sulla80
Zeus-Serapis?
This set of notes started from a discussion of "syncretism" and when or how Zeus and Serapis started to blend across Greco-Roman-Egyptian...
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sulla80
Dec 26, 20238 min read
Selene, Moon Goddess
The ancient Romans, celebrated a feast on March 31st, in the Temple of Luna on the Aventine Hill to honor the Moon Goddess, a cult...
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sulla80
Jul 9, 20234 min read
Vespasian in Alexandria
What an ancient coin costs is always a factor of who sees it. The range of ancient coins is so broad that inevitably there are...
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sulla80
Jun 10, 20232 min read
Nilus & Euthenia
My coin of interest today is a Roman Egyptian tetradrachm from Claudius II "Gothicus", features jugate busts of Nilus and Euthenia. The...
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sulla80
May 19, 20236 min read
Nero, "Periodonikes"
Nero was a fan of Greek Athletics. He tried to set up the Neronia, a Roman counterpart of the Olympics and other Pan-Hellenic festivals...
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sulla80
Dec 28, 20223 min read
Which Ptolemy is this?
Roman republican denarii are pretty easy to attribute - for most types, there are lots of them, and there's been a lot of research...
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sulla80
Nov 20, 20226 min read
Top 10 Ancients for 2022
"CXXXII. The offering is to be made in this way: Offer to Jupiter Dapalis a cup of wine of any size you wish, observing the day as a...
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sulla80
Nov 16, 20224 min read
Tiberius' Cucumbers
Wandering again from Sulla, and the Roman republic, I stumbled on a debate amongst botanists about Tiberius' favorite food. The ancient...
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sulla80
Nov 5, 20223 min read
Provenance Rediscovered
This week a short post to share this coin - a rare and unusually well preserved tetradrachm from Gallienus' 15th and final regnal year....
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sulla80
Aug 13, 20222 min read
Who's bidding?
Have you ever asked yourself: who are the collectors that I am bidding against? A search in ACSearch turned up some interesting...
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sulla80
May 16, 20226 min read
Roman Interference in Egypt
During the time of Lucius Cornelius Sulla, Rome was already beginning to interfere in the governance of Egypt. Cicero references an...
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sulla80
Feb 27, 20225 min read
Antiochus IV "Egyptianizing"
The coin I initially used to illustrate this was pretty ugly, nearly unidentifiable. I have since replaced it with a much nicer coin:...
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sulla80
Nov 7, 20212 min read
Ancient artwork
This week I am adding an extra "Note" commemorating 3 years of "Notes on Ancient Coins" and post number 160. The photos celebrate the...
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sulla80
Jul 18, 20215 min read
Galatians in Egypt
The struggle for power was intense in the years after the death of Alexander III the Great, as the diadochi, his generals and successors,...
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sulla80
Jun 11, 20213 min read
Gallienus Regnal Year 8
Image source: Promptuarii iconum insigniorum, AD 1553 I've been looking for this coin for about a year (since April/May 2020) to...
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sulla80
Apr 17, 20213 min read
Coins from the Dattari Collection
Today's coins of interest are both published "plate coins" from the Giovanni Dattari collection. For an excellent article on Giovanni...
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sulla80
Apr 10, 20213 min read
Ptolemaic Coins of Egypt
I have quite a few Roman provincial Egyptian coins, but have not ventured much earlier into the Ptolemaic era. This first coin is one...
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sulla80
Mar 21, 20212 min read
69 AD - The Year of Four Emperors
This silver tetradrachm from Alexandria, Egypt, of Vespasian finally made it through the mail system after a couple of months. It dates...
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sulla80
Feb 27, 20213 min read
Galba : First of Four Emperors in 69 AD
Dionysos leading the Horae (Seasons), marble, Roman 1st century AD (image public domain) My coin of interest today is a tetradrachm of...
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sulla80
Dec 8, 20206 min read
Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt
The mailman brought an interesting tetradrachm that highlights the detailed inspection that can be required to differentiate between...
244 views
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