Principal Coins of the Roman Republic
Part 14 RRC 405 to RRC 439, 69BC to 50BC, First Triumvirate, era of Pompey, Cicero, Crassus and Julius Caesar

In Part 13, RRC 359 to RRC 404 I discussed the insufficient and inconsistent nature of the hoard data for the period between 78BC and 49BC, and the dating problems these have traditionally caused. I explained the impact caused by the 1980 discovery of the 5940 coin Mesagne hoard, which included 2254 coins that can be dated between 78BC and 58BC. This hoard resulted in a comprehensive redating of the period by Charles Hersh and Alan Walker in their 1984 ANSMN article, which I cite for every coin between 78BC and 49BC thus: RRC 386 C.CASSI Cassia H&W 75BC . Michael Crawford made the best use of the hoard data that was available in 1970 in preparing RRC, but I do not quote the Crawford dates as they have been superseded by new facts and are no longer relevant. Nevertheless I continue to arrange the coins according to Crawford so that they can be easily be located. Hersh and Walker's redating significantly disrupted the coin arrangement in the period from 69BC to 50BC with for example RRC 405 Plaetoria moving from 69BC to 57BC and RRC 410 Pomponia moving from 66BC to 56BC. This page covers all the coins from RRC 405 to RRC 439 and thus keeps the bulk of the redating within a single web-page. For the record I should note that prior web-page, Part 13, included RRC 403 KALENI CORDI Fufia moved from 70BC to 68BC, and RRC 404 T.VETTIVS SABINVS Vettia moved from 70BC to 66BC. On my Flickr coin photos for the period 58BC to 49BC I adopted HB Mattingly's adjustments to the Hersh and Walker dating, but on these Ahala Collection web-pages I have reverted to the more widely accepted Hersh and Walker dating.

RRC 405 M.PLAETORIVS CEST Plaetoria H&W 57BC denarii.

RRC 405 M.PLAETORI CEST.EX.S.C Plaetoria H&W 57BC denarius, RRC 406 P.GALB AED CVR Sulpicia H&W 69BC denarius, Both Davis coll. The Vestal virgin portrait on RRC 406 is extraordinary, and surely must have been taken from life. Perhaps this is the artists mother or wife.

RRC 407 C.HOSIDI Hosidia H&W 64BC denarius, RRC 408 C.PISO FRVGI Calpurnia H&W 61BC denarii.

RRC 408 C.PISO FRVGI Calpurnia H&W 61BC denarius, RRC 409 M.PLAETORIVS H&W 67BC denarius, RRC 410 Q.POMPONI MVSA H&W 56BC denarii.

RRC 410 Q.POMPONI MVSA H&W 56BC denarii.

RRC 410 Q.POMPONI MVSA H&W 56BC denarius, RRC 411 L.TORQVAT Manlia H&W 58BC denarius, RRC 412 L.ROSCI Roscia H&W 59BC denarius, RRC 413 L.CASSI Cassia H&W 60BC denarius.

RRC 414 L.FVRI Furia H&W 63BC variety double headed denarius. Clive Stannard. In his two articles on the subject in NC 1987 and Annotazioni Numismatiche March 1995, Clive Stannard mentions seven issues of two headed denarii, of which Pompey and Varro's double headed RRC 447 is perhaps the best known. The full list is (1) RRC 317/1 L.SATVRN two headed (2) RRC 317/2 L.SATVRN two tailed (3) RRC 342/6a C.VIBIVS C.F. PANSA two tailed (4) RRC 342/6a C.VIBIVS C.F. PANSA two tailed (5) RRC 414/1 variety L.FVRI CN.F. BROCCHI (this coin) two headed published in the NC 1987 article (6) RRC 447/1b MAGN PROCOS VARO PROQ two headed (7) RRC 434/2 variety Q.POMPEI Q.F. RVFVS COS two headed, published in the March 1995 article. Both sides of RRC 434/2 show a curule chair but the side with the moneyers name is doubled.

RRC 414 L.FVRI Furia H&W 63BC denarius, RRC 415 PAVLLVS LEPIDVS Aemilia H&W 62BC denarius, RRC 416 LIBO Scribonia H&W 62BC denarii.

RRC 416 LIBO Scribonia H&W 62BC denarius, RRC 417 PAVLLVS Aemilia H&W 62BC denarii, RRC 418 PISO FRVGI Calpurnia H&W 58BC denarius. This RRC 416 Scribonia Libo type with an anvil at the bottom of the Puteal Scribonianum is of great rarity, and completes the hammer, tongs and anvil set. RRC 417 Aemilia only has a hammer and tongs. The Puteal Scribonianum was a stone enclosure about three feet high with a well in the centre, in the Forum Romanum. At some point it was struck by lightning and repaired and rededicated by one Scribonius Libo.

RRC 418 M.PISO FRVGI Calpurnia H&W 58BC denarius, RRC 419 M.LEPIDVS Aemilia H&W 58BC denarii. The two coins at centre are oddly classified by Crawford as having the same reverse, despite an extensive legend on the coin at right which is missing from the coin at left. RRC says "sometimes around AN.XV.PR.H.O.C.S.". This is hardly a trivial difference as the whole meaning of the reverse is illuminated by knowledge of the inscription an[norum] XV pr[ogressus] h[ostem] o[ccidit] c[ivem] s[ervavit]. This commemorates the act of Marcus Lepidus, consul 187BC, who, at the age of 15, during the Second Punic War, and still wearing the toga praetexta, killed an enemy, and saved a citizen, as is neatly expressed in the legend. The boy is showing bearing the spolia opima, but this must be a figurative honour, for the distinction of bearing the spolia opima was only available to a commander of a Roman army who obtained the booty from the corpse of the leader of the foe in a field of battle, and thus was a rare honour. Among the Romans, spoils taken in battle were the most distinguished acquisitions; and no victory was considered as complete unless the conquerors could succeed in stripping the bodies of the slain.

RRC 419 M.LEPIDVS Aemilia H&W 58BC denarius, RRC 420 P.YPSAE Plautia H&W 57BC denarius, RRC 421 SEX NONI Nonia H&W 57BC denarius, RRC 423 C.SERVEIL Servilia H&W 53BC denarius. The RRC 419 Aemilia Lepidus type showing the Basilica Aemilia is a very rare coin type and is not to be confused with the similar looking Villa Publica type shown on RRC 429 Didia.

RRC 424 C.CONSIDI Considia H&W 56BC denarius, RRC 425 PHILIPPVS Marcia H&W 57BC denarius, RRC 426 FAVSTVS Cornelia Faustus Sulla H&W 56BC denarii. Though Aphrodite Erycina was worshipped Rome, the temple on a fortified mountain shown on RRC 424 must refer to the famous temple of Venus Erycina on the mountainous city of Eryx at the western end of Sicily. The Marcia type also shows a building, in this case an aquaduct, the Aqua Marcia built 144BC by the Praetor, Quintus Marcius Rex. The Aqua Marcia is still operational today as the Acqua Felice, an extraordinarily long-lasting engineering feat. The coins of Faustus Sulla naturally commemorate the exploits of his father Sulla, with one showing the homage of Bocchus to Sulla and the submission of Jurgurtha.

RRC 426 FAVSTVS Cornelia Faustus Sulla H&W 56BC denarii, RRC 427 C.MEMMI Memmia denarii H&W 56BC denarii. Faustus' coinage also support Pompey the Great, that with the wreaths commemorating his triumphs, honours and activities. The reverse is, incidentally, upside down as can be seen from the aplustre and the corn-ear both which should be at the reverse's lower edge pointing upwards. The blank-obverse Memmia is a result of a sandwiched pair of flans being struck together, this being the upper coin of the pair thus showing the reverse. Blank flans are rarer than brockages, as they depend on the positive action of two loose flans being placed in the die, rather than the inaction of a stuck coin not being removed from a die.

RRC 427 C.MEMMI Memmia denarii H&W 56BC denarius, RRC 428 Q.CASSIVS Cassia H&W 55BC denarii. Quintus Cassius is not be confused with Gaius Cassius Longinus, the assassin of Julius Caesar.

RRC 429 P.FONTEIVS Fonteia H&W 55BC denarii, RRC 430 P.CRASSVS Licinia H&W 55BC denarius, RRC 431 A.PLAVTIVS Plautia H&W 55BC denarius. RRC p.453 explains that RRC 429 is an issue of Fonteius, and not a joint issue of Fonteius and Didia, but rather that the Villa Publica was restored by Titus Didius, consul 98BC "who must be presumed to have connections to the moneyer's family". So, RRC 429/2 should be considered as a Fonteia rather than a Didia denarius. The Publius Crassus of RRC 430 was the triumvir Marcus Crassus' son, and a better soldier than his father. He distinguished himself in the service of Julius Caesar in Gaul but perished alongside his father in the Parthian campaign 53BC. His son Marcus, the grandson of the triumvir, was also a distinguished soldier who fought with Sextus Pompey and with Mark Antony, and was made Consul by Octavian in 30BC.

RRC 432 CN PLANCIVS Plancia H&W 55BC denarius, RRC 433 BRVTVS Junia H&W 54BC denarii, RRC 434 Q.POM RVFI Pompeia H&W 54BC denarius. This Brutus is the assassin of Caesar; Quintus Servilius Caepio Brutus having been adopted by his uncle, a Servilius Caepio in 59BC. Although he is better known to history as Marcus Junius Brutus, to which name he reverted after 44BC, most of his coins describe him as Quintus Caepio, or just as Brutus, with his birth-initial M[arcus] only appearing on the rare RRC 407 aureus. This coin collection was named after the RRC 433 Ahala type. Gaius Servilius Structus Ahala was a magister equitum in 439BC who killed Spurius Maelius, a wealthy Roman who appealed to plebeian supporters through corn donations and was suspected of having tyrranical or regal ambitions. As is typical with these early Republican myths, there are varying intrepretations of Ahala's actions in killing Maelius. Ahala was considered a hero in the late Republic but was tried for murder and went into exile in 439BC. Roman Republican history has many heroes who are supposed to have saved Rome from various tyrants or regal usurpers. These include Cicero who saved Rome from Cataline, Brutus who saved Rome from Caesar, and the Republic's founder Lucius Junius Brutus who saved Rome from Tarquin Superbus and who portrait is shown on the same coin as Ahala. Ahala is a less-well-known tyrranicide in the same model, and was frequently praised as a Republican hero by Cicero. The RRC 434 type with Sulla's excellent portrait was struck Sulla's grandson through his daughter Cornelia. Sulla shares the coin with his fellow consul of 88BC, Quintus Pompeius Rufus, who was the paternal grandfather of the moneyer.

RRC 434 Q.POMPEI RVFVS Pompeia H&W 54BC denarius, RRC 435 MESSAL F Valeria H&W 53BC denarius, RRC 436 L.VINICI Vinicia H&W 52BC denarius, RRC 437 CALDVS Coelia H&W 53BC denarius. The Valeria Messala denarius, which is a great rarity, has the charming legend "my dad is the Consul". Appointment of monetary magistrates by nepotism is often suggested or can be assumed in prosopographical studies, but in this case it is a source of open pride. The Coelius Caldus types have some of the best portraiture on Republican coins.

RRC 437 CALDVS Coelia H&W 53BC denarius. Davis coll. Another example of the extraordinary portraiture on Coelius Caldus' coins.

RRC 437 CALDVS Coelia H&W 53BC denarius. RRC 438 SER SVLP Sulpicia H&W 51BC denarius. The Sulpicia coin, though worn, is an ex Gonzaga collection coin. Coins from the so-called Gonzaga collection have a gold eagle inlaid on the silver types, or a silver eagle inlaid on the bronze types. The eagle was about 3mm long and 2mm wide, and its shadow impression can be seen in front of the obverse male head. In many cases as on this coin the inlaid eagles, of more precious metal than the coin, have been removed.

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)