace, named Domus Transitoria, was an architectural masterpiece which stretched from the Palatine, where Nero first lived with his grand-uncle and adoptive father Claudius and his mother Agrippina, to the gardens of Maecenas on the Esquiline.
The residence was grandiose, but it did not last long. Built around 60 A.D., it was ruined in the Great Fire four years later and was replaced by the Domus Aurea, one of the most opulent palatial complexes ever constructed.
news.discovery.com/history/nero-palace-reconstructed-virt...
Joe Geranio
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association
Claudius, with Agrippina Junior. AD 41-54. AR Cistophorus (10.59 g, 7h). Ephesus mint. Struck circa AD 50-51. Laureate head of Claudius and draped bust of Agrippina left, conjoined / Facing standing cult statue of Diana (Artemis) Ephesia. RIC I 119; RPC I 2224; RSC 1.
Julius Caesar. 42 BC. AR Denarius (16mm, 4.01 g, 2h). Posthumous issue. Rome mint; L. Mussidius Longus, moneyer. Laureate head right / Rudder, cornucopia on globe, winged caduceus, and flamen’s cap. Crawford 494/39b; CRI 116; Sydenham 1096c; RSC 29.
Lucius Mussidius Longus, a moneyer with an otherwise unknown cursus honorum. His nomen Mussidius indicates that he was a novus homo, or up-and-coming man with no long family pedigree. As such, he would have allied himself to any potential long-term power base. In 42 BC, as the Second Triumvirate was defeating Caesar’s assassins, Mussidius oversaw the striking of this denarius of the now-deceased and soon to be deified dictator, a clear nod to the Caesarian cause. Apparently, such a move benefitted the gens Mussidia. A distant relation, T. Mussidius Pollianus, was a senator under the new regime in the first century AD.
cng text
Nero. As Caesar, AD 50-54. AR Denarius (18mm, 3.80 g, 11h). Lugdunum (Lyon) mint. Struck under Claudius, AD 51. Bare-headed and draped young bust left / On left, simpulum above tripod; on right, lituus above patera. RIC I 77 (Claudius); von Kaenel Type 52; Lyon 87 (Claudius); RSC 312.
Upon adopting the toga virilis in AD 51, Nero began a political career appropriate for an imperial heir. The obverse legend of this coin describes him as princeps iuventutis (“first among the youth”), while the reverse reveals an honor bestowed on the young Caesar that is unrecorded in the literary tradition - that Nero was “co-opted as a supernumerary priest into all priestly colleges in accordance with a decree of the Senate”. cngg
Roman Bronze head of a woman, Augustan or Julio-Claudian, 1st century BC/1st century AD.
If you are interested in Julio Claudian Iconography and portrait study you may enjoy these two links:
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association- Joe Geranio- Administrator at groups.yahoo.com/group/julioclaudian/
The Portraiture of Caligula- Joe Geranio- Administrator- at
Both are non-profit sites and for educational use only.
If you are interested in Julio Claudian Iconography and portrait study you may enjoy these two links:
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association- Joe Geranio- Administrator at groups.yahoo.com/group/julioclaudian/
The Portraiture of Caligula- Joe Geranio- Administrator- at
Both are non-profit sites and for educational use only.
Male portrait (Gaius Octavius?). Marble. 50?25 B.C. Rome, Roman National Museum, Palazzo Massimo alle Terme.
educational use only
If you are interested in Julio Claudian Iconography and portrait study you may enjoy these two links:
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association- Joe Geranio- Administrator at groups.yahoo.com/group/julioclaudian/
The Portraiture of Caligula- Joe Geranio- Administrator- at
Both are non-profit sites and for educational use only.
Mark Antony. Summer 32 BC. AR Denarius (20mm, 3.69 g, 3h). Obverse die signed by P. Athens mint; M. Junius Silanus, quaestor pro consule. Bare head right; small P (signature) in hair below ear / ANTONIV[S]/AVG IMP [III] in two lines. Crawford 542/2; CRI 347; Sydenham 1209; RSC 2.
The only such instance of an engraver’s signature on a Roman Republican coin, the ‘P’ marking behind Antony’s ear is so well concealed that it was not discovered until 1920.
Divus Vespasian. Died AD 79. AR Denarius (18mm, 3.30 g, 5h). Rome mint. Struck under Titus, AD 80-81. Laureate head right / Column bearing shield inscribed S C and surmounted by urn; E-X across field, laurel branch to left and right. RIC II 359 (Titus); RSC 149. cngcoins.com
Claudius. AD 41-54. AR Denarius (18mm, 3.39 g, 9h). Rome mint. Struck AD 43-44. Laureate head right / Battlemented wall inscribed IMPER. RECEPT enclosing praetorian camp in which Fides Praetorianorum stands left, holding spear in right hand, aquila before him; behind, a pediment with fortified flanking walls. RIC I 20; RSC 42a.
The Praetorian Camp was located to the northeast of Rome beyond the Servian Wall between the Porta Viminalis and the Porta Collina. Because Claudius was the first of a large number of emperors elevated to that position by the Praetorian Guard, he commemorated that occasion by depicting on aurei and denarii this reverse type, which reads IMPER RECEPT. cngcoins.com
www.mart.trento.it/antonellodamessina
Il Mart di Rovereto propone un’indagine articolata e uno sguardo originale sulla figura del grande pittore del Quattrocento e sul suo tempo, attraverso lo studio degli intrecci storico-artistici e delle controversie ancora aperte, presentati in questa sede come punti di forza attraverso i quali approfondire nuovi percorsi di interpretazione critica.
Il progetto espositivo, a cura di Ferdinando Bologna e Federico De Melis, ha l’ambizione di ricostruire l’ampia scena storica e geografica dalla quale emerge l’eccezionale individualità di Antonello: un pittore che, a metà del Quattrocento, si fa interprete di un fermento creativo mediterraneo ed europeo incentrato sull’incontro-scontro tra la civiltà fiamminga e quella italiana.
Photo by Fernando Guerra
www.mart.trento.it/antonellodamessina
Il Mart di Rovereto propone un’indagine articolata e uno sguardo originale sulla figura del grande pittore del Quattrocento e sul suo tempo, attraverso lo studio degli intrecci storico-artistici e delle controversie ancora aperte, presentati in questa sede come punti di forza attraverso i quali approfondire nuovi percorsi di interpretazione critica.
Il progetto espositivo, a cura di Ferdinando Bologna e Federico De Melis, ha l’ambizione di ricostruire l’ampia scena storica e geografica dalla quale emerge l’eccezionale individualità di Antonello: un pittore che, a metà del Quattrocento, si fa interprete di un fermento creativo mediterraneo ed europeo incentrato sull’incontro-scontro tra la civiltà fiamminga e quella italiana.
Photo by Fernando Guerra
Drusus. Caesar, AD 19-23. Æ Sestertius (35mm, 27.37 g). Rome mint. Struck under Tiberius, 22-23 AD. Confronted heads of Drusus' children on crossed cornuacopiae; caduceus between / Legend around large SC. RIC I 42 (Tiberius); BMCRE 95 (Tiberius); Cohen 1 (Drusus).
This issue, commemorating the birth of twin sons to Drusus, the son of the second emperor Tiberius, and his wife Livilla, was part of the series issued in AD 22 to promote the dynastic solidity of Tiberius’ family. One of the twins died in infancy, but the other, Tiberius Gemellus (meaning "twin") was named an heir along with his cousin Gaius (Caligula). Within a year of Caligula’s accession, however, the new emperor had Tiberius Gemellus murdered.
If you are interested in Julio Claudian Iconography and portrait study you may enjoy these two links:
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association- Joe Geranio- Administrator at groups.yahoo.com/group/julioclaudian/
The Portraiture of Caligula- Joe Geranio- Administrator- at
Both are non-profit sites and for educational use only.
From CNG: This issue, commemorating the birth of twin sons to Drusus, the son of the second emperor Tiberius, and his wife Livilla, was part of the series issued in AD 22 to promote the dynastic solidity of Tiberius’ family. One of the twins died in infancy, but the other, Tiberius Gemellus (meaning "twin") was named an heir along with his cousin Gaius (Caligula). Within a year of Caligula’s accession, however, the new emperor had Tiberius Gemellus murdered.
From Richard Beal (Roma): "This sestertius was struck in 22/23, nearly three years after the death of Germanicus, Tiberius’ nephew and first heir. In the interim Tiberius had named no heir, but with the nine coins in his dated aes of 22/23 he announces a ‘Tiberian dynasty’ that includes his son Drusus, his daughter-in-law (and niece) Livilla, and his twin grandsons Tiberius Gemellus and Germanicus Gemellus, whose heads decorate the crossed cornucopias on this sestertius.
Since it is the only coin in the aes of 22/23 without an obverse inscription, we must presume its design was believed sufficient to communicate the fact that the twin boys were portrayed. Though this type usually is thought to celebrate the birth of the twins, that event had occurred two and one half years before this coin was struck. Rather, it is best seen in light of early Julio-Claudian dynastic rhetoric in which male heirs were celebrated as twins (even if they were not literally twins, or even biological brothers) and were routinely likened to the Dioscuri, the heavenly twins Castor and Pollux.
The crossed-cornucopias design is familiar on ancient coinage, and here the cornucopias, grape clusters, grape leaves and pine cones seemingly allude to Bacchus or Liber in a reference to fecundity. In terms of dynastic appeal, the design boasts of the prosperity and fruitfulness of the Tiberian line, with the caduceus symbolizing Mercury as the messenger of the gods and the bringer of good fortune.
Despite the hopefulness represented by this series of coins, tragedy struck on two fronts. The ‘Tiberian dynasty’ collapsed within months of its being announced when both Drusus and his son Germanicus Gemellus (the boy whose head is shown on the right cornucopia) died in 23.
Poor fates awaited the remaining two members: Drusus’ wife Livilla became increasingly associated with Tiberius’ prefect Sejanus, and she died shamefully in the aftermath of his downfall in 31, and the second grandson, Tiberius Gemellus, survived long enough to be named co-heir of Tiberius with Caligula, but after Tiberius’ death he was pushed into a subsidiary role and soon was executed by Caligula, who would not tolerate a second heir to the throne." - Ars Antiqua, 2008 CNGCOINS>COM
www.mart.trento.it/antonellodamessina
Il Mart di Rovereto propone un’indagine articolata e uno sguardo originale sulla figura del grande pittore del Quattrocento e sul suo tempo, attraverso lo studio degli intrecci storico-artistici e delle controversie ancora aperte, presentati in questa sede come punti di forza attraverso i quali approfondire nuovi percorsi di interpretazione critica.
Il progetto espositivo, a cura di Ferdinando Bologna e Federico De Melis, ha l’ambizione di ricostruire l’ampia scena storica e geografica dalla quale emerge l’eccezionale individualità di Antonello: un pittore che, a metà del Quattrocento, si fa interprete di un fermento creativo mediterraneo ed europeo incentrato sull’incontro-scontro tra la civiltà fiamminga e quella italiana.
Photo by Fernando Guerra
Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. 43 BC. AR Denarius (17mm, 3.84 g, 10h). Military mint traveling with Antony in Cisalpine Gaul. M. ANTON. IMP. R. P. C., bare head of Mark Antony right; lituus beind / CAESAR DIC before, bare head of Julius Caesar right; capis behind. Crawford 488/2; CRI 123; Sydenham 1166; RSC 3. Rare as such.
Following the assassination of Julius Caesar, it was unclear who would inherit his legacy. The two primary contenders were Mark Antony and Octavian. Both issued a variety of coinages that propagandized their link to the slain dictator. In particular, Octavian, through his familial link, was able to associate the name CAESAR with his own portrait. Lacking a direct link of this nature, Antony often appeared with the symbols of the various offices he held which had been held by Caesar, such as the augurate. Perhaps Antony's most cunning propaganda, however, is the coinage he struck bearing both his portrait and that of Caesar. The first of these was struck while Antony was in Gaul following his defeat at Mutina in 43 BC, and was the first type struck by Antony's military mint. The present coin is from the second series of this type, and was struck following the settlement in November 43 BC between Antony, Octavian, and Lepidus, in which the Second Triumvirate was formed.
cngcoins.com
Legion XXII Primigenia (and its twin XV Primigenia) were formed in 39 AD by the emperor Caligula who needed extra forces for his campaigns in Germania. The XXIInd was initially stationed with Legion XXI Rapax at Xanten in Germania Inferior. Primigenia took part in several campaigns against the Germans. In 69 AD they supproted Vitellius, following the Batavian Revolt of 70 AD, Legion XXII was stationed at Mainz where it remained for the next two centuries. The products of the legion's kilns have been found in Cologne, Dormagen, Neuss, Xanten, Rindern, Nijmegen, and Vechten.
Nero. AD 54-68. Æ Sestertius (26.20 g, 6h). Lugdunum (Lyon) mint. Struck circa AD 65. Laureate head right, globe at tip of neck / Roma seated left on cuirass, right foot on helmet, holding Victory and parazonium; shields around and behind. RIC I 398; WCN 409; Lyon 69.
ROMAN MARBLE OVER LIFE-SIZE HEAD OF A YOUNG WOMAN
Her centrally parted hair braided and coiled at the back of the head, a curl falling down either side of her neck.
Over life-size portraits of this period are rare and of females are even more rare.
Late Republican, ca. 40-20 BC
H. 14 1/2 in. (36.8 cm.)
Art of the Ancient World, 2005, no. 13
for educational use only
If you are interested in Julio Claudian Iconography and portrait study you may enjoy these two links:
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association- Joe Geranio- Administrator at groups.yahoo.com/group/julioclaudian/
The Portraiture of Caligula- Joe Geranio- Administrator- at
Both are non-profit sites and for educational use only.
MYSIA, Lampsacus. Julius Caesar. Circa 45 BC. Æ 23mm (9.57 g). Q. Lucretius and L. Pontius, duoviri, M. Turius, legate. Laureate head of Caesar right; c/m: uncertain / Priest plowing right with two oxen. RPC I 2268.12 (this coin); SNG France 1260-1261.
Caesar ?) right / VAALA in exergue, Roman soldier, holding sword and shield in protection, advancing left and attacking a rampart ( vallum) guarded by two soldiers, each brandishing a sword and shield. Crawford 514/2; CRI 322; Sydenham 1087 Kestner 3788; BMCRR 4216; Numonia 2.
Ex L.A. Lawrence Collection (Glendining, 7 December 1950), lot 270; Clarence S. Bement Collection (Naville VIII, 25 June 1924), lot 261.
The unusual spelling of his cognomen aside, it is quite possible that this moneyer is the Numonius Vala whom Horace mentions in Epistle 1.15.1-6. As Horace’s Vala was apparently quite familiar with the countryside of southern Italy, particularly Velia and Salernum, it is quite possible that the gens Numonia derived its origin from Campania, and, as novi homines, acquired Roman citizenship as a result of the Social War (91-88 BC). The cognomen Vaala refers to some ancestral military exploit, in which that individual bravely stormed a well-defended rampart in battle, a deed commemorated on the reverse of this coin. A subsequent Numonius Vala was not so courageous, for while serving as a legate of Quinctilius Varus and commanding his cavalry during the disaster at the Teutoburger Forest, he was killed while attempting to flee the battle (Vell. Pat. 2.119.4).
If you are interested in Julio Claudian Iconography and portrait study you may enjoy these two links:
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association- Joe Geranio- Administrator at groups.yahoo.com/group/julioclaudian/
The Portraiture of Caligula- Joe Geranio- Administrator- at
Both are non-profit sites and for educational use only.
Unknown
Roman, about A.D. 50
Marble
H: 12 5/8 x W: 10 5/8 x D: 11 in.
70.AA.101
Roman writers characterized the Roman empress Agrippina the Younger (A.D. 15 - 59) as a scheming power-hungry woman. Born into the extended Imperial family, a sister of the emperor Caligula, Agrippina increased her power and status by marrying her uncle Claudius, the reigning emperor, in A.D. 48. She urged her new husband to make Nero, her son by a previous marriage, the heir to the throne. He agreed and in A.D. 54, Claudius died. It was rumored that his wife had poisoned him. She wielded extensive political power in the early reign of her son, who was only 17 years old when he took the throne. By A.D. 59, however, Nero was tired of his meddling mother and had her killed.
Portraits of Agrippina were produced during the reigns of the emperors Caligula, Claudius, and Nero. They fit an overall style used for depicting the reigning Julio-Claudian dynasty. Although the portraits of the male members of the dynasty became more naturalistic over time, the women retain an ageless, classicizing style enlivened by elaborate coiffures. Agrippina is distinguished by her narrow face, dimpled chin, and protruding upper lip. She wears her hair parted in the middle and pulled back, with tight curls surrounding her face.
If you are interested in Julio Claudian Iconography and portrait study you may enjoy these two links:
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association- Joe Geranio- Administrator at groups.yahoo.com/group/julioclaudian/
The Portraiture of Caligula- Joe Geranio- Administrator- at
Both are non-profit sites and for educational use only.
Nero. AD 54-68. AV Aureus (7.70 g, 3h). Rome mint. Struck AD 60-61. Bare head right / EX S C within oak wreath. RIC I 19; Calicó 426.
If you are interested in Julio Claudian Iconography and portrait study you may enjoy these two links:
Julio Claudian Iconographic Association- Joe Geranio- Administrator at groups.yahoo.com/group/julioclaudian/
The Portraiture of Caligula- Joe Geranio- Administrator- at
Both are non-profit sites and for educational use only.
JULIUS CAESAR. 44 BC. (January - February). AR Denarius (20mm, 4.12 g, 9h). Rome mint. M. Mettius, moneyer. CAESAR IMP, laureate head of Caesar right, lituus and simpulum at left / M METTIVS, Venus standing left, holding Victory and sceptre, holding shield set on globe; H to left. Crawford 480/3; CRI 100; Sydenham 1056; RSC 34.
Head of Augustus, Roman Period, 27–20 b.c.
Egyptian
Blue-green (glassy?) faience
H. 2 5/8 in. (6.8 cm)
Purchase, Edward S. Harkness Gift, 1926 (26.7.1428)
With the defeat of Cleopatra VII and Marc Antony at the Battle of Actium in 31 B.C., Egypt became a Roman province under the direct control of the Roman emperor. Augustus assumed the traditional divine role of pharaoh in Egypt, portraying himself as the offspring of the gods. He made numerous additions to the major temples of Egypt and founded the Temple of Dendur. His administrative reforms brought economic and political stability to Egypt after the turmoil of the Ptolemaic era.
This small head from Memphis may have come from a statue dedicated to the cult of the emperor. The style is completely Roman and is similar to other portraits from early in his long reign. The choice of blue-green faience, however, reflects the Egyptian attributes of longevity and prosperity.
educational use only