Principal Coins of the Roman Republic
Part 9 RRC 199 to RRC 235, 155BC to 137BC, Reintroduction of silver coinage to Foedus Numantinum

RRC 199 SAR Atilia As

RRC 199 SAR Atilia bronzes, RRC 200 NAT Pinaria denarius. For about a decade after the full-scale resumption of bronzes, we find a full range of bronzes, As to Uncia, alongside the silver denarius. Both silver and bronze were struck in similarly large quantities.

RRC 200 NAT Pinaria bronzes,

RRC 201 C.SCR Scribonia denarius and bronzes, RRC 202 C.TAL Juventia denarius. The quadrans of the C.SCR series is of slightly untypical style and scrappy flan, and may be imitative.

RRC 203 C.MAIANI Maiania quadrans, RRC 204 L.SAVF crescent Saufeia denarius and bronzes. Combinations of monograms with symbols are found in this period, akin to the earlier RRC 141, RRC 142, RRC 143, RRC 144 and RRC 149 series.

RRC 205 P.SVLA Cornelia bronzes. The bronzes of P.SVLA have prowstems decorated with female figureheads although this feature is rarely visible on any except the best preserved pieces. A female head can be seen inside the prowstem of the As; more remarkably the prowstems of the uncia appears shaped like a female head, a characteristic sometimes seen on other small denominations.

RRC 206 SAFRA denarius, bronzes. This can be considered as a fourth dolphin series, after RRC 80, RRC 151A and RRC 160. The dolphin on the As has an unusual decorative addition, it is evidently priapic. The SAFRA cognomen is unknown. It hardly relates to any Afranius, as the type never has a period between the first two letters.

RRC 206 SAFRA quadrans, RRC 207 FLAVS Decimia denarius, RRC 209 L.ITI Itia denarius, RRC 210 C.IVNI C.F. Junia denarius.

RRC 210 C.IVNI Junia bronzes, RRC 213 mast and sail bronzes. The mast and sail bronzes do not, unusually for this period, have an associated silver denarius. Might the mast and sail symbol be at the same time intended as a monogram for L.ITI? This would be a neat solution that would be consistent with engraver's practices of unusually engraved monograms and punning allusions.

RRC 214 M.ATIL SARAN Atilia bronzes, RRC 215 Q.MARC LIBO Marcia denarius

RRC 215 Q.MARC LIBO Marcia bronzes

RRC 215 Q.MARC LIBO Marcia bronzes, RRC 216 L.SEMP PITIO Sempronia denarius, semis. The Q.MARC LIBO series is complete in the Ahala collection: Denarius, As, Semis, Triens, Quadrans, Sextans, Uncia, the last coin being of the highest rarity.

RRC 216 L.SEMP PITIO Sempronia bronzes. This tray contains another rare example of an Uncia denomination. Both the Q.MARC LIBO and L.SEMP PITIO unciae are quite worn. What were such tiny denominations used for in circulation?

RRC 217 C.TER LVC Terentia denarius, bronzes, RRC 219 C.ANTESTI Antestia denarius

RRC 219 C.ANTESTI Antestia leaping dog bronzes, RRC 220 M.IVNI Junia denarius, RRC 221 AN.RVF Annia denarius. Production of bronze Asses, and of heavyweight bronzes in general, ceases with the issue of Caius Antestius, to resume only in the last decade of the century.

RRC 223 C.CVR TRIG Curiatia denarius, RRC 225 L.ATILI NOM Atilia denarius, RRC 226 C.TITINI Titinia denarius, RRC 227 M.AVF RVS Aufidia denarius. This tray contains the retariffed denarius silver, with the obverses of some issues marked XVI, representing the change in the exchange rare of asses for a denarius from ten-to-one to sixteen-to-one. This seems to be associated with the cessation in production of asses and other heavy bronzes following the issue of Lucius Antestius. As the Roman government was hardly in the practice of regulating the exchange rate between silver and bronze in the marketplace, the tariff must relate to government transactions. The changed value mark might mean that either (a) the treasury would provide silver on demand in exchange for 16 rather than 10 bronzes, or (b) that the bronzes were tarrifed formerly as 1/10 a denarius for matters of military and other payments by the government in bronzes, but with the cessation of substantial coinage in bronzes this artificially high value for bronzes no longer needed to be imposed, because the government would no longer pay contractors or soldiers in bronze. The latter is a far more plausible explanation. Evidence of continued circulation of Janus-headed asses for two hundred more years renders it implausible that bronze-to-silver exchange was ever offered by the treasury at any rate, let alone at ten asses to a denarius. As the value mark on the silver reverted shortly again to X rather than XVI, this suggests the military were now to be paid in denarii, rather than bronze, at a rate that continued to reflect the ten-to-tariff. Thus the soldiers would get as many denarii for their bronzes as they theoretically were entitled to before the retariffing, and would not be short-changed by the switch from bronze to silver coin, and the related retariffing. It is probably unwise to short-change soldiers, given that they bear weapons and may retaliate. Various theories have been proposed to explain the switch from X to XVI and then back again shortly afterwards but the story can probably only be interpreted in the light of government disbursments and military pay obligations. The denarii with XVI value marks are rare, that of L.ATILI NOM and M.AVF RVS being especially rare. The former is a punning type with NOM replacing ROMA in the exergue, no doubt deliberately intended to baffle the Romans.

RRC 226 C.TITINI Titinia semis, RRC 228 C.VAL FLAC Valeria XVI and X denarii, RRC 232 CN.GELI denarius. The bronze of Titinia is enigmatic. The obverse style is apparently consistent with other semisses of the period, see RRC plate XXXV and compare the Saturn head on RRC 228/3 C.VAL FLAC which is of a very similar style. The prow on apparently the only reverse seems to have suffered early damage, and no examples are known with fully clear dies. Most perplexing, on some specimens the legend apparently reads M.TITINI and on other C.TITINI, indicating a possibly recut die. It is an open question whether this is actually an official Roman Republican coin type, and if so, whether it belongs with the denarius of C.TITINI. The above-pictured Ahala collection example does not help resolve the issue. On the denarius of CN.GELI, we begin to see variations introduced into the standard Roman Republican designs, with a wreath around the head of Roma.

RRC 232 CN.GELI Gellia bronzes, RRC 233 P.PATVS Aelia variety denarius, RRC 234 TI.VETVR Veturia oath-scene denarius. The denarius with legend P.PATVS rather than P.PAETVS may be a contemporary base silver imitation - it is not plated. Its design style is very similar to that of C.RENI, and the surfaces appear good, as well as the style. So it is possible it is an error coin whose issue was stopped as soon as the misspelling was seen. The Veturia coin with oath scene is modelled after the gold oath scene coinage related to the quadrigatus of the early second Punic war. Together with the below-pictured denarius of Sextus Pompeius Fostulus, these represent the first fundamental change of reverse designs in the Republican denarius series which had thus far always pictured types with horses: the Dioscuri, Luna or Victory.

RRC 234 TI.VETVR Veturia quadrans, RRC 235 SEX POM FOSTVLUS Pompeia denarius and quadrans. The design changes seen on the denarius of Veturia continue with his bronzes, this quadrans showing an oil jar hanging from a thong, and a strigil, accessories of the gymnasium, a place of relaxation and enjoyment. This is a dramatic change in typology from the standard prow types that continue to commemorate first Punic war naval victories. The obverse type of Pompeius illustrates the legend of the wolf and twins being found by the shepherd Fostulus under a fig tree, whilst Pompeius' bronzes are the standard prow types. Crawford in RRC places both these issues in 137BC, and relates that of Veturius to the pro-treaty faction at Rome who supported the foedus (treaty) made with the Numantines by Caius Hostilius Mancinus. He suggests that the type's origins stem from the foedus made with the Sabines when they trapped the Romans at the Caudine forks in 321 BC, and that, as of 137 BC, the Sabine foedus did not yet have any negative connotations. The Pompeius type is taken to represent the anti-treaty faction, with the type demonstrating the ancient origins and independance of Rome. In the event, the Foedus Numantinum was repudiated, and Mancinus was handed over to the enemy. The intrepretation of these types does depend on their both being placed in 137BC, which is not at all certain, however a valid consideration is that the oath scene type hardly post-dated the repudiation of a foedus in 137BC and so should date from 137BC or earlier; the Pompeius type is not necessarily of the exact same date.

Part 1           RRC 1 to RRC 27     300-225BC Early Roman Coinage Part 2         RRC 28 to RRC 43     230-213BC Quadrigatus coinage Part 3         RRC 44 to RRC 66     214-207BC Italy Sardinia Part 4         RRC 67 to RRC 96     212-207BC Sicily Apulia Part 5       RRC 97 to RRC 111     212-207BC Luceria Etruria Part 6     RRC 112 to RRC 138     206-190BC Conquest of Spain Part 7     RRC 139 to RRC 172     190-170BC Macedonian wars Part 8     RRC 173 to RRC 198     170-155BC Bronze-only currency Part 9     RRC 199 to RRC 235     155-137BC Carthage, Greece Part 10   RRC 236 to RRC 279     137-121BC The Gracchi brothers Part 11   RRC 280 to RRC 335     120-93BC Scaurus, rise of Marius Part 12   RRC 336 to RRC 358     92-83BC Social War, rise of Sulla Part 13   RRC 359 to RRC 404     83-70BC Sulla's dominance Part 14   RRC 405 to RRC 439     69-50BC First Triumvirate Part 15   RRC 440 to RRC 462     49-46BC Caesar versus Pompey Part 16   RRC 463 to RRC 482     46-44BC Julius Caesar as Dictator Part 17   RRC 483 to RRC 497     43-41BC Second Triumvirate Part 18   RRC 498 to RRC 515     43-42BC Brutus and Cassius Part 19   RRC 516 to RRC 543     41-32BC Antony versus Octavian Part 20   RRC 544 to RRC 550     35-27BC Actium

Specialist Supplements:
1. Roman Coins of Luceria and Canusium
2. Anonymous Struck Bronze Coins of the Roman Republic
3. Anonymous Roman Republican Denarii and Victoriati (Steve Brinkman's site)