Description
| Roman Republic. C. Norbanus. Denarius, 83 BC, Rome mint. | |
| Obverse: | Head of Venus wearing a diadem, earrings and a necklace right, below C NORBANVS, to the left XXXXVIIII. |
| Reverse: | Fasces with axe in the middle, to the right a corn ear and to the left a caduceus. |
| Dimensions: | AR, 3.90 g, 18 mm, 7h. |
| References: | Crawford 357/1b; Sydenham 739; BMCRR Rome 2770 var. |
| Condition: | Nicely toned specimen with a minor flan fault on the obverse. Good very fine. |
| Provenance: | From a private German Collection, acquired at Emporium Alpha Auction No. 1 (2018), 298. |
| Comment: | This coin refers to the same name father of the moneyer. As consul, he organized the grain supply of Rome in 83 BC. The Caduceus (symbol of prosperity) and the corn ear refer to this. The fasces, a bundle of rods, was a symbol of the imperium, it probably refers to Sulla. The Venus head is maybe also connected to Sulla, who had a tremendous relationship to Venus. See Plutarch, The Parallel Lives, The Life of Sulla, 6ff.
The moneyer |
