| Naville Numismatics Ltd. > Auction 86 | Auction date: 17 December 2023 |
| Lot number: 404 Price realized: 2,200 GBP (Approx. 2,794 USD / 2,559 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Iulius Caesar and C. Cossutius Maridianus Denarius 44, AR 21.00 mm., 3.93 g. CAESAR – PARENS·PATRIAE Veiled and wreathed head of Caesar r.; behind, apex and before, lituus. Rev. C·COSSVTIVS and MARIDIANVS arranged in form of cross; in angles, A – A – A – FF. Babelon Julia 43 and Cossutia 2. C 18. Sydenham 1069. Sear Imperators 112. RBW 1687. Crawford 480/19. An exceptional portrait of Caesar. Lovely iridescent tone tone, an area of weakness on obverse, otherwise Extremely fine Ex Spink Numismatic Circular, October 1992, 4882. Privately purchased from Baldwins. Starting price: 750 GBP |  |
Match 1:
| Numismatica Ars Classica > Auction 143 | Auction date: 7 May 2024 |
| Lot number: 384 Price realized: 24,000 CHF (Approx. 26,528 USD / 24,642 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: The Dioscuri Collection. The Roman Republic. C. Iulius Caesar and C. Cossutius Maridianus. Denarius 44, AR 17 mm, 3.77 g. CAESAR – DICT·IN·PERPETVO Veiled and wreathed head of Caesar r. Rev. C·MARIDIANVS Venus standing l., holding Victory in r. hand and resting l. elbow on shield which in turn rests on globe. Babelon Julia 42 and Cossutia 4. C 10. Sydenham 1068. Sear Imperators 111a. RBW –. Crawford 480/15. Rare and in exceptional condition for the issue. A superb portrait of great realism, minor area of weakness on reverse, otherwise virtually as struck and almost Fdc Ex NAC 59, 2011, 837 and Triton XXII, 2019, 945 sales. From the Alan J. Harlan collection. This coin, struck by the moneyer C. Cossutius Maridianus, in February or early March of 44 BC, further shows the monarchic-style domination of Julius Caesar over contemporary Roman coinage. Whereas previously the individual moneyers had advertised mythological figures connected to their families or the real or imagined great deeds of famous ancestors, now the types revolved entirely around Caesar and his iconography. The types here are almost identical to those of the preceding denarius of P. Sepullius Macer. A veristic portrait of Cesar again appears on the obverse with a veil pulled over his head as if representing him in the act of taking the auspices. The surrounding legend also names Caesar as dictator for life, but is slightly longer winded in its expression, preferring DICT IN PERPETVO to Macer's more succinct DICT PERPETVO. Also, like the Macer denarius, the issue of Maridianus depicts Venus Victrix on the reverse to allude to Caesar's divine ancestry and to his victory over the opposition at Pharsalus. However, here the moneyer has taken the representation of the goddess a step further in advancing Caesar's ambition of becoming a new Roman king. On the Macer issue Venus is shown in a traditional manner, probably imitating a statue, in which she holds a figure of Victory in her right hand and rests her left on the shield of her lover, the war god Mars. Maridianus features a similar Venus Victrix, but now the shield is set atop a globe, indicating her rule over the cosmos and the universal power of Caesar. The addition of the globe clearly advertises a Rome and its empire firmly under the authority of the gens Iulia in the person of the dictator. One-man rule in Rome was here to stay and Caesar was not shy about flaunting it. It is hardly surprising that with such outrageous claims even his former friends turned against him and plotted his death several weeks after this coin was struck. Estimate: 15000 CHF |  |
Match 2:
| Chaponnière & Firmenich SA > Auction 17 | Auction date: 19 November 2023 |
| Lot number: 78 Price realized: Unsold | |
| Lot description: ROMAN REPUBLIC. C. Cossutius Maridianus. Denarius 44 BC, Rome. Obv. CAESA[R] - PARENS PAT[RIAE]. Veiled and wreathed head of Julius Caesar, apex behind, lituus below chin. Rev. C. COSSVTIV[S] / MARID-IANVS. Legend crossed, A, A, A and F.F in angles (Auro, Argento, Aere Flando Feriundo). Alföldi type XVII (A9/R9) ; RRC 480/19. AR. 4.11 g. - VF obverse off-centered Probably struck during Caesar lifetime (Woytek, Arma et Nummi, Vienna, 2003, p. 727) - Starting price: 1000 CHF |  |
Match 3:
| Numismatica Ars Classica > Auction 143 | Auction date: 7 May 2024 |
| Lot number: 385 Price realized: 10,000 CHF (Approx. 11,053 USD / 10,267 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: The Dioscuri Collection. The Roman Republic. C. Iulius Caesar and C. Cossutius Maridianus. Denarius 44, AR 21 mm, 3.24 g. CAESAR – PARENS·PATRIAE Veiled and wreathed head of Caesar r.; behind, apex and before, lituus. Rev. C·COSSVTIVS and MARIDIANVS arranged in form of cross; in angles, A – A – A – FF. Babelon Julia 43 and Cossutia 2. C 18. Sydenham 1069. Sear Imperators 112. RBW 1687 (this coin). Crawford 480/19. Rare and in exceptional condition for the issue. A superb portrait struck on a very broad flan, minor areas of weakness, otherwise good extremely fine Ex NAC sale 63, 2012, RBW, 458. Privately purchased from D. Devine in November 1994. Estimate: 12500 CHF |  |
Match 4:
| Naville Numismatics Ltd. > Auction 88 | Auction date: 7 April 2024 |
| Lot number: 367 Price realized: 900 GBP (Approx. 1,135 USD / 1,049 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Julius Caesar, 49-44 BC. Denarius April 44, AR 19.00 mm., 3.62 g. CAESAR - PARENS PATRIAE Laureate and veiled head of Julius Caesar r.; behind, apex; before, lituus. Rev. C•COSSVTIVS / MARIDIANVS with A A A F • F in angles. B. Julia 43 and Cossutia 2. RBW 1687. Sydenham 1069. Crawford 480/19. Toned, light traces of restriking, marks in fields and on the edge; otherwise Very Fine. Starting price: 250 GBP |  |
Match 5:
| Numismatica Ars Classica > Auction 143 | Auction date: 7 May 2024 |
| Lot number: 383 Price realized: 4,750 CHF (Approx. 5,250 USD / 4,877 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: The Dioscuri Collection. The Roman Republic. C. Iulius Caesar and P. Sepullius Macer. Denarius 44, AR 18 mm, 3.85 g. CAESAR – [DICT] PERPETVO Veiled and wreathed head of Caesar r. Rev. P·SEPVLLIVS – MACER Venus standing l., holding Victory and sceptre resting on shield. Babelon Julia 50 and Sepullia 5. C 38. Sydenham 1074. Sear Imperators 107d. RBW 1685 (this coin). Crawford 480/13. Rare. A very attractive portrait struck on a full flan. Extremely fine Ex NAC sale 63, 2012, RBW, 1685. Privately purchased from D. Devine in November 1994. This denarius, struck in March 44 BC, shortly before the fatal Ides, builds on the themes of the preceding coin. Here, the portrait of Caesar is again depicted in a veristic style, but his head is shown veiled to emphasise the sacred character of the dictator-now empowered for life, as indicated by the legend DICT PERPETVO. The element of the veil again alludes to his status as a member of the college of augurs. According to Roman religious custom, the augurs veiled their heads while divining the will of the gods from observing the flight of birds in the air or their movements on the ground. This was done so that the augur could only see ahead of him and would not risk the possibility of catching a glimpse of an ill omen out of the corner of his eye. This use of religious imagery in the service of politics pioneered by Caesar would be used much more deftly by his adoptive heir, Octavian, especially in his role as Augustus, the first of the Roman emperors. The reverse type illustrates the repression of moneyers' influence on the coinage in favour of Caesarean iconography. Although the legend names the moneyer P. Sepullius Macer, the type depicts Venus Victrix, a goddess closely associated with the gens Iulia and with the personal successes of Julius Caesar. The Julian family claimed its descent from Aeneas and Venus and Caesar had vowed a temple to Venus Victrix in return for victory over Pompey at the Battle of Pharsalus on 9 August 48 BC. However, in the aftermath of his victory over the Pompeians, Cesar instead opted to build the temple in honour of Venus as Genetrix, the originator of the gens Iulia. The temple was dedicated at the conclusion of Caesar's great triumph on 26 September 46 BC. Unfortunately, Julius Caesar did not live to see the temple and its associated forum completed. It remained unfinished at the time of assassination and was only finished by Octavian as an act of filial piety. Estimate: 5000 CHF |  |
