Description
| Roman Republic. Q. Sicinius. Denarius, 49 BC, Rome mint. | |
| Obverse: | Head of Fortuna populi Romani, wearing a diadem and earrings, right, before FORT, behind P R. |
| Reverse: | Palm-branch with fillet and winged caduceus in saltire, above wreath, in field [II]I – VIR, below Q SICINIVS. |
| Dimensions: | AR, 3.85 g, 19 mm, 2h. |
| References: | Crawford 440/1; Sydenham 938; BMCRR Rome 3947. |
| Condition: | Slight corrosion and minor scratches on the obverse, reverse off center, unregular flan, edge split. Otherwise good very fine. |
| Provenance: | From a private German Collection, acquired at Savoca Silver Auction 34 (2019), 331. |
| Comment: | The coins in the first century BC often carry highly political images. This one is no exception: The reverse of the coin refers to the famous triumvirate of C. I. Caesar, C. Pompey Magnus and M. L. Crassus. At the time the coin was struck, Crassus was already dead, and the alliance was almost broken. Because the moneyer was a supporter of Pompey, he depicted the hopes of the Republicans at the beginning of the Civil War: prosperity (caduceus) and victoriousness (palm branch), above it stands the successes of Pompey (wreath). The obverse supports these hopes with the depiction of Fortuna P(opuli) R(omani), the personification of fortune of the Romans.
The moneyer |
