sulla80
Sulla's grandson and a rare obverse die
After the first Social War (91-88 BC), in which Lucius Cornelius Sulla distinguished himself as a general especially in his defeat of the...
top of page
sulla80
Sep 6, 20202 min read
Arsakes XVI and the Third Mithridatic War
Attributing Parthian coins to a king and time period, can be complicated. This coin, 30.16, is assigned by Sellwood to an Unknown King...
67 views
sulla80
Sep 6, 20204 min read
Sulla in Cappadocia: First Meeting with Parthia
This story of the first diplomatic contact between Rome and Parthia, is illustrated with three coins. The story begins around 101 BC when...
150 views
sulla80
Sep 6, 20201 min read
Early Cistophoric Tetradrachm with Leopard
“The cistophorus, with its writhing serpents and over-elaborate ornamentation, is perhaps the ugliest coin in the Greek series. ...
33 views
sulla80
Sep 6, 20203 min read
L. Cosconius Brockage Error
The coin shared today is a brockage of the Roman Republican denarius shown above. A brockage happens when a newly minted coin sticks to...
15 views
sulla80
Sep 6, 20202 min read
Ancient Ships
There are a few Roman republican coins with images of ships on them, here are two variants (control mark) of one of these coins: C....
102 views
sulla80
Sep 5, 20201 min read
Games of Sulla's Victory
Coins linked to Lucius Cornelius Sulla are one of the primary themes of my collection. The reverse on this coin references games that...
140 views
sulla80
Sep 5, 20204 min read
Asclepius and a plague in 87 BC
Asclepius (a.k.a. Aesculapius), son of Apollo and god of medicine, was one of the deities imported to Rome from the East. Asclepius was...
31 views
sulla80
Sep 5, 20203 min read
Sulla and Mithridates
Coins related to the time of Lucius Cornelius Sulla have been a key theme in my collecting the past couple of years. Continuing from my...
49 views
sulla80
Sep 5, 20201 min read
Christmas in July
It was "Christmas in July" when this “Star of Bethlehem” coin arrived this week. Syria, Seleucis and Pieria, Antioch. AE Trichalkon, Q....
10 views
sulla80
Sep 5, 20202 min read
Resources for Parthian Coins
I have been reading the The Sunrise Collection, Assar's intro on Parthian coins. The most referenced resource for Parthian coins is...
63 views
sulla80
Sep 5, 20203 min read
Bankers' Marks & Juno Moneta
Bankers' marks were a way to differentiate official coinage from counterfeit, and perhaps had other purposes that are lost (at least to...
24 views
sulla80
Sep 5, 20202 min read
Sulla, Marius and an Anonymous denarius
In a previous post, I shared a coin from Brutus, that celebrated his family history of tyrannicide. This week, a much humbler coin,...
44 views
sulla80
Sep 5, 20202 min read
Illyrian Drachms
Here are three silver drachms from Illyria, one from Apollonia (AΠOΛ on reverse) and two from Dyrrhachion (ΔYP on reverse or straight...
193 views
sulla80
Sep 5, 20201 min read
The First Pythian Games
This coin from Emperor Valerian was minted in his first year of reign. The portrait stype is much better than average for this emperor....
14 views
sulla80
Aug 28, 20202 min read
Quinarius from a time of "Massive Recoinage"
I was a little worried about the fragility of this coin when I bid on it and was pleasantly surprised see that, in hand, the flan crack...
39 views
sulla80
Aug 27, 20202 min read
Birds and Bad Luck
The gens Fabia was a prominent patrician family, who claimed descent from both Hercules and Evander. One branch of the gens Fabia, the...
32 views
sulla80
Aug 27, 20205 min read
Coins of Arbia Felix: Himyarite Kingdom Starter Kit
This unusual coin from Ariabia Felix is from the late 1st century or early second century AD. There doesn't seem to be much info on these...
45 views
sulla80
Aug 27, 20202 min read
46 BC 180 Obverse Double Strike
This coin struck me as unusual, and I couldn't decide which way was "up" - so I didn't hesitate to pick it up. All three images below are...
24 views
sulla80
Aug 27, 20203 min read
Who is buried in Philip II's tomb?
My collecting focus has been the Roman Republic and especially the time period around the career of Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix. I have...
103 views
bottom of page