| Numismatica Ars Classica > Auction 150 | Auction date: 2 December 2024 |
| Lot number: 763 Price realized: 170,000 CHF (Approx. 192,941 USD / 182,676 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | Show similar lots on CoinArchives Find similar lots in upcoming auctions on  |
| Lot description: Sextus Pompeius. Aureus, Sicily 37-36, AV 20 mm, 8.11 g. MAG·PIVS· – IMP·ITER. Bearded and bare head of Sextus Pompeius r.; all within oak-wreath. Rev. PRAEF Heads of Cn. Pomepius Magnus, on l., and Cn. Pompeius Junior, on r., facing each other; at sides, lituus and tripod. Below, CLAS·ET·ORAE / MARIT·EX·S·C. C 1. Bahrfeldt 87. Babelon Pompeia 24. Sear Imperators 332. Woytek Arma et Nummi p. 559. Calicó 71a. Crawford 511/1. Very rare and among the finest specimens known. An exceptional specimen of this important and fascinating issue with three superb portraits of masterly style. Struck on a very large flan, an interesting graffito (ePMIAC) on reverse field, otherwise extremely fine Ex Leu sale 93, 2005, Perfectionist, 2. Purchased privately from Bank Leu in 1965, originally from the stock of G. Zacos, and apparently found in Asia Minor circa 1961. Most probably this coin also comes from the Rollin & Feuardent sale June 1879, Racine, lot 490, since the drawing of the catalogue depicts an obverse with absolutely the same centring of the present coin, while the reverse is slightly different which is why we cannot be absolutely certain of this provenance. Sextus Pompey was the first Roman to use dynastic imagery on coinage. This crucial step was taken in an age when the senate and traditions were losing ground to the cult of personality. The careers of the recent warlords Marius, Sulla, Crassus, Caesar, and Sextus' own father, Pompey Magnus, had benefited disproportionately from the strength of their charisma. In 42 B.C., when aurei of portrait type originally were struck, Antony, Octavian, Lepidus, Brutus, Cassius, and Sextus Pompey all were fighting for supremacy. Thus, this issue sets an enormously important precedent with Sextus honouring his family in so complete a manner. He and his brother Cnaeus earlier had initiated that practice by portraying their deceased father on denarii as early as 45-44 B.C., but here Sextus takes it a step further by portraying himself with his deceased brother and father. The issue amounts to an exhibition of his pedigree, as well as a nostalgic call to arm for all who had thus far served the Pompeian cause. Both Antony and Octavian made use of the coinage to advertise their relationship with the murdered Julius Caesar, a publicity war that was won by Caesar's nephew and heir, Octavian. But Antony took the practice to a level even beyond Sextus Pompey by representing living relatives on his coinage. Lacking a pedigree that was comparable with Octavian or Sextus Pompey, Antony pursued the next best option by promoting his active dynasty, for the coins bore portraits of his brother, his son, and perhaps three of his four wives. On this aureus we find the only coin portrait of Sextus Pompey; it is shown within an oak wreath, traditionally an award for those who had saved the life of a Roman citizen, which must relate to the many lives he saved by taking in political refugees who escaped the Caesarean proscriptions. On the reverse the portraits of Pompey Magnus and Cnaeus Pompey are flanked by priestly objects, a lituus and a tripod, which represent the priesthoods to which they had been appointed. Estimate: 125000 CHF |  |
