Full text of "The Numismatic journal"

OYAL ONTARIO MUSEUM

- OF*^*^'*"

ARCHAEOLOGY*

THE

NUMISMATIC JOURNAL

EDITED BY

JOHN YONGE AKERMAN, F.S.A.

SF< ItF.TAHY TO THE NUMISMATIC SOCIETY.
CORRESPONDING MEMBER OF THE SOCIETY OF ANTIQUARIES OF SCOTLAND.

VOL. I.

JUNE, 1836. APRIL, 1837.

" Haec studia adolescentium alunt, senectutem oblectant, seeundas
res ornant, adversis perfugium, ac solatium prwbent, delectant domi,
non impediunt foris, pernoctant nobiscum, percgrinantur, rusticantur ."
Cirern, pro Archia Pnrln.

LONDON :
E.WILSON, KING WILLIAM STREET,

LONDON HKIDGE.

M. ))((('. \\.\\ ll.

CAPTAIN WILLIAM HENITY SMYTH, R.N

K.S.F.. P.R.8., i' .8. A., ! .1

VICE PRESIDENT

THE ROYAL SOCIETY.

ONE OF THE BOARD OF VISITORS OF THE GREENWICH OBSERVATOIiV

MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY OF LONDON,

OF THE SOCIETY FOR THE STATISTICS AND NATURAL

HISTORY OF TUSCANY, AND OF THE ACADEMIES

OF SCIENCES OF NAPLES AND PALERMO,

A ZEALOUS I' H O M O T K II OF THE SCIENCE OF MEDALS.

OUB K1HST NUMISMATIC FASCICULUS,

RESPECTFULLY AND GKATEFULLY

DEDICATED.

CONTENTS.

I. Unpublished Coins of Nicaea in Bithynia . 1

II. Notices of the Most Remarkable Coins of the

Roman Consular Series . . . . 10

III. Saxon Skeatta of Wildfrid .... 18

IV. Explanation of "NUBISCONS," &c. on the

Coins of Romulus, Son of Maxentius . . 25

V. Roman Coins by M. Finder . . . 31

VI. Unpublished Half-Groat of Charles I. . . 34

VII. Remarks on a Penny of Henry III. . . 39

VIII. The Miinter Cabinet .... 41

IX. Letter from T. Burgon, Esq. ... 48

X. On the Jewish Shekel .... 53

XI. On the Coins of Marcus J. Brutus, and of

Decimus Brutus, surnamed Albinus . . 69

XII. Skeatta of Aldfrith, King of Northumbria . 78

XIII. Allectus and Constans . . . . 79

XIV. On the Skeatta ascribed to Wildfrid in Art. III. 86
XV. An Inedited Coin of Titus .... 88

XVI. Observations on the Coins of the Ancient

Britons 91

XVII. Unpublished Half-Crown of Charles I. . 96

XVIII. An Inquiry into the Motive which influenced
the Ancients in their choice of the various
Representations which we find stamped on

their Money ...... 97

XIX. On Tradesmen's Tokens .... 139

XX. On certain Coins hitherto attributed to Herac-

cleum in the Chersonesus Taurica . . 164

XXI. On the Money called "Lucullia" . . 169

XXII. Medallion of Antoninus . . 178

Viii CONTENTS.

XXIII. Roman Coins discovered at Exeter . 181

XXIV. On the Skeatta attributed to Wildfrid, Arch-

bishop of York, in Art. III. . 187
XXV. Medallion of Commodus . . .190

XXVI. Remarks on Art. XVIII 192

XXVII. The Coinage of the Ancient Britons . . 209

XXVIII. On an Unedited Silver " Fiorino," with an
Inquiry into the Origin of the Florentine

Coinage during the time of the Republic . 228

XXIX. On the Class of Coins denominated Restored " 243

XXX. On the Weight of the Jewish Coins described

by Bayer . ! . . .259

XXXI. Revival by Dr. Walsh of a refuted Error . . 260

XXXII. Unpublished Coins of Carausius and Allectus . 264

MISCELLANIES.

Consumption of Gold in England . . . . 49

Discovery at Pompeii . . . . . . 50

of a Treasure at Mount Taurus . . . ib.

of Denarii at Laval ..... ib.

Sale of Antiques at Paris . . . . . . ib.

Numismatic Periodical of Hanover . . . . ib.

Discovery at Falaise . . . . . . . 51

of Roman Coins in Wales . . . . 132

The Dioscuri on Reverses . . . . . .133

ADLOCVT COH. First Brass of Caligula . 134

Coinage of the United States ib.

Medals of Temperance ..... ib.

Original Letter of Ainsworth 135

Medals of the Popes .... ib.

Bactrian Coins ... 135

Gold Medallion of Charles the First . ib.

New Indian Rupee . 137

Coins at Cambridge . . 202

Silver Coin of Carausius . 203

CONTENTS. IX

Skeatta attributed to Wildfrid 204

Russian Medals ib.

Groats of Edward IV. and Henry VII. ... 205

Numismatic Society . . . . . . . ib.

Scottish Coins 206

Coins of Scotland . . . . . . . ib.

Cabinet of Medals at Madrid 207

Medal of Charles XII. of Sweden .... 265

Discovery of Gold Coins at SotHhend near Lewisham . ib.

Ratios of Gold and Silver, from 1760 to 1829. . . 266

Correspondence 52,138,208,277

TRANSACTIONS OF THE NUMISMATIC
SOCIETY.

Coins of Claudius with DE BRITTANIS " . . 272

Pontefract Siege Money 273

Pewter Farthings . . . . . . . ib.

List of Members 275

ERRATA.

Page 26, line 1 1, for NVBIS "CONS "NVB AVG.
read NVB1SCONS-NVBAVG.
, 14, for les read le.

27, , 23, /or understood read misunderstood.
95, , 26, /or gred read gold.

136, , 8, from bottom, for collection of the British
Museum, read cabinet of Mr. Hawkins.
167, , 8, /or Illyriorum read Illyricorum.
171, , 4, (in the note) for 164 read 154.

198, , 7, /or Vindelicrum read Vindelicorum.
28, /or the Scaligei read Scaliger.

199, 14./orXXXXLXmzdCCCCLX.

208, 11, in the correspondence, for Crickdale, read
Cricklade.

NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

UNPUBLISHED COINS OF
IN BITHYNIA.

SEVERAL cities of antiquity bore the name of Nicaea.
Nicaea in Bithynia was founded by Antigonus 2 , the son of
Philip of Macedon, who gave it his name ; but it was sub-
sequently called Nicaea, by Lysimachus, who bestowed
upon it the name of his wife Nicaea, the daughter of An-
tipater, at her request. Strabo informs us that Nicaea was
the metropolis of Bithynia, and that it was situated near
the lake Ascanius, and surrounded by fruitful and extensive
plains. It is said to have been sixteen stadia in circum-
ference. Stephanus says of this city, " Nicaea is a colony of
the Bottiaeori, and was first called Ancora, afterwards An-
tigonea, and lastly Nicaea, from the wife of Lysimachus."
It was renowned in aftertimes for the celebrated council
held there. The fabulists, however, have another story,
and tell us of a certain nymph, Nicsea, seduced by Bacchus,
who built the city in honour of his mistress.

The coins of Roman emperors struck in this city, are
numerous and of a variety of types. The following speci-
mens are well-deserving the attention of the numismatist.

1 Now Isnik. This city was the birth-place of Hipparchus and
of Dion Cassius.

2 KrifffjLa Avnyoj'8 \iiv irp&TOv. Strabo, lib- xii.

2 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

DOMITIANUS.

Obverse. AYT AOMITIANOS * KAIHAP

Aoyuinaj'oc Kcu<rap. The Emperor Domitianus Ccesar.
Laureated head of Domitianus to the right.

Reverse. NIKAIEIS IIPOTOI THS EIIAPXEIAS. The people
of Niccea, the first of the Province. Ceres standing to
the left, holding in her right hand two ears of corn, and
in her left the hasta-pura erect. (M. size 8). In the
collection of the British Museum.

A coin in indifferent preservation. It shews, that in the
reign of this emperor the people of Nicsea were allowed to
assume the proud distinction of Metropoles, since those of
Julius Caesar, Augustus, Claudius, Nero, and Vespasian,
struck in this city, are without the title 3 . The device of
the reverse is an appropriate one for a city lying in a fruitful
region.

II.
MARCUS AURELIUS.

Obverse. M AYP ANT&NINOC K AI, Mapms Avpr]\tog A vrw -
VLVOQ Kate-dp. Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Caesar.
Bare youthful head to the right.

Reverse. NIKAIGHN. (Money) of the people of Niccea. Victory
standing to the left, inscribing a shield which she rests
on a cippus ; in her left hand a palm branch. (JE.
size 7). In the British Museum.

This coin is in excellent preservation, but the portrait is
by no means an accurate one. Aurelius was created Csesar
by Antoninus Pius, in the year of Rome 891, A.D. 138;
and, consequently, this coin must have been struck between
that period and 914, A.D. 161, when he succeeded to the
empire.

3 Mionnet, torn. ii. pp. 450, 451. The title, however, does not
occur on coins later than this reign.

UNPUBLISHED COINS OF NIC^EA. 3

III.

Obverse. AYT KAI M AYPH ANTQNINOC. AvroKparwp
Kcutrap Map/coe Aypr/Xioc AVTWVIVOG- The Emperor
Ccesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus. Bust of the em-
peror bare-headed, to the right.

Reverse. NIKA(I)GON, (Money) of the people of Niccza. The
heads of Serapis and Isis, side by side, to the right.
(^E. size 8.) In the British Museum.

The portrait of the emperor on this coin resembles that
of his colleague Verus ; the hair is arranged in very short
curls. The reverse is interesting, and presents us with the
heads of two important deities among the Greeks and
Romans. We are told that Aurelius, having been afflicted
with a dangerous malady, made a journey to the celebrated
temple of Serapis at Perinthus in Thrace, and was ulti-
mately restored to health ; it is not, therefore, improbable
that this coin, though minted in a distant city, was issued on
the occasion of the emperor's recovery. The reader will
remember that Caracalla, in illness, went to Alexandria to
consult the god Serapis ; upon which occasion he ordered a
horrible massacre of the citizens, who had assembled to do
him honour.

Captain Smyth observes of Serapis, " That he was not
only the Jupiter and Pluto of the Egyptians, but also typi-
fied the universe ; and the response given to the enquiries
of Nicocreon, tyrant of Cyprus, declares his ubiquitous at-
tributes that the earth was his foot, the sea his belly, and
the sun his eye ; and as his head was in heaven, it followed
that the modius must be filled with all the heavenly gifts for
which his followers prayed." This is related by Macrobius,
who adds : " Ex his apparet Serapis et Solis unam esse, et
individuam naturam."* Alexander Severus introduced the

4 Saiurnal. lib. i. cap. xxv.

4 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

worship of Serapis at Rome; but it was attended by so
many irregularities, that the senate was compelled to abolish
it. It is remarkable, that Herodotus, who says so much of
the religion of the Egyptians, makes no mention of Serapis.
Apollodorus identifies this deity with the bull Apis. The
head of Isis accompanies that of Serapis, as on a large brass
coin of Antoninus struck at Alexandria. Like the other
deities of the ancients, she bore various names, according as
she was invested by her admirers with particular attributes.

IV.

Obverse. AYT K AY M AYPHAIOC ANT&NINOC CG.
Avro/Cjoarwp Kaurap Avyovoroe Map/cog Avp^XiOc
A.VTUVIVOC S/3aoro. The Emperor Ccesar Augustus
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Sebastos. ?

Reverse. TON (KTIC) THN NIKAIGIC. Tov

The people of Niccea (honour} the founder. Hercules
strangling the Nemaean Lion. (^E. size 8.) In the
British Museum.

The people of Nicoea here ascribe to Hercules 5 the founda-
tion of their city ; but on other coins they give that honour
to Bacchus. 6 This was a description of flattery which the
Greeks well understood and frequently practised ; and, find-
ing it perhaps successful with their mortal rulers, cultivated
the favour of the gods by a like species of adulation. Hercules
is figured on vast numbers of ancient coins: it was natural
that he should be a conspicuous deity among a people with
whom valour was virtue of the highest order. Coins of
Caracalla, struck in Nica3a, record the other labours of
Hercules ; two are given by Frblich, upon one of which the

5 Dio Chrysostomus styles Bacchus TIjOOTraropa, and Hercules
KTIOTJJV. Or at. 39.

6 Mionnet. Descrip. torn. ii. 452.

UNPUBLISHED COINS OF NIC^A. 5

Sampson of the Pagans is represented seizing the hind
of CEnoe, and on the other bearing away the horses of
Diomedes. 7

COMMODUS.

Obverse. AY M AY KOM ANTONINOC. AvT-oK-parwp Map-
K-OG Avpr/Xioc Ko/jL/jio^og Avruvtvoe. The Emperor Mar-
cus Aurelius Commodus Antoninus. Bust of Commo-
dus to the right, with the head bare.

Reverse. NIKAIGliN. (Money) of the people of Nicaea. A figure
on horseback armed with a lance, and engaged in combat
with a lion. (IE. size 8). In the British Museum.

A coin of good fabric, but riot in good preservation. The
bust which it bears is accurate and characteristic ; and the
reverse is evidently complimentary to the tyrant, of whose
exploits in the amphitheatre much has been said by the
ancient historians. He is here represented in combat with
a lion, a feat which one of his predecessors (Hadrian) fre-
quently performed, if we may credit Spartianus 8 .

VI.

Obverse. K M AY KOM ANTiiNINOC. Kcuo-ap Map/cog
AvprjXtoQ Kofj,p,odog AVTUVLVOQ. Ccesar Marcus Aurelius
Commodus Antoninus. Laureated head of Commodus to
the right.

Reverse. (N)IKAIclN. (Money) of the people of Niccea. A
female bust to the right, crowned with ivy, and sur-
mounted by a turret or fluted column. (M. size 71.) In
the British Museum.

The learned Eckhel supposes the female head on the
reverse of this coin to be that of Nicaea, the mistress of
Bacchus. In this conjecture he is supported by the crown

7 Quatuor Tentamina, pp. 266, 267.

8 " Venatu frequentissime leonem manu sua occidit."

6 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

of ivy, while the column or turret is an appropriate symbol
of the city which bore her name 9 .

VII.
SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS.

Obverse. A E8IL . . . OYHPOC HE. Pro AvroKparwp SCTT-

TtfjLiog Zeovripog IlepTiva^. The Emperor Septimius
Severus Pertinax. "Head of Severus to the right with
the spiked crown.

Reverse. NIKAI6&N. (Money) of the people of Niccea. A
Roman eagle between two standards. (^E. size 9.) In
the British Museum.

This coin is in indifferent preservation. The obverse
bears a very tolerable portrait of Severus. The reverse
seems to have been a favourite one in this reign, as we find
it on his Roman Denarii ; indeed Severus appears to have
been fully sensible of the effect of such compliments to the
legions, which had enabled him to grasp the empire. These
testimonials of the emperors to their legions are by no
means uncommon on the Latin coins in all the metals;
even the usurper Carausius commemorates the services of
the legions who espoused his cause.

VIII.
JULIA DOMNA.

Obverse. (I)OYAIA AOMNA ; C69. lovXta Ao/iva ^aarrj.
Julia Domna Augusta. Head of Domna to the right.
Beneath, a countermark of a small figure of Victory
standing.

Reverse. NIKAI(e)lN. (Money) of the people of Nicaa. Diana
holding a torch in each hand, in a chariot drawn by two
stags galloping to the right. ( JL size 91). In the
collection of Dr. J. Lee.

The bust on this well-preserved coin resembles that on

9 Doct. Num. Vet. torn. ii. p. 426 ; et Num. Feteres Anecdoti,
p. 188.

UNPUBLISHED COINS OF NICAEA. 7

those minted at Rome. The reverse bears the effigy of
that wrathful arid vindictive goddess, whose good graces the
ancients were always desirous of cultivating, and whose
vengeance was as certain and as terrible as that of any of
the deities. She is here represented as described by
Claudian :

" Dixit, et extemplo frondosa fertur ab Alpe

Trans pelagus : cervi currum subiere jugales,

Quos decus esse Deae primi sub limine coeli

Roscida secundis concepit Luna cavernis.

Par nitor intactis nivibus, frons discolor auro

Germinat, et spatio summas sequitantia fagos

Cornua ramoso surgunt procera metallo 10 ."

The other poets also allude to her travelling in this
manner ; and on a medallion of Acrassus she is represented
as Diana Polymamma drawn by a pair of stags 11 . This
type was evidently intended by the people of Nicaea as a
compliment to the empress. A large brass Latin coin of
Domna represents her as the mother of the gods drawn by
lions. The countermark on this coin was doubtless intended
to alter its original value, or to give it currency in other
cities, as in the case of the Spanish dollars which circulated
in this country with the stamp of the head of George the
Third, during the late war 12 . It appears by several coins of
Nicaea 13 , that the people of that city held games in honour
of Severus and his sons, after the battle which proved fatal
to Pescennius Niger, from which it may be inferred that
the coin above described was minted at the same period.

Paneg. HI. in Stiliclionem.

1 Buonnarotti. Osservazioni Istoriche, pp. 243, 244.

2 This countermark appears to have been much used in the
reign of Severus. Havercamp, in his description of the cabinet
of Christina of Sweden, page 182, Tab. XXVI., gives a coin of
Julia Domna, with the heads of Caracalla and Geta on the reverse,
and bearing, on the obverse, a similar countermark to that on the
coin above described.

13 Frolich. Quat. Tent. p. 236. See also No. IX.

S NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

IX.
GETA.

Obverse. CGHTIMIOC TGTAC KAICAP. Septimius Geta
Ccesar. Youthful bust of Geta to the right ; beneath, a
countermark of Victory holding a garland and palm
branch.

Reverse. EEOYHPEIA $IAAAEA$EIA NIKAIEON. The
Severian and Philadelphian (games) of the people of
Niccea. A large urn containing two branches. (J.
size 91). In the British Museum.

This coin and the one which follows, are very unlike in
fabric, and bear portraits by no means resembling each
other. This also occurs on the Latin coins of Geta, on some
of which he is depicted with a very boyish countenance,
while on others, he has the aspect of a man of at least thirty
years of age. The countermark beneath the head, is pre-
cisely similar to that on No. VIII; and it is worthy of
remark, that it is placed on the same part of the coin, and
appears to have been struck by the same punch or die.

The legend and device of the reverse, commemorate
the solemn games held by the people of Nicaea in honour
of Severus and his sons. These games in honour of the
Emperors were first instituted by Augustus, who, after the
battle of Actium, brought to Rome the games held in that
city every three years in honour of Apollo. The servile
Greeks required but little prompting in the science of flat-
tery. We afterwards find, AYTOYSTEIA and SEBASMIA ;
and in the subsequent reigns of Antoninus, Commodus,
Severus, and Gordian, games were held in honour of those
emperors. This coin bears the title of Caesar, which rank
was conferred on Geta by his father, in the year of Rome
951, (A.D.198).

Obverse. AYT K H C6II PET AC AYFOY. AvroicpaTup
n/3\ioe SeTrrtyuog Ferae Avyovorof. The

UNPUBLISHED COINS OF NIC^EA.

Emperor Caesar Publius Septimius Geta Augustus.
Laureated bust of Geta to the left with coat of mail ;
the features strongly resembling those of his brother
Caracalla.

Reverse. NIKAIEON. (Money) of the people of Niccea. An
armed figure bare-headed, standing before an altar ; in
his right hand a small figure of Victory, his left holding
the hasta erect. (M. size 9^.) In the British Museum.

From the circumstance of its bearing the title of Au-
gustus, and a much older bust, this coin must have been
struck many years after the previous one 14 .

XI.

JULIA MAESA.

Obverse. IOYAIA MAICA AYF. lovKta Maura Avyovora.
Julia Maesa Augusta. Bust of the empress to the right.

Reverse. NIKAIEilN. (Money) of the people of Niccea. In
two lines, between a Roman eagle and two standards.
(M. size 5.) In the British Museum.

A coin of ordinary fabric.

XII.
OTACILIA.

Obverse Bust of Otacilia to the right.

Reverse. I(E)POC ATO(N) (NIKA)IE^N. The sacred games
of the people of Niccea. Fortune seated with rudder and
cornucopia. In the field, three urns, each containing a
palm-branch. (JE. size 5J.) In the British Museum.

The legend of the obverse of this coin is so irregular, and
the letters so ill-formed, that I have not ventured to give
the reading of it. The head is clearly that of Otacilia, and
bears a strong resemblance to the portrait on her very

14 Geta had the title of Augustus and the tribunitian power con-
ferred upon him by his father, in the year of Rome 962 (A. D.
209.) The coin here described must, therefore, have been struck
between the years 211 and 213.

10 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

common Latin coins. But one coin of Otacilia, struck at
Nicsea, is given by M. Mionnet, and this is quoted from
Arigoni 15 . The fondness of the people of Nicaea for public
games, is again shewn in the coins of the reign of Philip,
whose empress, of course, is propitiated by pieces struck
in her honour. 4- * A-

II.

NOTICES OF THE MOST REMARKABLE COINS OF

THE ROMAN CONSULAR SERIES.

BY DR. JOHN GLEN KING'.

ABURIA.

I GEM. The head of the goddess Roma galeated, or covered with

a helmet.
R. Marcus ABVRIws ROMA. Apollo, or the sun, with a

15 Descript. Supplement.

1 The late Dr. J. G. King, who died in 1781, designed giving a
complete account of all the important varieties of the Roman Con-
sular and Imperial Series, down to the reign of Trajanus Decius ;
but from some cause or other, the work was never finished. The
readers of the Numismatic Journal will see that the portion of his
labours here for the first time printed, has been ably performed.
The doctor's own language has been retained throughout, which
will account for the occasional peculiarities of expression.

The doctor assigned, as his reason for not continuing his plan
to a later period, that the work of the Abbe Bandurius, which
commences at the reign of Trajanus Decius, was so complete as to
leave nothing more to be desired ; the preceding era, however, was
not only incomplete, but that portion which had been published was
so voluminous, as to place it beyond the reach of many, while its
bulk would deter others from entering upon the study.

The series of plates which had been intended to accompany the
work, are now being completed and prepared for publication, in a
separate form, with the addition of many valuable tables, &c.

ROMAN CONSULAR MEDALS. 11

radiated head, riding in a car with four horses (quadriga),
holding a whip in his right hand, and the reins in his left.

II The same head as No. I.

R. Caius ABVRIws ROMA. Mars in a car with four horses,
a trophy in his right hand, and a spear in his left.

The Aburian family was reckoned plebeian 2 . We find
three of the name on coins called GEMINUS or GEMELLUS,
or whatever else the GEM may signify; for there is no ac-
count of it in history or in the ancient inscriptions. These
three persons were MARCUS and CAIUS ABURIUS, who were
brothers, and MARCUS son of the former. They served the
republic in several offices, and are well known in the Ro-
man annals.

MARCUS ABURIUS, whose name is found on the denarius
No. I. was tribune of the people A. U. 566, as we learn
from Livy 3 , by whom he is called M. ABUTIUS. He then
opposed Fulvius, the proconsul, who demanded a triumph
for his exploits in .ZEtolia and Cephalonia. M. Aburius
was praetor eleven years afterwards. The sun with a ra-
diated head, on this coin, is supposed to allude to the family
name ; as if it was derived ab amburendo (from burning J. It
must be confessed, this allusion is pretty far-fetched, and I
do not pretend to vouch for it : but the learned reader well
knows, that the Romans often borrowed quaint names from
very particular and whimsical circumstances.

CAIUS ABURIUS, whose name is on No. II. was brother
to Marcus the elder, and uncle to the younger. He was
tribune of the people A. U. 568; and is mentioned by Livy 4
among the legates, who, in 588, when the senate and
people had decreed to make war on Perseus, king of

2 See Remarks on the Coelian Family in this article.

3 Lib. xxxix. c. 4. 4 Lib. xliii. c. 35.

12 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Macedonia, went to Carthage and to King Masinissa,
and obtained Numidian cavalry and elephants for the
war.

MARCUS ABURIUS, the son of Marcus, is not found on
any denarius ; but his name is extant on a brass coin.

ACCOLEIA.

I.Publius ACCOLEIVS LARISCOLVS. A female bust.
R. Three nymphs changed into larch trees.

Of this family we have no account, nor of the name,
unless it be that which is found on two ancient inscriptions,
cited by Ursinus, where it is written ACCVLEIVS PVB-
LIVS ACCOLEIVS, whose name is inscribed on this de-
narius, is supposed by Anton. Augustinus to have been
made a citizen of Rome and triumvir of the mint by
Julius Caesar.

It seems highly probable, that the device on this coin
alludes to the surname LARISCOLUS, and that the head re-
presents Clymene the mother, and the reverse the sisters of
Phaeton, who were fabled to have been turned into larices
(larch trees), quantities of which grow on the borders of
the Po, from which neighbourhood the family is thought to
have come. From the types of this coin, it evidently ap-
pears to be one of the later date.

ACILIA.

I. SALVTIS. Head of the goddess Salus, or health, crowned
with laurel.

R. Manius ACILIVS IIIVIR VALETVdinis. A woman
in the Roman gown (stola) standing ; her left elbow resting
on a pillar, her right hand holding a serpent towards her
mouth.

ROMAN CONSULAR MEDALS. 13

II. BALBVS ROMA. Head of Roma galeated, within a

wreath of laurel.
R. Manius ACILIws. A victory driving a car with four horses

(quadriga}, in which is Jupiter holding a thunderbolt in his

right hand, and a sceptre in his left ; a wheel or shield under

the horses' feet.

III. M.anius ACILIVS Manii ' Filius. In a circle round the
head of Roma galeated.

R. ROMA. Jupiter Feretrius in a car with four horses, holding
a club or sceptre in his right hand, and a trophy in his left.

Though several of the ACILII are mentioned in history,
there are only two surnames found on the coins of this
family; namely, BALBUS and GLABRIO; and as the proeno-
men MANIUS is very common among them, it is not easy
to ascertain precisely, which of these is meant, either on
some coins, or on some occasions in history.

" That the Acilian was a plebeian family, is evident" says
Vaillant, " from ancient writers, among whom it is often
written corruptly ATILIA, instead of ACILIA." This cele-
brated antiquary is indisputably right in correcting the
orthography of ancient writers, or rather editors, by medals;
for no MSS. can pretend to be of equal antiquity with these
pieces. It may seem strange, however, that this author
should have asserted that the family was plebeian, when he
himself quotes the authority of Herodian ; from which it ap-
pears that the Acilii were a very ancient patrician family.
Herodian of Alexandria, in his history of the Roman Caesars
and Emperors 5 , informs us on occasion of Pertinax endea-
vouring to excuse himself from being elected emperor by
the senate, that he presented Glabrio as more worthy of their

T Hy Be EKtivog ivyf.vf.ffTa.TOQ fj.ev iravTiav evtraTpiSiov '
yovv eig Alvuav TOV 'A0pO$ln? KJ Ay^/trw TW TOV yivovQ
Herod, lib. ii.

14 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

choice ; " being," says Pertiriax, " the noblest of all the
Patricians, as he draws his origin from ^Eneas, the son of
Venus and Anchises," which is surely a proof of the nobility
of this family.

The denarius, No. 1, is ascribed to MANIUS ACILIUS
GLABRIO. This coin is cited by Onuph. Panvinius 6 , as a
proof of the existence of a magistrate among the Romans,
called Triumvir valetudinis tuendo, for the care of the
health of the city : "similar to those," says he, " which in our
times have been created, when the plague has prevailed,
called Domini sanitatis." If this solution be not admitted,
it may be rather thought that Acilius was Triumvir cedibus
sacris reficiendis, for repairing the sacred edifices, a dignity
well known in Rome. However, we learn from Pliny 7 that
Acagathus of Peloponnesus, the first physician who came
to Rome, A. U. 515, had a shop bought at the public ex-
pence, in the Acilian street or square. This passage of
Pliny is very curious also, for the idea it gives of the Roman
manners, and their notions of medicine at that time; for
they looked upon this physician as a sorcerer, and were
ready to drive him out of the city by violence : possibly he
might affect to cure distempers by charms and magic. But
we must return to our coin, of which there is another inter-
pretation generally received; and though it appears very
fanciful, it is not unlike the turn of imagination, as it should
seem, of that age. SALUS, the goddess of health, is thought
to allude to the origin of the Acilian name, the etymology
of which is said to be from areo/iut, to heal Many of the
early Romans derived their names from the Greek lan-
guage. Hence, too, the figure on the reverse is supposed to

6 De Cimtate Romana.

~ Tabernam in compito Acilio, emtam ob id publice. Hist. Nat.
lib. xxix. c. 6. Ed. Hard.

ROMAN CONSULAR MEDALS. 15

be the statue of Hygeia; and the serpent is an emblem com-
monly given to ^Esculapius, who was, most probably, the
tutelar deity of the Acilian family.

We learn from Livy 8 , that Manius Acilius Glabrio, con-
sul, A. U. 562, having defeated Antiochus the Great, king
of Syria, and entirely subdued the JEtolians, had a triumph
decreed him, of which that author gives a curious and par-
ticular description, well worth examining. On account of
this triumph, his son, Manius Acilius Glabrio, duumvir 9 ,
about nine years after, built and dedicated the (cedes pietatis)
temple of piety at Rome, in the (forum olitorium) herb
market ; where he placed a gilt equestrian statue in honour
of his father : this was the first gilt statue in all Italy. The
denarius, No. II, as well as the following, are thought to
have been struck in memory of this triumph, by the son, and
by MAN. ACILIUS BALBUS.

MLIA.

I. The head of Rome galeated.

R.~Publius PAETUS ROMA. Castor and Pollux on horse-
back, galloping, each a lance in his hand, and a casque (pil-evm)
on his head ; over them their two stars.

II. The same.

R. Caius Alilius ROMA. The same type as the pre-
ceding.

Ill BALA. The letter C. The head of Juno, Lucina, or

Diana.
{. Caius ' ALLIES. Lucina or Diana in a car drawn by two stags ;

a quiver at her shoulder, a torch in each hand; under the stags an

ear of corn : all within a laurel-wreath.

VARIETIES. Morell has given sixteen denarii like No.
Ill, with only the small variation of the letter, or the

8 Lib. xxxvii. c.46. 9 Liv. Hist. lib. xl. c. 34.

16 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

symbol under the stags, supposed to be the mint-mark ; and
in some, instead of the ear of corn, is a cicada, an anchor,
a quiver, a frog, a winged griffin, a crab, an owl lying down,
a bee, a beetle, or a plough 10 .

AILIA is said to have been a plebeian family, but
of great antiquity, and to have been called, in the capitoline
monuments, ALLIA. The surnames of this family are
P^TUS, LAMIA, TUBERO, and CATUS.

No. I. The type of Castor and Pollux is so frequent on
these pieces, that I shall here, once for all, mention their
origin, according to the historical or rather fabulous ac-
count of them : they are said to have sprung from the egg
which Leda produced, after her amour with Jupiter, in the
form of a swan: the shell divided in two parts forms the
caps they appear in, which, with the two stars over them,
is their common symbol on medals. " Jupiter," says the
fable, " having given immortality to Pollux, he shared
it with his brother Castor, so that they lived and died al-
ternately." Being transformed into stars, they were placed
among the signs of the zodiac, under the name of The
Twins. They are called Dioscuri, or the sons of Jupiter.
The name of Cabires, found with figures similar to these on
some coins, is taken from the Phoenician language; but it
seems doubtful whether that name belonged to these deities
at all.

Castor and Pollux are represented on the reverse of
medals under the figures of two young men, sometimes on
horseback, sometimes on foot, holding the bridles of their
horses, and sometimes without horses; they are usually
either naked, or with a (palliolum) a short cloak flying loose.

10 There are also many other marks of this description. ED.

ROMAN CONSULAR MEDALS. 17

Sometimes on the reverse of medals, their two heads only
are represented in profile joined 12 .

This coin, according to Ursinus, belongs to P. Paetus,
who was praetor, A. U. 550, and consul the following year
with Cneus Cornelius Lentulus. Goltzius rather ascribes
it to P. .ZElius Paetus, who, in the Fasti Capitolini, is called
Quinti F. Publii N. son of Quintus, grandson of Publius.
His father, Quintus, was pontifex and praetor. Seventeen
of this family, men of distinguished valour, were slain at
the famous battle of Cannae 13 . Publius, the grandfather,
was tribune of the people in the year 494, and again in
497. He had a brother, Sextus .ZElius, who, according to
Goltzius, was named Catus. Valerius Maximus 14 relates a
singular adventure of ^Elius, a praetor, probably Quintus
^Elius. "As he was one day," says he, " distributing justice,
being seated on the curule chair, a woodpecker (picus),
came and perched upon his head; on which the aru-
spices declared, that if the bird was consecrated, the family
would be prosperous, but the republic would be ruined;
but if the bird was killed, the contrary would happen.
Whereupon ^Elius immediately, in the presence of the
senate, killed the bird with his teeth."

As to CAIUS ALLIUS or AILLIUS, we are entirely igno-
rant. The denarii Nos. II. and III. which bear that name,
could not be struck in the time of C. Ailius, who was con-
sul with M. Valerius Potitus Maximus, A. U. 457, and
who took first the name of Paetus; because the Romans
had no silver money so early. And as antiquity is quite
silent also with regard to the letters on these coins, as the
C. on this, A. E. T. H. &c. on others, it might perhaps,
be better, contrary to Vaillant's opinion, to say nothing

12 With a star over each head. ED.

13 Vol. Max. lib. v. c. 6. 14 Ibid.

18 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

upon them, than to hazard groundless conjectures. From
the nature of the workmanship on the pieces themselves,
which is much inferior in point of elegance to the Roman,
I should suppose they might have been struck in the island
of Corsica, the inhabitants of which, according to Paleson 15 ,
were called BalarL

Goltzius has- given a denarius, as relating to Quintus
Tubero, having the head of Neptune on the face, and
R. Q TUBERO ; Neptune riding in a car drawn by two
sea-horses : but this coin is not authenticated from any
cabinet. The first of the jJElian family who took the name
of Tubero, was Lucius ^Elius, who, we find in Livy, was
tribune of the people in 528, and praetor in 534.

The name Lamia, according to Horace, was derived by
the ^Elian family from Lamus the founder, and king of the

Formiae.

^Eli, vetusto nobilis ab Lamo 16 .

The first who took this name was tribune of the people,
A. U. 639. LAMIA is found on brass imperial coins only.

(To be continued.)

III.
SAXON SKEATTA OF WILDFRID.

SIR,

I BEG to submit to your consideration a few re-
marks upon a Skeatta, or early Saxon penny, weighing 19|
grains. It is in excellent preservation, having the legend

15 Hor. lib. x. I6 Ibid. lib. in. od. 17.

SAXON SKEATTA OF WILDFRID. 19

deeply cut and well impressed, and is, I believe, unique and
unpublished. When or where this coin was found is not
known ; but it formed part of the collection of the late Mr.
G. Burrel, of Thetford in Norfolk ; and after his death
became, and is now, the property of T. C. Ewell, Esq. of
Norwich.

The first letter in the legend is evidently a W reversed ;
the second, on slight view, appears to be simply an L ; but
closer inspection discovers a minute, but clearly expressed,
projection in the upright limb, about one third from the
bottom, intended, as I apprehend, to designate the union of
the two letters I L. The remainder admit of no doubt ;
and the whole seem to afford the name of WILDFRIDHT,
or, in more modern spelling, WILDFRID. The frequent
occurrence of reversed, combined, and (to us at least)
redundant letters in the orthography of Saxon coins, is
a fact too well known to require any comment. The
other side presents the figure of some four-legged animal
running to its own right ; but whether meant to represent a
bull in the act of butting, or a lion open-mouthed and
about to seize his prey, must be left to surmise, since the
designer has not been happy in developing his conception.
Be that as it may, the figure is certainly of no moment,
except so far as it might assist in the appropriation of the
coin.

In the Saxon Annals, we do not find any king named
Wildfrid, and are therefore compelled to suppose that this
piece has been struck by an unknown prince of that name,
by the moneyer so named of some king known or unknown,
or by a prelate possessing or usurping the right of coinage.
The first of these suppositions I shall pass by as leading to
no satisfactory result, and confine myself to the discussion
of the two others as briefly "as possible, conceiving the

20 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

probable claim to be between Egbert, king of Kent, and
Wildfrid, the renowned archbishop of York.

It has been fairly presumed, from the name of Eotberch-
tul appearing as moneyer on the reverse of a Skeatta, bear-
ing on the other side the effigy and style of Egbert, king
of Kent, and also upon the reverses of various other Skeattas
without that king's name, but all bearing, instead of it, an
animal which has been called (perhaps in error) a dragon,
that all those monies should be attributed to the same
king; and it has been also reasonably inferred, that another
Skeatta presents a farther specimen of Egbert's money, in-
asmuch as it bears an animal formed precisely as the dragon
first-mentioned, but with the name of Alchred as moneyer.
Upon comparing the engraving of the piece, under present
consideration, with Ruding's third plate, where Egbert's
coins are given, a slight resemblance will be observed in
the general thought of the designs, together with a strong
likeness between the heads of the two animals; but there
the comparison ends. In Egbert's acknowledged coins, the
animal stands erect and extends one leg aloft ; a large mane
flows from the neck ; and the tail, springing out of the back,
is thrown over the haunches and finished with a barbed
point : whereas, on the contrary, the coin under discussion
represents the head depressed, the tail thrown along the
back, and furnished at the end with a bunch of hair:
besides, the letters b and t in Wildfridht are of the Saxon
character, completely different from that of the same
letters in Eotberchtul and Alchred, which are Roman. It
may, then, be not unreasonably argued, that if Wildfrid had
been a moneyer of Egbert, the same type probably, and cer-
tainly the same form of letters, would have been used as
by his other moneyers, and that the contrary occurrence
shews we must look elsewhere for the appropriation of this
Skeatta.

SAXON SKEATTA OF W1LDFRID. 21

If we turn to the archbishop of York as competitor, I
freely think that his claim is chiefly founded on the name of
Wildfrid, supported by his splendid station, and the high and
ambitious part which he took in the proceedings of his age.
Bede has collected many particulars of his life, though evi-
dently under a most friendly bias, produced, no doubt, as
much by the pertinacious endeavours of the archbishop to
establish the independence of the church, as by his know-
ledge and general ability. In his fourteenth year, Wildfrid
entered the monastery of Lindisfarn, and pursued his studies
until, about the year 648, he was sent to Rome under the
special patronage of Eanfleda. /There he imbibed the papal
doctrines, as to the time of celebrating Easter, the eccle-
siastical tonsure, and monothelite will 1 , and returning to
Britain, took a violent part against the British clergy, in
the disputes which those doctrines engendered; insomuch
that, refusing consecration at their hand, he repaired to
Paris, and obtained it there from a bishop, a partisan of
the pope.

Expecting to be raised to the see of York by Oswi, whose
confessor he had been, Wildfrid loitered some time on the
continent; but finding that throne supplied on his return,
he, according to Richard of Hexham, accepted the invita-
tion of Wulf here, king of Mercia, and of Egbert of Kent,
to perform episcopal functions in their dominions. Three
years afterwards, however, on the demise of the incumbent,
Wildfrid was installed bishop of all Northumberland by Oswi,
but was expelled in 678 by Ecgfrith, though for what cause

1 At the period here alluded to, there was, among other conten-
tions, a dispute between the ecclesiastics, as to whether our Saviour
had two distinct wills or whether, though combining in himself
two natures, the human and divine, he possessed but one volition.
Those who held the latter opinion were, as the word imports,
believers in the monothelite will. ED.

22 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

does not appear. Appealing to the pope, Agatho, a synod
of one hundred and twenty-five bishops absolved him of
course, and declared him worthy of his bishopric ; but the
king refused to obey the papal mandate, and the archbishop
retired to Eadilwalch, king of Sussex, who gave him an
establishment of eighty-seven families on the peninsula of
Selsey, where he built a monastery and exercised archiepis-
copal jurisdiction. Benefits, however, appear to have been
conferred on this monk only to evince his ingratitude;
since, on the invasion of Sussex by Ceadwalla, Wildfrid, ac-
cording to Malmsbury (though the fact is sunk in Bede's
panegyric), furnished the invader with money and horses,
and thereby mainly assisted in the destruction of his be-
nefactor. Three years after the accession of Ecgfrith's
successor, Aldfrid, Wildfrid was restored to his see; but
after five years' occupation, he was again expelled by his
restorer. Again the archbishop appealed to Rome; and
pope John repeated the absolution of pope Agatho, but
with equally unproductive effect, for Aldfrid excluded him
pertinaciously ; nor was it till the decease of that monarch,
and the accession of his son Osred, that Wildfrid obtained
his re-establishment, and, after four years' quiet possession,
closed his turbulent life in the year 709, and seventy-fifth
year of his age.

In this epitome of Wildfrid's biography, I fear you will
think me too prolix ; but in attempting to investigate his
character through this history, I would lay the foundation
of attributing this coin to the archbishop of York. Learned,
according to the learning of the times, sanctified by religious
observances, devoting himself to the bishop of Rome as the
instrument of his own aggrandisement, and ungrateful to
all his friends and protectors, Wildfrid appears to have
aspired at independence of his sovereign ; and to such a

SAXON SKEATTA OF WILDFRID. 23

mind, the assumption of the royal prerogative of coinage
would not appear too great. The Saxon history gives no
hint when or by whom this prerogative was usurped, or
privilege obtained; and its early annals portray no pre-
late so ambitious as this monk of Lindisfarn, or so contu-
macious towards the regal authority.

1 do not find that the monkish historians relate the cause
of Wildfrid's repeated expulsions. As he was acquitted by
two holy fathers, it is natural to suppose that those historians,
especially the venerable Bede, should have been anxious to
display the doctrines impugned by Ecgfrith and Aldfrid,
and confirmed by Agatho and John, if matters of doctrine
only had been in discussion : the omission of this engenders
a suspicion that lay-charges comprised part of the accusa-
tion. Ecgfrith's confidence in the archbishop's holiness was
unbounded 2 : might not, therefore, one cause of expelling
Wildfrid have been produced by the bishop interfering with
the king's prerogative of coinage; a subject, in that age, of
most tender interest, but of which the Roman tribunal
took no cognizance. That this is mere conjecture, I am
ready to allow ; and as such only I hazard the suggestion.

In supposing this coin to be the produce of the arch-
bishop of York's mint, two objections may present them-
selves; viz. that not only the name of the sovereign, but
even the episcopal title, is omitted, and that the coinage of
the Northumbrian kingdom, and of Ecgfrith himself, being
confined to copper stycas, this silver skeatta cannot have

2 Such was his reliance on Wildfrid's sanctity, that Ecgfrith
declared he would desist from importuning his wife, Edilthrida,
for the privileges of a husband, which she persevered in refusing
him, if the bishop would assure him that she had retained her
virginity during the lifetime of her first husband. How the de-
licate investigation was conducted, or whether it was undertaken,
we are not informed by the historian.

24 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

been issued by Wildfrid, the bishop. We find, however, that
Wulfred and his successors at Canterbury, and Eanbald and
his successors at York (certainly posterior to our archbishop),
omitted the names of the sovereign on their coins; and that
Eanbald, in many instances, omitted also his ecclesiastical
title : therefore no certain deduction can spring out of those
facts : and though it has been generally presumed that
the early Northumbrian coinage consisted only of copper,
and that too in the styca shape, yet the discovery of a penny
of Eanred does away with the supposed exclusion of silver
from that mint; and I possess a piece of his successor
Ethelred, in good silver, formed as a styca, and weighing
eighteen grains 3 .

If, however, it should be thought that the appropriation
suggested is deserving of any regard otherwise, which may
be affected by these objections; I should observe, that the
skeatta in question, differing, in every respect, as it cer-
tainly does, from the contemporary money of Ecgfrith, is
not of necessity confined, in place of mintage, to the North-
umbrian locality. We have seen that Wildfrid sojourned
with Wulf here of Mercia, and Egbert of Kent, and that,

3 The confinement of copper to the Northumbrian mint alone,
is extremely probable, though the reason be not apparent. The
alleged poverty of that kingdom is evidently insufficient, since,
under Oswi and Ecgfrith, it possessed the great and preponderating
power; and though it suffered reverses, other states experienced
the like without having recourse to a copper coinage. Indeed,
copper is not found in any part of the district then termed
Northumberland, except in small quantity, and at a depth far
beyond the limited means of search then applicable : the use of
that metal in the fabrication of stycas may, therefore, possibly be
attributed to the frequent discovery of Roman bronze money in the
ruined towns and stations on the line of the Pict's walls; a surmise
corroborated by the analysis of several stycas, some of copper only,
others with a mixture of tin ; but one contained as much as jjfo parts
of silver, derived, in all probability from using a portion of the
billon money, of the lower empire, in the fabric.

EXPLANATION OF " NUBIS CONS." 25

expelled by his sovereigns from their dominions, he in defi-
ance of them, held his episcopal state within the territories
of the south Saxons. There the skeatta might have been
struck in the manner and form resembling Egbert's money ;
resemblances likely to arise through the proximity of
the two dominions of Sussex and Kent, and consequent
circulation of the currency of the latter potent kingdom :
and in that case, it would afford, not only the sole specimen
extant of money struck within the south Saxon territories,
but the earliest specimen known of prelatical coins minted
in Britain.

I regret that the consideration of this very curious coin
should not have fallen into abler hands. My remarks are
submitted with the greatest diffidence, and in the hope of
drawing out the observations of those who are better in-
formed on the subject than,

Sir,
Your very obedient Servant,

B .

IV.

EXPLANATION OF "NVBIS'CONS" &c. ON THE
COINS OF ROMULUS, SON OF MAXENTIUS.

SIR,

HAVING possessed for some time the coin of Ro-
mulus, in second brass, which bears on the obverse IMP
MAXENTIVS DIVO ROMVLO NV FILIO, 1 ! have often

1 An unpublished coin of Romulus, in second brass, in the
possession of Mr. Effingham Wilson, Jun., reads thus: DIVO
ROMVLO NV FILIO MAXENTIVS AVG. The bare head of
Romulus. R. AETERNA MEMORIA. A circular temple of six
columns, with a dome, surmounted by an eagle with expanded wings.
Exergue, MOSTP.

26 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

been perplexed with the signification of the letters NV;
and was not a little pleased to find, on reference to the
" Descriptive Catalogue" that wiser heads than mine have
found it difficult to interpret the legends of this prince.
There can be no doubt, however, I think, with respect to
the letters NV that Jobert is correct in supposing them
to signify, Nostrce Urbis ; this style of expression perfectly
agreeing with that on the coins of Maxentius, which read,
CONSERV VRB SVAE AFRIC AE SVAE KART
SVAE. The main difficulty, I presume, is with regard to
the meaning of NVBIS-CONS-NVB AVG, which occur
in other types. These words, it seems, " have puzzled all
Numismatists;" and Mionnet says, "On ignore absolument
les sens des mots, NVBIS CONS, &c." With your permis-
sion, I will offer a few remarks on this knotty subject,
though it may savour of presumption, in one so unimportant
in the class of numismatists as myself, to attempt to un-
ravel the mystery. In this, however, as in most cases, the
clue once found, we are surprised at the simplicity of the
affair, and our previous want of penetration.

I think it may be taken for granted, that NV signifies
NostrcR Urbis. We may be pretty sure too, that what it
means when alone, as on the coin in my possession, it
means also on others, when in combination with BIS or B,
and followed by CONS or AVG. These are merely pre-
liminaries; the real clue to the signification of BIS, is
obtained, as I conceive, by collating all the legends which
occur on the medallions and coins of Romulus. This I
have done, as far as my means of reference would allow ;
and I draw the following conclusion :

The mysterious letters, NVBI SCONS, &c. occur only
on those coins where Romulus is designated as DIVVS,

EXPLANATION OF " NUBIS CONS." 27

that is, after his death and supposed apotheosis ; never on
those which call him Caesar, or refer to him as living.

In the next place, the letters BIS or B, are never met
with when he is termed FILIVS; but in such instances,
the letters NV stand without them.

The opinion, therefore, which I venture to give is, that
whereas his father, Maxentius, had been anxious to en-
gage the superstitious inclinations and historical recollec-
tions of the people of Rome in favour of his government
and family, by naming his son, born in that city, after its
original founder, who had long been deified, and enthu-
siastically worshipped in the character of protector and
conservator; so he became desirous, on his son's death,
of deepening the impression of these sentiments, as well as
of gratifying his paternal pride and fondness, by announcing
the deification of the young Romulus together with the
great father of Rome ; and declaring on the medals struck
to his memory, that Romulus was thus twice (bis), or in
a two-fold sense, the conservator of the favourite city. I
give to BIS its simple and literal signification; the letter
B being used in some instances as an abbreviation, and
probably, on later coins, when its meaning would not be
understood.

The peculiarities observable on collating the various
types, may now be satisfactorily accounted for. NVBIS
CONS, &c. occur only, and then with propriety, when the
same dignities and supposed divine powers could, according
to the mythology of the age, be attributed to Romulus, the
deceased son of Maxentius, as were with universal assent
predicated of the ancient founder, after whom he had been
named. When he bears a living title, as Caesar, the legend
runs, M AVR ROMVLVS NOBILIS CAES. And in
the only instance, as far as I can discover, in which he is

28 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

mentioned as Consul 2 , the style is the same, M AVR
ROMVLVS NOB C AES COS. It would, of course, be
absurd to expect to find DIVVS and CONSVL in the same
legend. My point is to show, that the letters which have
hitherto occasioned so much perplexity, relate only to
those titles which were designed, however arrogantly, to
unite the son of Maxentius, in the public memory and
estimation, with Romulus of old.

Again, as the expression BIS would have been altogether
inappropriate in connection with FILIVS ; so in the legends
containing this epithet, we read simply NV, or Nostrce
Urbis. One of these legends is remarkably corroborative
of the opinion advanced as to the meaning of BIS : it is
this, DIVVS ROMVLVS NV CONS FILIVS. Here
he is called both preserver and son ; but as the expression
twice, or doubly, would not suit the latter term, it is omitted,
though almost always conjoined, in other cases, with Con-
servator.

1 am aware, however, that it may be necessary to notice
one or two objections.

It may be asked, if such be the meaning of NV BIS in
connection with CONS, or Conservator, how will it hold
good when in connection with AVG, or Augustus, which is
the reading in one or more instances ? But may not the
term Augustus be here intended in its highest and most
sacred sense ? On the apotheosis of the first Augustus, he

2 This legend I find quoted in Goltzius, vol. i. p. 128, under the
head " Tituli, Nomina et Epitheta"

There appears some error of the press in the " Descriptive
Catalogue" article " Romulus" where it is stated, that " Cardinal
Norris speaks of a coin with NOB CONS," which the author is
made to interpret " Nobilissimo Consuli" whereas the abbrevia-
tion of Consul is, I believe, always COS ; and therefore CONS
must signify in this coin (should it be authentic) the same as
in the others, Conservator.

EXPLANATION OF " NUBIS CONS." 29

was emphatically called, " Divus Augustus Pater" In fact,
succeeding emperors, in adopting the title of Augustus,
arrogated to themselves the character of divinity while yet
on earth; and the addition of Divus was only wanting to
enrol them absolutely among the gods. In this sense, the
great Romulus would be pre-eminently august, and with
his deified namesake, might be imagined doubly to confer
honour and protection upon Rome. Nothing is commoner
than to observe on Roman coins, the qualities of the gods
so attributed to the emperors and empresses, as to amount
very nearly to personal identification. The emperors are
represented as Mars, Hercules 3 , &c. ; the empresses, as
Juno, Venus, Cybele, &c. Sometimes a favourite god is
called " Comes Augusti," or perhaps " Augustus." Venus
herself frequently bears the title " Augusta," when an
empress assumes the character. Any objection, therefore,
on the score of extravagant compliment or flattery, to the
explanation attempted above, can have no weight with
those who are at all familiar with medals, the legends of
which, in numberless instances, assign the most transcend-
ent virtues and the loftiest destinies to the most profligate
and contemptible of mankind.

A remark may be proper with respect to the presumed
breaks, or separations, between the parts of the legends on
the coins under discussion. I say presumed, because in the
one before me, there are none of these breaks. The letters
throughout the legend are equidistant; I should rather
say, equally near together. Those who have opportunities
of examining the coins which bear BIS, &c., can inform
us, if these letters appear decidedly united with NV, and
disjoined from CONS, as usually (though I am disposed to
think, erroneously) represented in catalogues. I have to

3 Maximianus, the father of Maxentius, took the name of
Hercules.

30 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

add, that I have met with, in an old " Catalogus Numisma-
tum, $c. Amstelodami, 167 7," a legend of a coin of Romulus
not enumerated in the " Descriptive Catalogue-" which is,
DIVO ROMVLO VRBIS CONS ;" on the reverse,
"VIRTVS EXERCIT MEMORIAE AETERNAE."
This legend conducts me to the conclusion of my ob-
servations.

The design of Maxentius, in these coins was, no doubt,
to strengthen his authority and influence with the inha-
bitants of Rome generally, and the praetorian soldiers in
particular, on whom he mainly relied for the continuance
of his imperial dignity, in opposition to his formidable rival,
Constantine. The city of Rome he considered his own
by family connection and circumstances. It was his place of
residence, and the chief seat of his resources, while most of
the other participators of the purple owed their origin and
their armies to the provinces; and it was in the imme-
diate neighbourhood of its gates, that he was, at last, over-
thrown at the head of a prodigious body of forces. Though
hateful in the extreme from his vices and tyranny, he seems
to have understood that it was his policy to cultivate, in
some measure, the advantages of his position as possessor
of the capital, by directing in his favour the tendency of
the public mind to superstition. The historian, Victor,
tells us, that among other edifices, he constructed a mag-
nificent temple, called " Urbis Fanum" This building
was, in all probability, the same that is represented on the
reverses of his son's coins. A temple specially dedicated
to Urbs Roma, would contain, it may be presumed, the
statue and the shrine of the immortalized founder of the
city, with whom the mimic Romulus would be united in
honour, by decree of the imperial architect and parent.

These hints may suffice without need of enlargement.
Indeed, I am sincerely afraid, that my remarks must have

ROMAN COINS BY M. FINDER.

become quite wearisome both to you and your readers, and
that they may appear wholly unworthy of occupying a page
in a work which is intended, no doubt, to be rich in matters
of real interest and importance. There may be some,
however, who love, like myself, occasionally, a bit of cri-
ticism, though of a dry kind. These, I trust, will be
favourable even to the stiff prolixity of my annotations.
But after all, Mr. Editor, I shall not be a little proud of
them, if yourself and your numismatic friends shall con-
sider, that amongst the earliest papers of the "Journal,"
a clue is to be found for the development of what has long
been regarded as an insurmountable difficulty. You will
agree with me, in thinking, that he will be entitled to
mount his pen "as a feather in his cap," who shall be
acknowledged to have succeeded, in any measure, in
loosening a knot which has driven so many, and even the
indefatigable Mionnet, to despair.

Notwithstanding this badinage, you must believe me
sincere, in wishing full success to your new and spirited
undertaking.

Yours, &c.

E. C. B.

V.
ROMAN COINS BY M. FINDER.

THE following additions to the Series of Roman Latin Coins,
are from the first number of M. Finder's " Numismata
Antiqua Inedita" published at Berlin.

FAVSTINA JUNIOR.
I.

Obverse. FAVSTINA AVGVSTA. Bust of Faustina to the
left.

32 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Reverse. Without legend. A female figure seated in a chair, hold-
ing in her left hand the hasta-pura ; before her stands
a female, who holds up her robe with her left hand, and
with her right presents three small figures. (JE. size 12.)

II.

Obverse. FAVSTINA AVG PII AVGVSTI F. Bust of
Faustina to the left.

Reverse. Without legend. A female figure standing to the right :
before her, the figure of a child standing. Her left arm
supports a child, and her right hand rests on a cornu-
copia, which is sustained by two children. (IE. size 11.)

The learned editor of these medallions supposes both
the above types to be complimentary to the fecundity of
this profligate empress; a conjecture in which he is sup-
ported by the numerous types of the large brass coins of
Faustina, upon which she is thus flattered. Nero was so
overjoyed at the prospect of a son by his wife Poppaea, who,
however, died in consequence of his brutal treatment, that
he instituted games in honour of, and built a temple to,
Fecundity.

VALENS.

Obverse. D N VALENS P F AVG. Bust of Valens to
the right, the head encircled by a diadem of precious
stones.

Reverse. RESTITVTOR REIPVBLICAE. The emperor in
a military habit, standing full-faced ; his left hand hold-
ing the labarum, his right extended towards a female
with a turreted crown, who kneels at his feet, and holds
a cornucopia in her left hand. In the exergue, TROBS.
(TV. size 16, with a loop and ornamented border).

This fine medallion, which resembles in style and in
fabric those of the same period, described and engraved by
M. Steinbuchel 1 , was struck at Treves, (the letters in
the exergue being rendered treveris obsignata), a city

1 Notice sur les Medallions Romains en Or, du Musee I. R. de
Vienne, 1826, 4to.

ROMAN COINS BY M. FINDER. 33

in which a mint appears to have been established in the
reign of Diocletian, as would appear from numerous coins
of that prince, with the letters PTR, &c. in the exergue.
The legend of the reverse was very frequently used at this
period, and may not, therefore, refer to any particular
act of Valens.

THEODOSIUS MAGNUS.

Obverse. D N THEODOSIVS P F AVG. Bust of Theo-
dosius to the right, with a diadem of pearls.

Reverse. RESTITVTOR REIPVBLICAE. The emperor
in a military habit, with the nimbus encircling his head
standing full-faced ; holding in his left hand the labarum,
and extending his right hand towards a female with
turreted crown, who kneels at his feet, and holds a
cornucopia in her left hand. In the exergue, AQ OB.
(Pi. size 131, with a loop.)

Of this emperor, who succeeded Valens in the govern-
ment of the East, in the year of Rome 1132, A. D. 379, we
had hitherto no medallion in gold. His gold coins are,
however, very common. This fine medallion, struck at
Aquileia, resembles the preceding one, but is without a
border. M. Finder is anxious to shew the period at which
it was executed, and supposes it to be on the occasion
of some victory, probably in commemoration of the defeat
of the usurper Eugenius, who was put to death at Aquileia ;
but the legend of the reverse so often occurs on the coins
of this era, that it would appear to have been adopted by
the engraver of the die, merely on account of its popularity.

JOHANNES VII. PALEOLOGUS II.

Obverse. IWAN BACIAGVC O nAAGOAOrO. Full-faced
bust of the emperor with the nimbus ; on each side a
pellet; the right hand elevated, the left holding the
book of the Evangelists.

Reverse I ^~" X( ^ 1 Full-faced bust of Christ with a nimbus, within
6 \ C ' II. J which is a cross ; the whole surrounded by a
margin or border with pellets. (JR. size 5.)
F

34 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

This example, although one of the rudest of the uncouth
series to which it belongs, is of great interest. The latest
authenticated 2 Byzantine coin, is that of Manuel Paleologus,
first noticed by the Baron Marchant 3 . The numismatist
will not require to be informed, that the letters 1C . XC, are
the usual contractions for the words Ir?<ro Xjoioroe, on the
Byzantine money. With respect to the characters C * IT,
M. Finder offers the following conjecture. He observes,
that on the coins of Constantine Monomachus, we find the
legend " AeoTroiva M^r?7p Gea <7woie tvcrefir) Moyo/za^ov" (O
Lady, mother of God, protect the pious Monomachus !) It
is, therefore, highly probable that these letters signify,
ff(i)oig IlaXatoXoyov or (TW^OLQ \^(nvvr\v IlaXaioXoyov. We pre-
fer this to reading Swrr/p ITavreXe^juw^, a name or title given
to our Saviour in that age, although the coins attributed
to Johannes Zimisces, with the legend Jesus Christus Rex
regnum, favour such an interpretation.

VI.

UNPUBLISHED HALF-GROAT OF CHARLES I.
SIR,

THE reign of Charles I. affords the curious col-
lector of English coins an inexhaustible field for his industry

2 Tanini, in his Supplement to Banduri, describes and engraves
a large gold medallion of Joannes VIII ; but it is considered spurious.

y Melanges de Numismatique et dHistoire. Lettre 23. It is
much to be regretted that this work has become extremely scarce ;
a complete copy cannot, we believe, be procured.

UNPUBLISHED HALF-GROAT OF CHARLES I. 35

and gratification, in types, denominations, and workmanship,
many of great beauty and excellence, and some so barbarous
as to be supposed the work of a common smith. Very pe-
culiar interest attaches to others, from the circumstances
under which they were issued. Such are all those called
" Siege Pieces:" and it is probable, that during the con-
tinuance of the civil war, the king's moneyers were obliged
to move from place to place with the army; which may
account for some of the number of his coins of uncertain
mints ; for, as soon as the parliament obtained possession of
the Tower, all the workmen of the mint transferred their
services to the commonwealth, which occasioned much in-
convenience to the royal cause. A mint, which had been
granted to Aberystwith, seems now to have become the
chief dependence of the king, and to which we are indebted
for the greater part of what is termed the Oxford money:
it may be amusing, therefore, to some of your readers, to
give an account from Ruding of the establishment of this
mint.

" By an indenture between the king and Thomas Bushell,
bearing date on the 30th of July, in the thirteenth year
of Charles I. (1637), it is stated that information had been
given to his majesty and his privy council, by the said
Thomas Bushell, of the richness of the mines in the princi-
pality of Wales, the goodness of the ore of which was not
known to the owner, and so it was transported to other
nations for potter's ore, out of which strangers refined silver,
to the great loss and prejudice of his majesty's subjects, and
that some propositions had been made by him for drawing
the whole profit and benefit of them unto his majesty and
his own subjects, by erecting a mint in the castle of Aberyst-
with, in the county of Cardigan. Upon full and mature de-
liberation had thereof, in the presence of the officers of his

36 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

majesty's mint in the Tower of London, it was by his ma-
jesty (out of his favour and special respect to all his loving
subjects who undertook such hopeful designs, and with
consent of his majesty's most honourable privy council,
in approving of the beginning, proceeding, and inten-
tions of the said Thomas Bushell), thought fit and or-
dered, for the better securing of the said Thomas Bushell,
and for the better encouraging of the poor miners, by a more
timely and speedy pay out of their own labours, that a mint
should be erected in the said castle, with officers and other
workmen necessary for the same, for the coining of all such
bullion only as should be drawn out of the mines within the
said principality ; and that the monies there made should
be stampt with feathers on both sides, for a clear difference
from all other his majesty's coins, and be current according
to their several species 1 ."

" And the king did, by those presents, make, ordain, and
establish the said Thomas Bushell, warden and master-
worker of his majesty's silver monies to be made within the
said castle of Aberystwith.

" The appointment of a mint in the principality of Wales,
appears to have been highly flattering to the inhabitants of
that country, who expressed their thankfulness to the king
for vouchsafing to the principality the trust of a branch of
the royal mint, which offered to them the means of enriching
themselves, and of making themselves happier than their fa-
thers, freeing them from the cares and fears which hindered
them from diving into those mountains, because they had so
far to send before they could make the silver current 2 ."

1 Ending, vol. iv. 432.

2 Ibid. 437. Previous to the establishment of this mint, they
were compelled to send their silver to the Tower of London for
coinage.

UNPUBLISHED HALF-GROAT OF CHARLES I. 37

" It was stated by Mr. Bushell in a remonstrance to the
parliament, that, since William the Conqueror's time,
seventy millions of tons of unrefined lead had been trans-
ported, which, if Lord Bacon's philosophy had been then
known, would have produced five pounds of silver from
every ton, amounting to three hundred and fifty millions
sterling 3 ."

" In 1642, the king removed to Shrewsbury, and there
erected his mint, in which was coined the remainder of the
plate given by the two universities ; part of which had already
been minted at York.

" In the king's speech to the gentlemen at this place, he
said that he had sent for a mint, and would melt down all
his own plate, and expose all his land to sale or mortgage,
that he might bring the least pressure upon them, at the
same time expressing his hope, that whilst those who pursued
him with violence sacrificed their money, plate, and utmost
industry, to destroy the commonwealth, they would be not
less liberal to preserve it. Accordingly, he delivered all his
own plate, for the service of his household, to the mint
which he had established here, which made other men think
theirs was the less worth preserving; and such proportions of
plate and money were brought in voluntarily, no man being
pressed, that the army was fully and constantly paid; but
yet, for want of workmen and instruments, they could not
coin a thousand pounds a week, and the mint was more for
reputation than for use.

" This mint was under the direction of Mr. Bushell and
the officers of the Aberystwith mint, they being removed to
this place, where they did not continue long, being soon
ordered to Oxford, where they arrived on the 3rd of Janu-
ary, 1642V

3 Ruding, vol. iv. 438. 4 Ibid. 359.

38 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

" On the 6th of January, 1642, we have the king's letter to
the college of All Souls, to deliver to Sir William Parkhurst
and Thomas Bushell, masters of the mint, to be repaid as
soon as God shall enable us, at the rate of five shillings per
ounce, white silver, and five shillings and sixpence per
ounce, gilt silver.

" Letter from the King to the Rector and Fellows of Exeter

College.
" CHARLES R.

" and having received several quantities of

plate from divers of our loving subjects, we have removed
our mint hither to our city of Oxford, for the coinage thereof;
and we have entrusted our trusty and well-beloved Sir
William Parkhurst and Thomas Bushell, Esq., officers of
our mint, to receive the same plate from you."

"Feb. 2, 1642. Received of the Rector and Fellows of
Exeter, in Oxford, in plate for his majesty's service, as fol-
loweth :

White Plate . . . lbs.208 4 18
In Gilt Plate . 38 3

Ibs. 246 5 I." 5

Mr. Bushell, having obtained a grant from the king to
coin silver, clothed the king's army at Oxford, and brought
the said mint to serve the king's present occasion, in his
garrison there, when the mint in the Tower was denied
him.

It would seem that the parliament seized the Tower, and
that all the officers of the mint were employed by the
commonwealth.

5 Ending, vol. iv. 351.

REMARKS ON A PENNY OF HENRY III. 39

" As this mint (the Oxford) was managed by the officers
and moneyers that came from Aberystwith, and was itself
considered as the same mint removed, the greater part
of the money coined in it was marked on both sides with
the Welch feathers, the distinguishing mark of that mint 6 ."

The coin represented at the head of this account, is a
half-groat of the Aberystwith mint, and possibly struck whilst
that mint was stationed at Shrewsbury; as we have no de-
scription of the coins issued there, whilst we have full ac-
counts of those of Aberystwith and Oxford. The peculiarity
of this coin is the motto of the prince of Wales, ICH DIEN,
which appears in sunk letters on the band of the coronet,
from which issues the plume of feathers. In addition to
which, it has the coronet for a mint mark, and the great
rarity of this distinction may be another reason for sup-
posing it to be the product of the mint stationed at
Shrewsbury, where it remained for so short a period,
and with so little efficiency 7 . J. D. C.

VII.
REMARKS ON A FENNY OF HENRY III.

DURING the reign of Henry III., the state of the coinage
became so bad, through the infamous practices of falsifiers

6 Ending, vol. iv. 356.

7 We know of but two examples of this groat, which are in the
cabinets of Mr. Cuff and Mr. Nightingale. ED.

40 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

and clippers of the coin, and the distresses of the people
in consequence so great, that it was found necessary in his
thirty-second year to cry down the old money, and to issue
a new coinage.

The new money was distinguished from the old, by the
double cross on the reverse, being extended to the outside
of the circle containing the legend, so that it could not be
diminished by clipping, without the loss being immediately
discovered. It is generally considered, however, that there
was another difference; namely, that on the coins of and
after his thirty-second year, either the Roman numerals
III or the word TERCI appeared, while the money of the
old coinage was without either.

The coin, however, of which an engraving is given above,
would seem to lead to a different conclusion, and to
prove, that although the earlier coinages of Henry III.
might generally be without numerals or words equivalent,
yet that there were exceptions to this rule, and that some
of the earlier coins did exhibit a proper mark of distinction
between his money, and that of his predecessors by the same
name.

The obverse of this coin reads, HENRICUS REX, and
the type is similar to that of Henry the third's earlier
coinage.

The reverse reads distinctly, TER RI ON LVND. The
double cross is contained within the inner circle, and in
each quarter are four pellets conjoined.

The short cross determines it to be previous to his thirty-
second year, and the legend I read TERCI RICARD
ON LVND.

It was not unusual for the legend of the one side to be
concluded on the other, and coins of this very monarch
furnish instances : thus

REMARKS ON A PENNY OF HENRY III. 41

fHENRICVS-REX-ANG) JHENRICVS-REX-ANG)
1 TERCI LONLIE. J 5 \ TERCY 1 HEDLIE. j

Ruding, in his " Annals of the Coinage," mentions as a
remarkable difference between the coins of Henry the third
before and after his thirty- second year, the addition of the
numerals, or the word TERCI to the latter. He probably
had not met with a coin of this type, or with only an im-
perfect one ; as I find he gives TERIRI as one of Henry
the third's money ers : and I think it not unlikely that the
stop after the TER was mistaken for part of an I, some
dot or scratch in the coin favouring the mistake.

In a note he observes, that " It is extraordinary that
both the author of these annals (Annals of Waverley) and
also Matthew Paris, should have omitted to state the most
remarkable particular in which these coins differed from all
which had preceded them, I mean, the distinction of nu-
merals, or words equivalent, to shew to which king of the
name of Henry they belonged." This omission rather
favours the inferences I draw from the coin under consi-
deration ; I have the history of the latter author before me,
and certainly do not find that he makes any mention ot
such differences between the two coinages, which, when on
the subject, it is highly probable he would have done, had
the earlier coinages been entirely without the numerals or
their equivalent. G. H. D.

VIII.
THE MUNTER CABINET.

THE following are among the inedited coins of the Museum

1 So given by Ruding ; but I suspect that it is TERCI, and that
the stroke he takes for part of the Y, is, in fact, the stop (,) at the
end of the legend.

NUMIS31ATIC JOURNAL.

Mmterianum, a collection brought to the hammer at
Copenhagen in March last. They are given in Geogra-
phical order.

EUROPE.

MASSILIA. Gallia. 1. Head of a female. Rev. A lioness

or tiger couchant. (M. size 2.)
2. A similar head. Rev. A lioness or
tiger walking ; above, a star. (JR.
size 2.)

CROTON. Bruttium. 3. A tripod; in the field, an ear of corn.

Rev. Three crescents. (7R. size 1).

LOCRI. Bruttium. 4. Head of Apollo. Rev. A pegasus ;

below, A. (&. size 4.)

PETELIJE. Bruttium. 5. Head of Apollo ; before, Rev.

IIETH ; a goat standing (a sextans).
(IE. size 2 )

C ASS ANDREA. Macedonia 6. PHILIPUS. IMP C (M. IVL

PHI)LIPPS (sic); laureatedhead
of the emperor. Rev. COL IVL
AVG (CA)SANDRIAS. Nep-
tune standing, his left foot on the
prow of a vessel; in his right hand a
dolphin, in his left, the hasta. (M.
size 5.)

ATHENS. Attica. 7. Victory with a trophy. Rev. A0

(E) ; an owl standing. (M. size 3. )

CORINTH. Achaia. 8. HADRIANUS. IMP CAES

TRA HADRIANVS. Lau-
reated head of Hadrian. Rev.
COL L IVL COR. ^Escula-
pius standing. (M. size 5. )
9. ANTONINUS Pius. ANTONI-
NVS AVG PIVS. Laureated
head. Rev. CLI. The sun in a
quadriga; below, COR. (^E.size7.)

PATRJE. AcJiaia. 10. JULIA DOMNA. IVLIA DOM-

NA AVG. Head of Julia. Rev:
COL A A (PATR.) ^scula-
pius standing with his attributes.
(M. size 6.)

MUSEUM MUNTERIANUM.

TEGEA. ' Arcadia. 11. ANT. Pius. ANTON EIN

Head of A. Pius to the right. Rev.

EIII -AY A male

figure regarding an infant (Tele-
phus) suckled by a hind beneath a
tree. (M. size 6.)

CHALCEDON. Bithynia.
NIC^EA. Bithynia.

GERME. Mysia.

MAGNESIA. Lydia.
SMYRNA. Ionia.

CHIOS. Insula Ionia;.
ORTHOSIA. Caria.

ASIA.

12. KAAX. An ox standing on an ear
of corn. Rev. An indented square .
(Si. size 5.)

13. GETA. A CEHTIM TETAC
KAI. Bare head of Geta. Rev.
NlKAGiiN. Hercules leading Cer-
berus. (jE. size 6.)

14. SEVERUS ALEXANDER. AYT
CEBH AAE#ANAPOC. Lau-
reated head. Rev. TEPMHNIiN.
Fortune with her attributes. (M.
size 6.)

15. A horseman armed with a lance.
Rev. (MAPN), a bull ; in the ex-
ergue, (H)POSTPATOS. (JE.
size 4.)

16. Turreted female head.

NAIUN. A lion walking : below,
AHOAAO^ANHS. The whole
within an oaken crown. (JR.
size 9J.)

17. A sphinx. Rev. MHTPOA(o). An
amphora, near which the letters
POS; below, XIOS ; the whole
within a crown of vine leaves.
(M. size 24.)

18. A laureated bearded head. Rev.
OPeOCI(EON) HYPPO. Pallas
in an attitude of combat. (JE.
size 4.)

NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Cos. InsulaCaricB. 19. Head of Hercules covered with the

lion's skin. Rev. K&I11N and

T S$OP, and a countermark

of a lobster. (IE. size 4.)

ETENNA. Pamphylia. 20. FAUSTINA THE YOUNGER. ($)AYC-

TINA . (CEBAC)TH * Head
of Faustina the younger. Rev.
ETE(N)EWN. Jupiter Salaminius
standing. (IE. size 6.)

SIDE. Pamphylia. 21. HADRIANUS. (AYT) KAI TPA

AAPIA(NOC). Laureated head of
the emperor. Rev. CIAHTON. A
soldier standing. (IE. size 6.)

22. Head of the god Lunus with the
Phrygian bonnet. Rev.(A)l$TIO ' '
An ox ; in the exergue, FA9 '
(IE. size 4.)

GALLIENUS. (AYT KAI) FAA-
AIHNOC. Laureated head of the
emperor. Rev. APFEIWN. Bac-
chus (?) standing holding the hasta :
in the field, IA. (M. size 7.)

24. IEPA CY(NKAH)TOC. Youthful
head of the senate. Rev. NAK-
PACITON. Turreted female head.
(IE. size. 3.)

25. TRAJANUS. AY NEP(BA-TPAI)
ANOC FEP AAK. Laureated
head of the emperor. Rev. An
Amazon standing, holding in her
right hand the hasta, and in her
left the bipennis. (M. size 6.)

HIERAPOLIS. Phrygia. 26. IEPA CYNKAHTOC. Juvenile

head of the senate. Rev. (IEPA)
IIOAEITON. An Amazon on horse-
back, armed with the bipennis.
(IE. size 5.)

Idem. 27. VESPASIANUS. Legend detrited.

Laureated head of Vespasianus.
Rev. IEPAIIO ' ' ' Rev. An
Amazon drawing an arrow from
her quiver. (M. size 6.)

ANTIOCH. Pisidia.

ARGOS. . . . 23.

NACRASIA. Lydia.

THYATIRA. Lydia,

MUSEUM MUNTERIANUM.

HIERAFOLIS. Phrygia.

LAODICEA. Phrygia.

28. ANTONINUS Pius. AYT KAIC
ANTftNEINOC. Laureated head
of the emperor. Rev. IEPAIIO-
AEITliN. Pluto in a quadriga
bearing oiF Proserpine. (IE. size 9.)

29. AUGUSTUS. Legend detrited. Bare
head of Augustus. Rev. AHMOS
AAOAIKEliN. Bearded head. (JE.
size 4.)

SYRIA. . 30.

ANTIOCHUS III. MAGNUS. Veiled
female head. Rev. (BA)SIAE(Q2)
ANTIOXOY. The head of an ele-
phant : below, PEK, year 125 of
the era of the Seleucidce. (.52. size

CAESAREA ) Comma-
GERMANICIA ) gene.

31. SEPT SEVERUS. AYT K A
CEH CEYHPOC HE. Lau-
reated head of the emperor. Rev.
KAICAPEIAC. A temple with
four columns : in the exergue,
TEPMANIKHC. (JE. size 7.)

SAMOSATA. Commagene. 32.

SEVERUS ALEXANDER.

ANAPOC KA. Youthful lau-
reated head of Alexander Severus.

($) CAMOCAT A female

figure seated on a rock, holding
in her right hand ears of corn : at
her feet a figure swimming. (JE.
size 6.)

ANTIOCHIA. Ad Orontem. 33. The head of Diana with bow and

quiver at her back. Rev. (ANTI-
OXEftN ? -THS -METPOn)O AEO.
Apollo standing, his right hand
holding a bow, his left resting on a
column ; in the exergue, AKS ;
year 224 of the Seleucidean era.
(JE. size 2.)

PHILADEL-) Decapolis.
PHI A. j

34. ANTONINUS Pius. ANTO

Laureated head of the emperor.
Rev. (TTXH-$IA)AAEA*(EWN).

The city personified, standing : in
her right hand a spear ; in her left,
a cornucopia. (JE. size 3.)

46 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

AELIA CA- ) Judcea. 35. MARCUS AURELIUS. Legend de-
PITOLINA. ] trited. Head of Aurelius. Rev.

CO AILI. Head of Jupiter Ca-
pitolinus. (JE. size 3.)

[JUDAEA. 36. DOMITIANUS AND AGRIPPA II. ]

AOMI TEPM. Laureated
head of Domitianus. Rev. ETO
KA APPIim, (year 24), within
a garland. (JE. size 4.)

EDESSA. Mesopotamia. 37. COMMODUS. Legend detrited.

Laureated head of the emperor.
Rev. ABFAPOC BACIAOAEC
(sic). Bearded head of Abgarus,
king of Edessa, with the tiara : be-
hind, a sceptre. (JE. size 6.)

Egypt. 38. Uncertain. Ptolemy. Head of
Jupiter. Rev. HTOAEMAIOY
BASIAE&2. An eagle standing
on a thunderbolt, a punic letter in
the field, and a monogram, as in
Mionnet, No. 1182. (IE. size 3.)

AFRICA.

ALEXANDRIA. Egypt. 39. VESPASIANUS. SEBA

Laureated head of Vespasianus.
Rev. L A (year 4). Canopus.
(JE. size 5.)

40. TRA JANUS. Legend detrited. Lau-
reated head of Trajan. Rev.
(L) . IA (year 11). A temple
with four columns ; within, a figure
standing, the right hand resting on
a tripod, the left holding the hasta.
(M. size 9.)

41. TRAJANUS. AYT'TPAIAN

Laureated head of Trajan. Rev.
L IE (year 15). An eagle
standing. (^E. size 6.)

42. HADRIANUS. Legend detrited.
Laureated head. .Rer.L'ENN
(year 9). A serpent. (JE. size 5^.)

MUSEUM MUNTERIANUM. 47

43. MARCUS AURELIUS. Legend de-
trited. Head of Aurelius. Rev.
(L)E (year 5). Fortune reclining
on the lectisternium. (IE. size 9.)

44. AURELIANUS. AYT K A (Y A)
AYPHAIANOC - CEB. Laureated
head of Aurelian. Rev. The ju-
gated heads of Serapis and Isis;
behind the head of the former, a
a cornucopia : in the field, L A
(year 4). (IE. size 5.)

45. SEVERINA. OYAII CEYHPINA
CEB. Rev. ETOYC'r(#eflr6).
JEquitas standing. (IE. size 41.)

46. NOMUS ./EGYPTUS HERACLEOPO-

LITES 1 .

TRA JANUS. (AYT KAI T)
PAIAN CEB (rEPM) AAKI.
Laureated head of Trajan. Rev.
(HP)AKAEOHO AI(THC) . Her-
cules half naked, his right hand
raised to his face, his left holding
his club : in the field (L ' I)A
(year 14). (JE. size 9.)

CYRENE. Cyrenaica. 47. Laureated head of Apollo. Rev.

KYPA, a lyre; above, the letters
TI. (M. size 3.)

MAURETANIA. 48. PTOLEMY, KING OF MAURETANIA.

REX PTOLEMA(EVS). Dia-
demed head of Ptolemy. Rev.
Capricorn, cornucopia, and rudder :
below, R A VIII. (JR.
size 3.)

49. A similar type, but with R * A *
XIII.

50. PTOLEMAEVS REX, Dia-
demed head. Rev. A. lion run-
ning; above, a star. (M. size 5.)

1 See Tochon D'Annecy " Rdcherches Historiques et Gdographiques sur les
Mtdailles des Names ou Prefectures de I'Egypte." Paris, 1822, 4to.

48 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

IX.

LETTER FROM T. BURGON, ESQ.

DEAR SIR,

Intending occasionally to avail myself of the op-
portunity which you so kindly afforded me, of contributing to the
NUMISMATIC JOURNAL; and hoping thus to preserve from ob-
livion any useful observations which I may have made relative to
Greek coins, during many years of zealous investigation, I had
been induced to attempt, and, in fact, had nearly finished, a
short inquiry into the motive which appears to have influenced
the ancients in the choice of the various objects represented on
their money.

Although I am quite aware that I am unable to do full justice
to so important a subject, yet, as such an inquiry is a necessary
preliminary to any future discussion on particular coins, or on the
meaning of particular types, I was induced to make my humble
attempt.

I have, however, to regret that a very severe domestic affliction
has so entirely unfitted me for concluding and revising my paper
in time for insertion, in your forthcoming first number, as intended,
that I must be permitted to reserve it for another opportunity.
Meantime, I will endeavour to render it more worthy of your
acceptance. I remain, dear Sir,

Your's very truly,

THOMAS BURGON.
Brunswick Square,
May 4th, 1836.

P.S. I saw, many years ago, in the possession of Mr. Matthew
Young, a silver coin of Athens, apparently about the weight of
the obolus, and having on the reverse the hitherto unpublished
type of an olive sprig bearing the fruit, and two leaves, within an
indented square ; having also, I believe, the usual inscription.

As Mr. Young cannot now recollect into whose collection the
coin passed, I should feel much pleasure, if by means of the Nu-
mismatic Journal, I could discover its present possessor, and
obtain permission to see this unique and interesting little coin
again.

MISCELLANIES.

CONSUMPTION OF GOLD IN ENGLAND. Mr. Faraday, in one
of his recent lectures, gave the following curious account of the
gold coinage, and of the consumption of gold in England. A
small ingot of gold which he exhibited, and which measured about
ten inches in length, by two in breadth, and weighed twenty
pounds troy, was stated by him, to be of the value of one thousand
pounds. In the year 1834, the coinage of this country did not
amount to the usual average. Half-sovereigns only were coined
to the value of 66,944?. amounting in weight to 1,433 pounds troy.
The lecturer stated, that the quantity of gold which had passed
through the mint, from the accession of Elizabeth, in the year
1558 to the end of 1835, was 3,353,568 pounds troy ; and that
nearly one half of this (namely, 1,594,078 pounds troy,) was
minted during the long reign of George the third. The value of
gold coined in that king's reign, was 74,50 1,586?. The total
value of the gold coined in the mint, from the year 1558 to the
year 1835*, amounts to 154,702,385?; and this in a cubic form
would measure on each side 13 feet yoV Mr. Faraday stated, that
the loss in the quantity of gold was difficult to be accounted for ;
and although it was imported into this country in great quantities
every year, its value was not diminished. The population, it was
true, had increased greatly, but this would not account for the
increase in the consumption of gold. The estimated value of the
gold imported into Europe from the New World, from the year
1492 to 1823, was 1,223,000,000?. For some years past the
average value of gold brought into England alone, was 1,600,000?.
per annum, of which the major portion was manufactured princi-
pally in articles of jewellery. A large quantity was made into gold
leaf, each leaf being about a half-penny in value, labour and the
profit of the manufacturer an additional farthing, making the
the charge for each leaf of which, nearly two millions were con-
sumed in London every week three farthings. Half of this was,
perhaps, returned in another shape to the goldsmith. The gold
used in picture-frames was nearly all recovered, as the Jews care-
fully collected the old frames, which they burnt to retrieve the
metal.

* The wear of gold coins in circulation, was estimated at about one fiftieth
of their value annually.

50 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

DISCOVERY AT POMPEII. It is said, that among other recent
discoveries at Pompeii, twenty-nine gold coins " of the first Roman
emperors " have been found. No description of the types is given,
and it is, therefore, probable that they offer nothing new to the
numismatist.

DISCOVERY OF A TREASURE. A correspondent of the Times
Journal, writing from Constantinople, mentioned, a short time
since, that " a considerable treasure " had been discovered by Ib-
rahim, in one of the passes of Mount Taurus. The coins were
stated to be " of the time of the Crusades," and probably, " part of
the military chest of the Frank army," by whom it was, perhaps,
abandoned when retreating before the Saracens. No account is
given of the types.

DISCOVERY OF DENARII. An interesting discovery has been
made by some labourers at plough, in a field at Laval in the
Marne, in France. A vase was turned up, and found to contain
a quantity of denarii in very perfect preservation. They are
described as

290 Consular of various families.
4 of Pompeius Magnus.
1 1 of Julius CaBsar.
18 of Marcus Antonius.

6 of Marcus Antonius with the head of Cleo-
patra on the reverse.
3 of Lucius Antonius.
1 of Lepidus.
165 of Augustus.
200 of Tiberius.

The field in which they were discovered, is near the old Roman
road, leading from Rheims to Verdun.

SALE OF ANTIQUES AT PARIS. The sale of the collection of
the late M. Durrand has commenced at Paris. The collection is
rich in the antiquities of Greece and Rome, and comprises vases,
statues in bronze, marble, and terra cotta, gems, medals, &c. &c.
The next number of the Numismatic Journal will contain an
account of the sale, and the prices obtained, for some of the most
remarkable objects.

NUMISMATIC PERIODICAL. Dr. H. Grote, of Hanover, has
commenced a periodical work under the title " Blatter fur Miinz-
kunde" (Papers on Numismatics), of which the first was completed
in September last.

MISCELLANIES. 51

DISCOVERY. On pulling down a very ancient house lately at
Marais la Chapelle, near Falaise, there were found a great many
coins of mixed metal and one gold piece, all of the fifteenth century,
and between the years 1422 and 1450. The gold piece is a salut
of Henry V. of England, bearing the legend, HENRICVS DEI
GRA FRANCOR ET ANGLI REX. The escutcheons
of France and England are united. Among the mixed money are
ten grand blancs, and several petits blancs, and deniers Tournois
of the same prince. This treasure appears to have been concealed
at or about this disturbed period ; and it is evident, that the house
in which they have been found was built in the first half of the
fifteenth century.

All the newspapers have given this coin to Henry II., al-
though gold was not coined by our English kings until the reign
of Henry III. The latter part of the account shews it to have
been a misprint, which our English journalists have taken care
to multiply and perpetuate.

CORRESPONDENCE.

G.C. is informed that the " coins," of which he has sent us drawings,
are abbey pieces, of no interest or value.

Mr. Shortt is thanked for the offer he has been so good as to make
us. Accounts, authenticated accounts, of discoveries of coins
in England and elsewhere, must be interesting to all anti-
quarians ; but it is very difficult to authenticate the finding of
some coins. The excavators never proceed to their work
without a good supply of specimens, which are sold to the un-
suspecting, who are told they are discovered on the spot. A
little circumspection will protect the local antiquary from these
impositions. The coins thus sold, are genuine, it is true; but
they are the very refuse of tenth-rate collections !

Coins discovered at, and near, London Bridge. We hope to give
some account of the discoveries at this spot, in a future num-
ber of the Journal, and have made notes for the purpose.
Some of our friends have produced specimens, about the
finding of which we are sceptical.

The drawing sent from Chichester is of a consular coin of the
family Aburia, which is illustrated in the present number of
the Journal. Though interesting, it is of common occurrence.

We are much obliged to Mr. Pretty for his long-neglected letter,
for not noticing which before, ill health is our apology. Our
own cabinet contains many specimens of Barbaric coins not
engraved by Ruding ; but, as they offer nothing remarkable,
they do not deserve engraving. The appropriation of these
coins to Britain, is by no means certain, and the absence of
any definable character renders them uninteresting.

W. S. will find the information he seeks in Bandurius.

J. J's coin is a siege piece of Breda, struck when Spinola lay before
that city. It is engraved in Duby's " Pieces Obsidionales."

X.
ON THE JEWISH SHEKEL.

(A LETTER ADDRESSED TO JOHN LliE, ESQ. L.L.D.)

MY DEAR SIR,

I BEG to thank you for the copy of the first
number of the Numismatic Journal, and for the engraving
of your valuable silver Shekel, in reference to both of
which, permit me to offer you a few brief and general
observations.

The appearance of the former, is a source of much
gratification to me ; and I feel assured that it will be hailed
by many with equal satisfaction, and that it may prove the
means of supplying an important desideratum in the
historical literature of our country, by causing the study of
numismatics to be more generally accessible. It is an ad-
mitted fact that this has hitherto been too much separated
from the other branches of antiquarian science. The numis-
matist has found in the collection and arrangement of his
copious data, almost sufficient employment for the mind; and,

54 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

hence, by limiting his studies to what may be termed the nu-
mismatic ages, has too frequently overlooked the important
elements for resolving the problems of original history,
which are in his possession. The more general antiquary
has, on the other hand, as often fallen into the most deplora-
ble mistakes from the neglect of data, which are inseparable
from the rest of the monumental history of nations, and
has formed expectations, and erected theories which a
limited acquaintance with the before-mentioned branch
would have annihilated in embryo.

These remarks may be illustrated by the parallel cases
furnished by Egyptian and Jewish history. Nothing, for
example, is more common than to hear the monumental
antiquary express surprise at the complete absence of any
indication of an Egyptian coinage before the age of the
Ptolemies, among the immense resources for contemporary
history, with which he is now familiar; and more par-
ticularly in those royal sepulchres where it was customary
in oriental nations to entomb a portion of the monarch's
treasures. Nothing is more common, than for the Biblical
critic to view the coins of Jerusalem having the Samaritan
or Phoenician character inscribed on them, as remains of
the ancient Jewish monarchy, and, as hence, affording an
unanswerable proof that this, rather than the square
Chaldee, was the original character of the Jews, in which
the Pentateuch, as preserved in the Samaritan copy, was
first committed to writing.

Every experienced numismatist knows, on the other hand,
however little immediate interest he may possibly take in
the remote antiquities of the Egyptians and Jews, that the
art of coining was, in all probability, an European, and a
comparatively recent invention, which may be traced in

ON THE JEWISH SHEKEL. 55

perfect correspondence with history 1 , from the first rude
obverse impressions of the Grecian Islands to the complete
coin : and that the former, much more the latter, cannot
ascend to the early ages of the Egyptian and Jewish
monarchies, independently of belonging to a different part
of the world, and a far more imperfect state of art than that
of either of these nations. He therefore has no idea of the
existence of an Egyptian coinage before the arts of Europe
were commingled with those of Egypt under the Lagidae,
nor of a Jewish, I may perhaps say, of a national Oriental
coin, before the age of the Seleucidae, unless an exception
may be grounded on the states of Asia Minor, which were
of the same original stock with the Europeans, and extended
to the Persians, who may have recoined the money of
those states, without depriving it of its provincial character.
The Macedonian conquest forms his general line of de-

1 Nothing can be more complete than the agreement of history
with the established results of numismatic comparison, which assign
the first rank in antiquity to the coins of the island of ^gina, on
the coast of Argolis. " The ^Eginetans were the first who stamped
money," according to jElian, Vat. Hist. xii. 10. Ephorus, who
wrote in the time of Philip of Macedon, affirms that silver was
coined by Phidon in ^Egina to facilitate commerce, in consequence
of the sterility of that island. Strabo. viii. And this is con-
firmed by the monumental evidence of the Persian marbles, " From
Phidon the Argive... [obliteration'] ...and made silver money in

jEgina 631 years." That is to the date of the chronicle,

B. C. 263, in the archonship of Diognetus. This raises the age
of Phidon to the beginning of the ninth century B. C. Pausanias
brings him one hundred and fifty years lower.

The origin of the Greek weights and measures is likewise attri-
buted to Phidon by Herodotus, vi. 127, and other writers. The
father of history separates the invention of coining, and attributes
it to the Lydians, in a very brief remark, i. 94. The early
connection of the Lydians and Greeks, and the common Heraclid
origin of the former, and of several of the Grecian states, together
with the great reputation of the Lydians for riches, will sufficiently
account for this unsupported tradition.

56 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

marcation in Egypt and the East. He feels no disap-
pointment at the barrenness of recent monumental discovery
in this department of inquiry ; and should he have inves-
tigated it, he sees but a confirmation of the language of
Numismatic science, in finding that neither a native Egyptian
coin, nor one of any other primitive eastern nation, has
been discovered among the monumental remains of a
kingdom whose conquests and commerce extended over the
whole of South Western Asia, not even excepting the Per-
sians, whose kings formed the twenty-seventh and thirty-
first Egyptian dynasties 2 . He would as soon think of

3 Persian Daries, so well known in Greece and the lesser Asia,
would thus appear not to have been circulated in the provinces
where coinage was unknown, and hence to have been no national
issue, but rather, as above, a recoinage of the money of the con-
quered western provinces, for circulation within the former limits,
and probably for subsidies to the Grecian states, and commercial
purposes. The ruins on the banks of the Euphrates and Tigris,
and other remains in the heart of Persia, I have not a doubt, speak
the same negative language wjth those on the Nile on this subject.
A learned numismatist has, in conversation, suggested to me that
the Persian money circulated in Egypt, may have been recoined
by the Ptolemies. This is a very possible case ; but so may the
money of the Pharaohs. If, therefore, the negative argument be
valid in one case, so it is in the other ; it is at least certain that the
successors of Alexander did not adopt the course suggested in the
western parts of his empire, so as to obliterate all trace of Persian
provincial currency.

These Daries have no inscriptions in the national arrow-head
characters, which would have been unintelligible in the provinces
where they appear to have been circulated. They have devices
analogous to those on the cylinders and other national gems
having arrow-head inscriptions; and, in a great variety of instances,
a galley on the reverse in the more recent examples, which seems
to mark a destination for maritime states, or commercial pur-
poses. Whenever inscriptions appear, they are in Phoenician,
Greek, or unintelligible alphabetical characters, similar to what
frequently occur on coins and gems of the ancient maritime states
of the Levant. The name of a Persian monarch has, I think, in
no instance, been discovered, and I apprehend the inscriptions

ON THE JEWISH SHEKEL. 57

referring the coins of the Ptolemies to the ancient
Pharaohs, as of raising the Jewish shekels to the times
of David and his successors; and is fully assured that
none of the extant coins of that nation (which, however
rude in execution, can belong only to an advanced period
of the art) can, by possibility, be referred to a re-
moter epoch than that of the successors of Alexander.
He knows, although, perhaps, but little interested in the
consequences, that the cases of Egypt and the East are
completely parallel, and he distinguishes the shekels, re-
spectively inscribed with Phoenician, and the square Hebrew
and Chaldee characters, generally, as the consistent and
genuine, and the inconsistent and spurious, rather than as
the coins of the periods which preceded and followed the
Babylonish captivity, as many historical critics have pro-
nounced them. Yet the numismatist too often limits such
valuable knowledge to the mere acquisition of it, while
through the want of it, the historian and the more general
antiquary as frequently overlook one of their best pilots
through the ocean of time.

have chiefly, if not altogether, local reference. There were, pro-
bably, likewise Phoenician re-stamps, or re-coinings of the western
currency, in the palmy ages of Phoenician power and commerce ;
and to these causes may fairly be ascribed the frequent occurrence
of Oriental devices in the west, in many cases of Greek manu-
facture, and accompanied by Greek inscriptions.

It may be remarked that the case of India, on the other extreme
of the Persian empire, is one precisely parallel with that of Egypt.
There the numismatic chronological limits are the same, and no
known coins of India, or the neighbouring provinces of Bactria,
&c., belong to an earlier period than the Macedonian conquest ;
and the antiquities of nations, from Egypt to India, will, I have
no doubt, be found to give precisely similar results. It must
not be forgotten that we are indebted to numismatic inquiry for
the recovery of the names of several princes of the above-men-
tioned regions, the contemporaries of the Seleucidae, who would
have been otherwise lost to history.

58 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

These examples are, I apprehend, enough to shew the
advantage of connecting the branches of the science of
antiquity more closely than heretofore, by rendering the
Numismatic more accessible and popular, and on the other
hand, inducing its promoters to extend their researches to
the more prominent purposes of historical criticism. To
the promotion of such ends, no plan seems more likely to
be effective than the issue of a comprehensive Numismatic
periodical, in connection, if possible, with a society at which
the numismatist and general antiquary might exchange
communications, and thereby augment the interest and
utility of their respective pursuits.

The silence of the two most ancient series of records in
the world in regard to coins before the Macedonian age, is
equally remarkable, and consistent with the nearly demon-
strable European origin of the art. As the period of
the Lagidae furnishes the first indication in the Egyptian
series, so does that of the Seleucidae in the Jewish.
From the year of the death of Sarah, B. C. 1859,
when Abraham weighed four hundred shekels of silver
to Ephron the Hittite (Gen. xxiii. 16), until the first
year of the pontificate of Jonathan Maccabaeus, Anno.
Seleucid. 160, B. C. 153, when Demetrius Soter remitted
20,000 shekels of silver annually, of the Jewish taxes (1
Mac. x. 21, 40, 42), there is not a single indication that the
shekel imported more than a denomination of weight, as
the term implies. That the value of money, by weight,
was equally recognised by the Egyptians, is evident from
the transactions of the sons of Jacob (Gen. xliii. 21), and
the commerce of the reign of Solomon (1 Kings x. 28, 29),
as well as from the sculptures (Wilkinson's Thebes, p.252) ;
and that it continued so to be estimated until the Persian
age on the return from Babylon, is equally certain from the

ON THE JEWISH SHEKEL. 59

Prophet Zechariah (xi. 12.), and the historian Ezra (ii. 69,
viii. 7.), whose golden D^IDDTT Drachmonim or Drachmae is
too unlike the name ttfVTT Dariosh, to admit of the translation
"Darics," which some critics have assigned to it, although op-
posed by the ancient Greek translators of the book of Ezra,
whose authority on such a point seems preferable to modern
speculation. It is likewise manifest, that from this period
until the last mention of shekels in the first year of Jona-
than Maccabagus, Judea, which was first a province of the
Persian empire, and afterwards alternately belonged to
the monarchies of Egypt and Syria, although immediately
governed by its own High Priests, could have had no
national coinage (the gold and silver paid in taxes having,
doubtless, gone into the mints of its oppressors) ; and this
is placed beyond dispute by the history of the next
pontificate, that of Simon Maccabaeus, who finished the
struggle for independence, which had been commenced by
his father and brothers. As the history of Jonathan brings
us to the last epoch for the use of shekels by weight, so
that of Simon fixes the first introduction, certainly, of a
legitimate Jewish coinage ; and we are thus forced into the
narrowest possible chronological limits for its epoch.

The independence of the nation was publicly recognised
by Demetrius, king of Syria 3 , in the first year of Simon's
pontificate, Anno. Seleucid. 170, B. C. 143, and "then
the people of Israel began to write in their instruments
and contracts, In the first year of Simon the High Priest, the
governor and leader of the Jews" ( 1 Mac. xiii. 36, 42) . In the
one hundred and seventy-first year, or the second of Simon,

3 It is necessary to remark, that this recognition was in com-
pliance with the request of Simon, at a time when the throne of
Demetrius was placed in jeopardy by Tryphon's usurpation. (1
Mac. xiii. 3135.

60 NUMISMATIC JOUUNAL-

he obtained possession of the citadel of Jerusalem (ibid. 51) ;
and in the one hundred and seventy-second, " being the
third year of Simon the High Priest," the record of Jewish
independence was inscribed on tables of brass, and set up
on pillars in Mount Sion (xiv. 27).

Between this date and the one hundred arid seventy-
fourth year, B. C. 139, which was consequently the fifth of
Simon, Antiochus Sidetes, when on his expedition to wrest
the throne, of Syria from Tryphon, issued a decree con-
firming those of Demetrius, and his other predecessors :
"Now, therefore, I confirm unto thee all the oblations
which the kings before me granted thee, and whatsoever
gifts besides they granted" but having the following
additional clause, " I give thee leave also to coin money
for thy country, with thine own stamp," (xv. 1. 5. 6. 10).
Here is the charter fora privilege obviously for the first
time granted in the original Greek KAI EHETPE^A SOI
HOIHSAI KOMMA IAION NOMISMATH XftPASOY, literally,
" I also permit thee to stamp proper money for thy coun-
try." Had Simon's predecessors legally enjoyed this
privilege, it would not have been omitted in the preceding
rescripts of the kings of Syria, nor have been thus singled
out by Antiochus 4 .

The date of the charter falls, as above, between the one
hundred and seventy-second and one hundred and seventy-

4 When this letter was written, I was not aware that the prince
of numismatists, Eckhel, had adduced the above-cited passages of
the first book of Maccabees, for fixing the epochs of the Jewish
coinage, (Doct. Num. Vet. torn. iii. p. 465-6). I am more
pleased at finding my humble views thus supported, than disap-
pointed at finding them so far anticipated. These passages bear
upon the origin of Jewish money, precisely as do those before cited
from Ephorus, the Parian Chronicle, and^lian, upon that of the
Greeks ; and the results, in both instances, cannot fail to interest
every numismatist and antiquary.

ON THE JEWISH SHEKEL. 61

fourth of the Seleucidae, or the third and fifth years of
Simon's pontificate, i. e. between B. C. 141 and 139; and
in the margin of our translation it is accordingly referred
to the intermediate year, B. C. 140, being the fourth of
Simon. This newly acquired privilege was, however, of
short duration. It was granted, like the immunities of Deme-
trius, for political purposes, at the moment when Simon
was in the plenitude of his power, and the accession of
Antiochus doubtful. As soon, however, as the latter was
secured, which appears to have been in the following year,
Anno. Seleucid. 174 (xv. 1025), B. C. 139, being as above,
the fifth of Simon's pontificate, he threw off the mask, and
refused the men and treasure sent by the Jewish ruler to
aid him in crushing Tryphon. " At that time Simon sent
him two thousand chosen men to aid him ; silver also, and
gold, and much armour. Nevertheless, he would not
receive them, but brake all the covenants 5 which he
had made with him afore, and became strange unto him,"
(xv. 26, 27). This was followed by an invasion of Judea
by the forces of Antiochus ; and from that time until the
death of Simon, who was treacherously murdered a little
more than three years afterwards, towards the end of the
one hundred and seventy-seventh year (xvi. 24.), B. C. 135,
being the eighth of his pontificate, his life was passed in
war and trouble. These particulars are necessary, in con-
sequence of their immediate bearing on the extant coinage
of the Maccabees.

It is evident that the most prosperous period of the

5 I am not aware that the bearing of this breach of covenant
upon the extant Jewish money has hitherto been noticed. It
seems as necessary to the explanation of the hiatus which follows
the time of Simon, as the before-cited passages are to the coins of
that prince.

62 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

liberator of the Jews, did not extend beyond the fifth year
of his pontificate, or the interval of the depression of the
king of Syria, whose charters were the effects of fear, and
not of choice. It appears from the extant shekels that
Simon did not wait for the grant of Antiochus, but had
assumed the regal right of coining money from his first
year, when " the people of Israel began to write .... in the
first year of Simon the High Priest," as above; and, hence,
that the act in question was to legalize what had already
been done. Of this your own valuable shekel furnishes a
clear example, its date being indicated by the letters 3***
which appear over the pot of manna on the obverse in
Greek characters, SB answering to Si/uwvoe B, the second of
Simon, the only Maccabaean prince whose name commences
with the required letter; or if the Samaritan w* be understood
simply to imply rtiW sh'nath, the year, the date will still
be common to the second year of independence, and the
second of Simon (1 Mac. xiv. 41, 42). But this is the date
of the capture and purification of the fortress of Mount
Sion by Simon, as above, which was celebrated yearly by
the Jews (xiii. 49 52) ; so that you, in all probability,
possess one of the first shekels of the sanctuary, having on
the obverse, the pot of manna surrounded by the inscription
m which, expressed in Chaldee characters, is
Shekel Israel or the Shekel of Israel, and on the
reverse, the budding rod of Aaron, with the inscription
SflrZ^^rttj in Chaldee characters, D^IT
Jerushalaim hakadushah, or Jerusalem the Holy. It
may be worth mentioning that in the latter, we have the
actual name which Herodotus is supposed to have given
to the metropolis of Judea, t^^lp Kadushah expressed in
Greek characters being Kadvya or KacWa, with the Greek
termination,

ON THE JEWISH SHEKEL. 63

In further illustration of the above, reference to M.
Mionnet's " Description de Medailles Antiques," and
similar works, will show that all the really dateable shekels
and demi-shekels, &c., having the Samaritan character, in
all probability belong to the first four years of Jewish
independence, or of Simon's pontificate, in agreement with
the retrospective purport of the act of Antiochus, in the
fourth of that prince, and with its revocation in the following
year. There will likewise be found other genuine shekels,
having the name of Simon, although undated ; but whether
these belong to the former period, or were issued after the
privilege of coining had been annulled, and left undated so
as to come within its terms, it is no easy matter to determine.

As there are no known authentic Jewish coins of an
earlier date than the issue of Simon, it would appear that
there are none of a later that can be referred with certainty
until about thirty years after his death, when his grandsons
assumed the royal dignity, and with it the right of issuing
money. Under the regal descendants of Simon, we find
both Samaritan and Greek inscriptions, until the former
disappear in the coins of the foreign dynasty of Herod.
The pontificate of his son and successor, John Hyrcanus,
which lasted twenty-seven years, and who was in many
respects, a powerful prince, appears a blank in numis-
matic history; so that the speedy revocation of An-
tiochus's edict would appear effectually to have sus-
pended the claims of the Jewish pontifical princes to this
regal privilege 6 . Thus is history confirmed to the letter by

6 I hope for an opportunity of more critically investigating this
question by further study of the shekels, especially those of the
extensive Parisian series, through favour of Mr. Doubleday, who
acquaints me that he has taken casts of the whole the disposi-
tion of the inscriptions in Mionnet's plates not sufficiently admitting
of this.

64 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

the results of numismatic inquiry, and thus does the first
book of Maccabees, when compared with the evidence
derived from the coins of that race, furnish the antiquary
with a case nearly parallel to that of the verified chronicles
of Manetho, in reference to the Egyptian monuments.

The data which numismatic science, in connection with
history, alone supplies, have, moreover, for ever demolished
the crowning argument of those critics (as Morinus, Ca-
pellus, Walton, Prideaux, the authors of the Universal His-
tory, and their more modern followers) who would, on the
authority of the Jewish coins, establish the superior antiquity
of the Samaritan copy of the writings of Moses, and thereby
replace the original Chaldee (Gen. xi. 28) of Abraham's line
by the popular character of their adopted country ; while a
grievous mistake of their opponents, many of whom would
weaken their defence of the sacred character by an un-
qualified rejection of the shekels, both genuine and spurious,
has been effectually rectified. The important fact is arrived
at, that the Jews as well as the Egyptians, had, in addition
to their sacred writing, an enchorial or popular character,
adopted from the country in which they were settled, for
the purposes of commercial and general intercourse an
example which has been followed in all succeeding ages,
and in all countries by their dispersed posterity. Yet these
questions have, from a want of that community of data
which I trust is now about to be established, been suffered
up to the present time to remain precisely where Walton
and the above-mentioned writers left them 7 .

7 So convinced was Bishop Walton of the great antiquity of
the MaccabaBan shekels, that he thus writes (in Prolegom. ad Bib.
Polyglot.)', " Antiquas literas Hebraicas easdem fuisse cum
Samaritanis ex siclis seu numismatis constat," and " de siclis haec
satis sint : quae, si aliae non essent argumenta, quemvis non per-
tinacem de vera literarum antiquarum Hebraicarum figura certum
reddere possint."

ON THE JEWISH SHEKEL. 65

The same science, by properly limiting our expectations,
may cause us ultimately to direct them aright, regarding
the actual currency of ancient Egypt, which we have already
seen was analogous to that of the Jews and their neigh-
bours, so far as estimating the metallic equivalent by
weight. In the form of this equivalent, they were not,

Equally confident were the authors of the Universal History,
who remark (vol. iii. p. 214, 8vo.), " The misfortune is, that all
this fine reasoning (in favour of the square Chaldee or Hebrew)
is entirely overthrown by one fact, if authentic, produced on the
other side ; namely, that of the old Jewish shekel, which is in-
scribed on the one side, The Shekel of Israel ; and on the reverse,
Jerusalem the Holy, not only in the Samaritan character, but, as
there is some reason to suppose, in the Jerusalaimic dialect."

A more recent writer on the other side of the question, the
learned editor of the Morning Watch, in a very able paper " On
the Text and Versions of the Holy Scriptures," which appeared in
the second number of that Journal, published in June 1829, re-
marks, on the other hand, " But we exceedingly doubt the validity
of any argument drawn from the Hebrew coins, as we have not
been able to obtain a sight of one which did not at once appear
manifestly spurious ; and an intelligent London collector, in con-
versation with us, said that he had never seen a genuine one ; and
thought, moreover, that a coin called shekel never existed, but

that it was a denomination of weight only, like the ounce;

yet this very argument from coins has been that most confidently
relied on for inferring the superior antiquity of the Samaritan
character."

Here we find one class of antiquaries giving undue antiquity
to a coinage, the epoch of which is indisputable, and the represent-
ative of another altogether denying its authenticity : whereas, had
either investigated the question as numismatists, the former would
never have advanced an argument which the chronology of the
shekels must have, at once, levelled with the ground ; while the
latter would have found that, by denying the authenticity of the
shekels with Samaritan or Phoanician inscriptions, he relinquishes
one of the strongest supports to his arguments for the antiquity
and integrity of the square Hebrew text.

I am happy in being able to meet the above-cited opinion of a
London collector, wbo makes no distinction between the genuine
coins of the Maccabees, and the modern Jewish forgeries, by that
of one of our principal and most judicious numismatists, and
thereby to add additional force to the purposes of the present com-

66 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

however, limited, like the descendants of Abraham, among
whom almost every variation from the simple ingot, would
have been deemed an approach to that idolatry to which
the disposition of their Egyptian rivals, in all cases directed
itself. We may, therefore, fairly suppose that the ingots
which, according to Josephus, John Hyrcanus, the son and
successor of Simon Maccabaeus, found deposited in the
sepulchre of David, would, in the tomb of an Egyptian
monarch, assume various forms, in connection with the
mythological system of Egypt; and the scanty remains of
the precious metals which have escaped the Persians and
more modern spoilers, are accordingly found worked up
into images, scarabaei, figures of the sacred animals, rings,
&c. These may, in any case, be supposed to contain, and
hence, like the bracelet and ear-rings of Rebecca (Gen.
xxiv. 22), to represent, a given current weight of gold or
silver; so that a standard may result from comparison of
such materials. They, as might be supposed, are of ex-
tremely rare occurrence ; and the more so as the progress
of excavation advances. In Mr. Salt's extensive collection
sold last year, there were, however, a few examples, which
might be serviceable towards determining a standard, and
were purchased at enormous prices ; No. 759, a solid gold
seal, by Mr. Sams, for ten times the value of the metal,
and No. 764, a solid silver statue of the god Amen, by the
British Museum, for twenty times the present standard
value. That indefatigable collector, Mr. Sams, has since

munication. " I have not the slightest doubt," says the writer
of a communication with which I have been favoured since the
present letter was written, " of the genuineness of some of the
Jewish shekels yet extant the characters upon them are Samari-
tan they are of great rarity, and must not be confounded with
others of a fabric totally different, with Hebrew characters, and
which (at least all that I have beheld) are spurious."

ON THE JEWISH SHEKEL. 67

then shewn me several such objects, which he acquaints
me were brought from Egypt about thirty years ago, and
among which are three other gold seals, of about the mean
weight of the former, together with a number of solid gold
and silver funereal images and scarabs and other objects of
the same materials. Some of them are very massive, and
they may weigh, in the aggregate, not less than four pounds
of the former, and six pounds of the latter metal. I have
not yet had an opportunity of accurately comparing them,
or of investigating the relative weights of these treasures,
which have inscriptions with the praenomina of Osirtesen I.,
Thothmos Mera, Anemoph III., Osiree I., Amonme Ram-
ses, and other Egyptian monarchs. We learn from Pausanias
that the early coins of the Argives, a colony from Egypt,
were impressed with Egyptian representations, which it
may not unfairly be supposed were derived from those used
in the currency of the parent country, in which, the formed
or modified ingot, may, perhaps, be viewed as the link or
step between the plain ingot and the impressed coin.

With these views, Mr. Wilkinson's remarks on the reve-
nues of the Pharaohs, are not inconsistent. " But that
money, which consisted of rings of gold and silver, besides
ingots of the same metals, also formed part of their tributes,
is evident from the same sculptures; and these entering
into the coffers of the state, together with the government
share of the produce of the country, of their manufactures
and the mines, constituted the revenues of Egypt, from
which the army, the priesthood, and other necessary ex-
penses were amply provided," (Thebes, Introduction, p.
18) ; and at page 252 of the work, " their money was in
rings of silver and gold similar to those still used in Sen-
naar, and its value was ascertained by weight, as its
purity by fire. Gold was brought to Egypt from different

68 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

countries, as well in rings as in bars, and perhaps dust,
&c." It might appear from one part of this statement that
the Egyptian currency consisted of rings similar to those
still used in Sennaar ; but it is evident from the whole, that
these rings represented the rough material, in common
with the ingots, bars, and dust, as it came from foreign
countries, or the mines.

In conclusion, I would remark that the foregoing imper-
fect observations are to be understood as altogether of a
general and preliminary nature, and written with a view to
manifest the necessity of that combination of research in
the numismatic, the monumental, and the historical branches
of antiquarian inquiry, which distinguishes your own literary
pursuits, and those of a limited number of scholars and
collectors, becoming more general. Nothing, I am per-
suaded, will tend more effectually to unravel the remaining
problems of history, than an established method of inter^
change, on principles which may reciprocally unlock the
riches of cabinets and galleries, and thus render the unity
of purpose in the collectors commensurate with that which
characterises the data of the collections. To the nearly
certain European origin of the art of coining, and its
bearings upon history, a question which, 1 apprehend, has
hitherto been almost entirely overlooked, I am also desirous
of drawing the attention of scholars, trusting that it may be
followed up by those who have more time and opportunity
for the inquiry, than the writer of this very general and
hasty outline; in which, should oversights be discovered,
I trust that the novelty of the question treated of, will plead
my excuse. I am, my dear Sir, with much respect, your
faithful servant, J. CULLIMORE.

XI.

ON THE COINS OF MARCUS J. BRUTUS, AND OF
DECIMUS BRUTUS, SURNAMED ALBINUS.

SIR,

I should not, probably, have thought of submitting
to you a paper on the coins of the Bruti, had I not been
struck with what appeared to me an erroneous explanation
in the "Descriptive Catalogue" of the reverse, No. IX,
among the coins of the family Junia, which is made to
represent " the sons of Brutus guarded by the lictors ;"
and to refer, of course, to the celebrated judgment pro-
nounced upon two of his own children by the inflexible
First Consul.

This type is evidently of so interesting a nature, and so
often finds a place, except in its " restored " form, in
cabinets comprising consular coins, that it is important it
should be correctly and clearly understood. The ex-
planation referred to, differs essentially from that given by
some learned commentators on medals, and also by M.
Mionnet in his French Catalogue. You will be desirous,
I am sure, of making the " Journal " on this, and on all
occasions, a useful interpreter.

With the coin before us, it is not difficult to perceive
that^t represents simply the procession of the first Brutus
in the newly instituted office of consul, accompanied by
two lictors bearing their proper ensigns, and preceded by a
servant called accensus, engaged in announcing his approach,
and clearing his passage; for which purpose, his hand is
held out, with the finger pointed. He was a sort of crier,
or rather summoner, attendant on the consul, and an
assistant to the lictors. The two lictors are, of course, but
representatives of the full number. More could not well

70 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

have been introduced in the field of so small a coin, es-
pecially as it was customary for the twelve to walk one by
one in a line. In the coins that I have seen, and gene-
rally in those figured in numismatic works, the dignity of
the Consul appears to be indicated by the commanding
height of his figure, and the inferiority of the Accensus by
his diminutive stature. Cicero (De Leg.) speaking of the
consul, says, " Utatur accenso et lictoribus." This exactly de-
scribes the type in question. The political design with which
it was struck renders it additionally interesting. The ob-
verse bears the head of Liberty; and there can be little
doubt that this coin was one of several remarkable types which
the conspirator, Marcus Brutus, who boasted his descent
from Junius Brutus, caused to be published shortly after
the murder of Caesar, with the hope of renewing in the
minds of the people the passion for republicanism; and
with the intention of intimating that he, a second Brutus,
had restored liberty to Rome by destroying one, who, from
his inclination to despotism*, had been the Tarquinius
Superbus of later times. In short, under the apparent
design of commemorating the successful establishment of
the free consular government on the expulsion of the kings,
he aimed to give popularity to the principles of his own
party, who were attempting to remodel the commonwealth. 1
Nor is it probable that Trajan would have " restored "
it, had it been supposed to refer to so horrible a fact,
however famous, as the "Judgment of Brutus." The
revival of such a subject on the current coin in the polished
and luxurious times of the empire, would hardly have been
pleasing and popular. Yet we can readily conceive that
Trajan would have no dislike to re-commemorate the

1 Spanheim refutes an opinion that the type under consideration
alluded to the two consuls, Brutus and Poplicola. Vol. 2. p. 93.

COINS OF MARCUS J. BRUTUS, AND OF DECIMUS BRUTUS. 71

institution of the consulship, since he was one of the few
politic princes who contrived, like Augustus, by not vio-
lating the ancient forms, or making the people sensible of
the weight of tyranny, to unite, essentially, in his own
person, and with general approbation, all the powers of
the state.

Having alluded to other types struck with a similar in-
tention during the career of M. Brutus, I am induced
briefly to notice them.

The most distinguished, on account of its great rarity,
and the boldness of its imagery, is undoubtedly that which
presents, on the obverse, the head of Brutus ; his counte-
nance expressive of ardour and anxiety, with the leanness
of feature for which it was remarkable; reminding us of
the reply of Caesar, when cautioned against the supposed
machinations of Dolabella and Anthony, " Haud mini
magnopere a crassis istis crinitisque metuo, sed a pallidis
istis atque macilentis" alluding to Cassius and Brutus.

Ijb. The cap of Liberty between two naked daggers, with the
inscription, EID'MAR 2 .

What an important chapter in history do these few letters
comprise ! How many circumstances and events of the
most stirring interest do they recall to mind from the
admonition of the soothsayer, "Beware the Ides of March!"
through the series of tragedies commenced with those dag-
gers, to the period when the cap of liberty had lost its
inspiring charm 3 ; when public admiration was transferred

2 That his money of this type excited public curiosity and at-
tention, is evident from a remarkable passage in Dio, where it is
thus particularly described :

Bpovroe EG TO. vofjLtfffjLara a EKOTTTETO, eiKova re avrov

KO.L iriXioV) Zityifiia. re e)vo evTV7rov ' ()7?Awj> tK re T&TOV KO.L $ia ypap.-

fJLClTtoV, OTL TTIV TTCiTpiSa. JJLETO. TOV Ktt'O'O'lB ri\V$Tep<t)Kli) (.11]. Lib. 47.

3 Except to the slave on receiving manumission, who wore it
on his newly shaved head for warmth and concealment. It was

72 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

to the specious laurel-wreath of permanent despotism ; and
the powers of the Consul and the Tribune were chiefly to
be recognised in the legend of an imperial coin ! Brutus,
however, little contemplated such a result; and our present
business is with the coin of the enthusiastic republican ;
by representing on which the daggers, as supporters to the
well-known emblem of emancipation from slavery, and as
still unsheathed, fresh, as it were, from their late work, and
ready for further use, if required -he designed to encourage
the people, from his own conduct, to maintain public free-
dom at all hazards, and, if necessary, by means however
bloody; and to hold out a terrific warning to any who
should venture to climb the height from which Csesar had
been struck down. Wherever his money circulated, he
seemed to say to the people, " Down with tyrants ;" to their
oppressors, " Remember the ides of March." It is ob-
servable that this coin was not among the "restored by
Trajan." Its allusions were of too pointed a nature to gain
the favour of renewal, even from an emperor whose virtues
secured him from assassination.

The reverse just considered affords a most admirable
example of the ingenuity, pithiness and force, as well as
beautiful simplicity, so frequent in the devices and legends
of ancient medals.

Another that may be mentioned, is the noble, though
little, coin bearing the heads (bearded more majorum) of the

the associated sentiment, not the beauty of this woollen head-gear,
that had made it so renowned a symbol.

It is true that " Libertas Publica" with her attributes, occurs
on many imperial coins, especially the brass, and, in some instances,
as if intended by a servile senate to compliment the constitutional
rule of the most execrable tyrants. One cannot help thinking,
however, that, in such cases, she appears rather in mockery of her
real genius, and to stand " cap in hand " to the emperor.

COINS OF MARCUS J.BRUTUS, AND OF DECIMUS BRUTUS. 73

elder " BRUTUS " and " AHALA." The latter was an an-
cestor of the Servilian family, to which M. Brutus belonged
through his mother. Both were famous for their violent
opposition to tyranny; Brutus for having expelled the
Tarquins, and Ahala for having, according to Plutarch,
" when Spurius Melius seditiously aspired to the monarchy,
gone up to him in the forum, under a pretence of business,
and as Melius inclined his head to hear what he would say,
stabbed him with a dagger which he had concealed for the
purpose. 4 " We may be struck with the similarity of cir-
cumstances in the assassination of this Melius in the forum,
and of Caesar in the senate-house. The sanction given by
an illustrious name and example to such actions, together
with the pride of ancestry, was, doubtless, the motive for
representing the head of Ahala.

Of several others, the following is not the least worthy
of attention :
Obv. Head of Liberty. LEIBERTAS (sic).

$.. A lyre between the Secespita, or sacrificial knife, and
a laurel-branch, tied round with a flowing fillet. CJE.PIO
(his adopted name) BRVTVS PRO COS.

This elegantly designed reverse alluded to the cele-
bration of the games of Apollo, which Brutus, as Prcetor
Urbanus (an office, by the bye, he had been appointed to,
as a mark of particular favour, by Caesar himself), was
bound to superintend. They commenced with appropriate
sacrifices, were distinguished for music, and attended by
the people decorated with laurel. Brutus had thought it
advisable to retire from the city; but he sent directions
respecting these games, which prove his great anxiety
that they should be conducted, in his absence, with all pos-
sible eclat, in order to divert the people from their

4 Life of M, Brutus.

74 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

ill-humour, and to conciliate their favourable opinion.
Pompey and Caesar, who each affected absolute power,
having, on former occasions, entertained them with the
most splendid and expensive exhibitions, he was desirous
of convincing them that he, and the party devoted to Liberty
whose effigy was stamped upon the coin, were no less
disposed to administer to their pleasures. Plutarch pre-
sents the uncompromising republican in a novel character
on this occasion, though the account he gives (which is
worth referring to) 5 , does no discredit to the tact of Brutus,
and his knowledge of human nature. As the regular time
for celebrating the Ludi Apollinares, was July 5th, then
somewhat less than four months from the death of Caesar,
the date of this coin may be pretty accurately assigned.

Those which read BRVTVS IMP, and bear the names
of lieutenants and other officers, were, of course, struck
after he had been saluted with this title, together with
Cassius, at the head of their assembled forces in Asia
Minor, and refer, in most instances, to his military and naval
affairs between that period and the fatal battle of Philippi.

It would extend this paper beyond due bounds to notice
his various types more particularly, as I have a few remarks
to make also respecting the coins of his fellow-conspirator
and relative, Decimus Brutus, which term him ALBINVS
BRVTI F, in consequence of his adoption into the Postu-
mian family. He was one of the chief in the plot against

6 " The shows that were exhibited on his account, were ex-
tremely magnificent, for he had bought a considerable number of
wild beasts, and ordered that they should all be reserved for that
purpose. He went himself as far as Naples to collect a number
of comedians ; and being informed of one Canutius, who was much
admired upon the stage, he desired his friends to use all their
interest to bring him to Rome. He wrote likewise to Cicero, and
begged that he would, by all means, be present at the public shows."
Ibid.

COINS OF MARCUS J. BRUTUS^ AND OF DECIMUS BRUTUS. 75

Caesar, notwithstanding he had received from him, like
Marcus, the most ingratiating favours. Indeed, it was he
that decoyed him to destruction. The anxious entreaties of
Calpurnia might have saved her husband from the daggers,
had it not been for the sarcastic inquiry, " What would be
thought if he were to send, and dismiss the assembled
senate, and bid them expect him when his wife happened
to have better dreams ? " His coins refer to the first period
of the civil war that ensued on the death of Caesar, be-
tween the party of the latter and that of the conspirators.
Marcus went to the eastern provinces, finally making a
stand in Macedonia. Decimus, from the first, tried the
fortunes of the party in Italy, where, shortly, he was be-
sieged at Mutina (the Modena of present times), by An-
thony, who led Caesar's party, and was desirous of succeeding
to his power. A large force, however, being sent from
Rome, at the instigation of Cicero, under the newly elected
consuls, Hirtius and Pansa, the siege was raised, by Anthony
being defeated and compelled to fly. The coins and these
historical facts are mutually illustrative. I will adduce
three types, in my own little cabinet.

I. Obv. Head of Mars.

IJfc. Two military litui, crosswise ; between them, two bucklers.

II. Obv. Head of Piety.

. Two hands joined, holding a caduceus.

III. Obv. Bare head of A. Postumius, Cos.

r>. ALBINVS BRVTI F, within a wheaten crown 6 .

The same adopted name occurs also on the two former
reverses.

The first alludes, most probably, to the valour and co-
operation of the two consuls, at the head of the authorised

6 " Descriptive Catalogue" pp. 55, 56.

76 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

forces of the republic, which led to the defeat of Anthony,
and the relief of Albinus Brutus at Mutina; results that
were aided by Mars, the tutelary god of true Romans.

The second, to the concord and mutual fidelity that had
subsisted between the friends of liberty at Rome, and those
besieged in Mutina, and had produced the happy results
mentioned, expressed by the caduceus, the emblem of felicity;
this fidelity and unanimity being founded in patriotism, or
piety towards their country.

The third, which I have placed last, as less obvious in
its full signification, is supposed to have been struck in
Mutina for the payment of the garrison during the siege ;
and while, by the head of Aulus Postumius on the obverse,
it intimated the just pride entertained by this Brutus at
having been adopted into a family sprung from so illustrious
a person, is supposed, also, to have signified that as, of old,
the consul Postumius defeated, in the decisive battle at lake
Regillus, the adherents and allies of the banished Tarquins,
so the party of Brutus, contending once more for freedom,
hoped, after this example, utterly to defeat and expel the
tyrannical faction headed by the ambitious Anthony. The
wheaten garland, or symbol of abundance, inclosing the
name "Albinus," may relate to the ample store of pro-
visions prepared in anticipation of the siege (as stated
particularly by the historian Appian), and have been in-
tended, therefore, to encourage and satisfy the troops.

The coins of these Bruti, together with those of C.
Cassius (to whom, indeed, one of the daggers in the cele-
brated type before-mentioned is to be attributed) complete
the series belonging to the conspirators, as they bear also
the names of several others of the party, as legates, &c. ;
and I take the liberty of suggesting that the whole of them
(at least, those with their own names) may, with great

COINS OF MARCUS .T. BRUTUS, AND OF DECIMUS BRUTUS. 77

propriety, be arranged in our cabinets, not with the coins
of the respective families, but, as we are so certain of the
period at which they were struck, between those of J.
Caesar and of the second Triumvirate. This, I am aware,
is already partially done ; but to adopt the plan in a few
instances, leaving the other coins (because the names of
the moneyers appear on the obverses,) scattered up and
down in the alphabetical sets, is rather mischievous than
otherwise ; since, by breaking the chain of commemorative
types, it lessens their historic utility. To mention a par-
ticular class all the coins (and they are numerous) that
have the legend C^PIO BRVTVS, or BRVTVS IMP,
either on the obverse, or reverse either without, or with
the names of other families ought, I conceive, to be
brought together as coins of Marcus Brutus, having been
struck by his authority, or, at least, in commemoration of
circumstances connected with him 7 . I have little doubt of
the possibility of so arranging the whole of the conspirators'
coins, that each, without material error, shall occupy its
proper chronological niche, and thus the series present a
genuine and consistent medallic picture of a most important
course of events. The plan suggested, especially if followed
in all other cases of coins ascertained to be struck after the
dictatorship of Caesar, might, indeed, seem to impoverish
the consular divisions of our cabinets, and to burden other
compartments ; but unless we make coins mere play-things,
which no intelligent collector will do, it is fit, in all clearly
justifiable instances, to follow chronological, in preference
to alphabetical, order. We shall find our account in the

7 See those with the names, Casca Longus, Costa, Flavins
Hemicius, Pltetorius Cestianus, M. Servilius, L. Sestius, Lentulus
Spinther.

78 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

increased historical interest and instruction, which these
cherished relics of antiquity will be the means of commu-
nicating. E. C. B.

XII.

SKEATTA OF ALDFRITH KING OF

NORTHUMBRIA.
SIR,

THE coin published in the first number of your
journal, and attributed, I think rightly, to Wildfrid, arch-
bishop of York, strengthens an opinion I have formed, that
the skeattae are, in reality, the peculiar coinage of the king-
dom of Northumbria. The grounds on which I have
formed this opinion I will state as concisely as I can. The
skeatta, of which I send a drawing, and which has been in
my possession some years, has on one side a dragon, and on
the other, in distinct characters, Aldfridth; and I know
not to whom it can be assigned but to the Northumbrian
king Aldfrith. May not, also, Alchred^ on the coin pub-
lished by Ruding, be considered the name of the northern
king, rather than of a moneyer ?

When, too, the type, a full-length human figure, with a
pastoral staff in each hand, on some of the coins assigned to
Egbert, king of Kent, is considered, may they not be taken
from him and given to Ecgbert, archbishop of York, who
died in 766, and was succeeded by ^Ethebert ?

That the skeattaa formed a large portion of the circulation
of the country in the time of Athelstan, is certain, for they

SKEATTA OF ALDFRITH. 79

are mentioned in his laws, which also shew that no such
coins were struck by him ; for we read " Statuimus ut una
sit moneta per omnem ditionem Regis."

What has been written may be considered a mere reverie ;
but, if assented to, will explain why so few pennies of
Northumbrian kings, until Anlaff, have been found.

C. W. L.

XIII.
ALLECTUS AND CONSTANS.

THAT medals are recovered from hidden sources in sur-
prising numbers, by casualty or design, is a fact so notorious,
that to mention it were a mere truism, were there not a
special object in calling attention thereunto. There is
hardly a spot in Europe in which such memorials of past ages
may not be found ; and every remarkable place has already
yielded a tribute of the kind: but the advantage which
ought to have accrued to history from such accidental aid,
has not been co-ordinate, because the circumstances of site
and date are seldom duly recorded. Medals appear in the
market in great abundance, but under circumstances in
which it is impossible to ascertain the local, or other par-
ticulars of their revisiting the light. Such neglect of cir-
cumstantial evidence has, probably, been more owing to the
want of a ready means of communicating with the public,
than to any reservedness on the part of the finders, or pos-
sessors, who according to my own experience are not
generally desirous of keeping their treasures unnoticed or
unknown. On this account, the launching of a periodical
work expressly devoted to numismatics, must be gratifying
to collectors and medallists, since it offers a medium through

80 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

which the story of individual specimens may be promptly
promulgated : for, however trite a coin may be in itself, a
due notice of its peculiarities may offer, in the aggregate,
seasonable hints, and additional evidence on contested
points. Under this conviction, I shall offer no excuse for
the following remarks.

In the spring of this year, a farmer, ploughing in a field
just beyond Shefford, in Bedfordshire, turned up several
silver, potin, and small brass coins, which were submitted to
my inspection. They were all nearly of the same date,
common, and generally in bad condition ; but three were in
such good preservation, that I considered a notice of them
might not be unacceptable to your readers. It should be
mentioned, that the whole site is pregnant with relics of
antiquity; and from what has been rescued from destruction
by the exertions of Mr. Inskipp, a resident there, it is clear
that a Roman encampment existed at Stanford-bury, on
the hills adjacent to Shefford, and a burial-ground about
a stadium west of it; the former being proved by the camp
apparatus and implements found, the latter by the Samian
ware, cinereal vases, and sacrificial utensils. This dispo-
sition of place is interesting, as shewing that the law of the
Twelve Tables which regulated the funerals of Rome, was
also observed in the encampments abroad.

Obverse. IMP C ALLECTVS P F AVG. (Imperator
Caesar Allectus Pius Felix Augustus.} The head of
Allectus with a radiated crown, long face, good features,
and trimmed beard; the whole indicative of a man of
middle age. This coin is of excellent silver, a rare
thing in this reign ; and the orthography ought to correct
those who spell the name with a single L.

Reverse. VIRTVS AVG. (Firtus Augusti.) On the exergum,
Q L, a galley on the sea, with six passengers on deck,

ALLECTUS AND CONSTANS. 81

and, apparently, another sitting under the aplustre of
the poop ; it is furnished with a mast having a stay and
back-stay without shrouds ; the stern is formidably armed ;
and six oars, besides a rudder, appear along its side, as
if issuing from a-'tween decks.

II.

Obverse. IMP C ALLECTVS P F AVG. (Imperator
Ctzsar Allectus Pius Felix Augustus.} A portrait of
the emperor which resembles the above, but with smaller
and more pleasing features, giving no indication of one
capable of perfidy or assassination. This is a small-brass
coin in very high condition, and was struck between the
years 293 and 296, A. D.

Reverse. VIRTVS AVG. (Virtus Augusti.) On the exergum
C I. A long galley floating on the waves, with curious
upper-works, parasemon, and aplustre, and a stout mast
supported by double stays and back-stays. There is a
line of oars on the broadside, and a rudder on the quarter,
all apparently projected from a-'tween decks; but, ex-
cepting a figure on the forecastle, there are no men along
the upper-deck.

The ancestors and connections of Allectus are alike un-
known to history; but it will be remembered that he was a
sea-officer in the somewhat piratical fleet, commanded by
Carausius: the latter being the hero of Stukeley's queer
reverie, wherein he figures as a Welshman, while Jupiter
presenting an orb to him, is transmogrified, by a coup de
plume, into Venus holding the mystic apple ! The gal-
lantry and address of Allectus recommended him to the
confidence of his master, who elevated him to a post where
he had the opportunity of making unwarrantable exactions,
and being detected, resolved to evade punishment by re-
bellion. Having perfidiously slain his benefactor, A. D. 293,
he seized the imperial authority, and retained it by the
strength of the navy. At length the energetic Constantius
Chlorus, who had been no less than three years completing
his preparations, sailed from the ports of Gaul for England,

82 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

and threatening several points at once, disconcerted both the
councils and plans of the usurper. The latter had, however,
judiciously stationed a powerful fleet off the Isle of Wight, for
the purpose of intercepting the invader in his passage across
the channel. A dense fog rendered the measure abortive, so
that a formidable division of the Romans, under the prsefect
Asclepiodotus, disembarked in safety. 1 Allectus had
posted himself near London for the purpose of encountering
Constantius himself, who was hovering on the shores of
Kent; but the descent just mentioned, caused the usurper
to move by forced marches to the westward, to oppose the
praefect's progress, and in hope of overcoming him before
the junction of the invading forces. Asclepiodotus, as an
earnest of his intentions, had no sooner disembarked his
army than he set fire to his fleet, that there might be no safety
but in victory. A pitched battle ensued, in which the Roman
troops proved superior to the mere foreign auxiliaries of the
usurper, who was totally defeated and slain, A. D. 296. But
he seems to have died with the same determined courage he
had manifested while living, for, perceiving his fate to be
inevitable, he threw off his purple, and other distinctions
by which his body might be recognized, dashed among the
enemy at the head of a devoted band of adherents, the com-
panions of former successes, and met the death he sought.
Even the panegyrist Eumenius, in landing the victor, pays
a tribute to the vanquished.

The reverse of the medals before us, affords a proof of
the high esteem in which Allectus held his fleet, as the

1 This landing of the Romans, according to Gibbon, convinced
the Britons " that a superiority of naval strength will not always
protect their country from a foreign invasion." It is difficult to
say, after the lengthy preparations of Constantius, whether the
invading fleets were not the strongest ; and it is more than probable
that the Britons wasted no thoughts upon the subject.

ALLECTUS AND CONSTANS. 83

chief defence of his insular empire ; and the emblem has
been proved appropriate, in the subsequent naval career
of the nation. Carausius had also had a galley struck, and
Neptune appeared on his coins, but they were introduced
as types of felicity, rather than of Virtus^ or valour. Among
the first regular gold mintage of England, her maritime
prowess was again recognized, for Edward the third, after
his naval victory off Flushing, struck the famous Rose
Nobles, a coinage then superior to any currency in the
world for fabric, and at least equal in metal. They bore
on one side, Jesus autem transiens per medium illorum ibat,
with a cross and the arms impaled in an undulating circle,
resembling the outline of an expanded rose; whence the
name: on the other side appears the king's own effigies,
with a sword in his right hand, a crown on his head, and a
blazoned shield held on his left arm; he is seated in a richly-
carved ship, floating on waves. This gave rise to the old
couplet

" Four things our noble sheweth unto me,
King, ship, and sword, and power of the sea."

This national type was occasionally continued, particularly
by such conquering sovereigns as Henry the fifth, and
Queen Elizabeth, but it had generally to give way to the
spiritless and unintellectual armorial balderdash with which
the numismatology of modern Europe has been so bitterly
degraded. It is high time that objects of meaning, elegance,
and in this country of naval allusion, should supersede the
soul-less quarteririgs which have hitherto offended the eye
of judgment. The prospect is, however, dimmed by the
absurdities of our mint regulations, the restrictions of ig-
norance, and the careless apathy of most of those to whom
the management of our matters of taste is committed.
Pinkerton observes " It has ever been the curse of this

84 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

country, that, while it superabounds in men calculated for
all the arts and employments, yet, by a singular phrenzy,
foreigners are always sure to obtain the preference." He
then instances the flagrant case of Simon, a superlative
native artist, who was displaced by Roettier, a Dutchman
of no such eminence. So in the present day we see the
energies of a Wyon cramped, arid one well capable of af-
fording appropriate emblems of our maritime, military,
commercial, agricultural, and scientific greatness, is still
doomed to the deadening tether of a political mintmaster,
an Italian associate, and a knot of pence-screwing moneyers.
But our third coin must not be forgotten.

III.

Obverse. D N CONSTANS P F AVG. (Dominus nosier
Constans Pius Felix Augustus.} The beardless head
of Constans regarding the right. It is encircled with a
jewelled diadem, and the bust is paludated over armour.
The visage is long, the eyes large, and the features
though not bad, somewhat unpleasing. The coin is of
brass, darkly patinated, of ordinary fabric, and in excel-
lent preservation : it was probably struck A. D. 340,
when the death of his designing brother left Constans
nothing to fear.

Reverse. FEL TEMP REPARATIO (Felix temporum re-
paratio), with the mintmark A* P. The emperor in
military attire standing in a praetorian galley, with his
right foot on the prow; it is steered by a winged Victory,
who is naked to the waist. With his left hand he holds
the labarum, inscribed with the sacred monogram of
Christ, and his right supports a radiated phoenix on a
globe, or orbis terrarum.

This medal offers nothing very peculiar, except its being
among the first bearing Felix temporum reparatio, which af-
terwards became a favourite legend. Of Constans himself
(to save the reader the trouble of reference) it may be re-
marked, that he was the third and last son of Constantine
the Great and Fausta; that he participated in the division

ALLECTUS AND CONSTANS. 85

of the empire with his brothers, on the death of their father,
A.D. 337; that three years afterwards, his provinces were
unjustly encroached upon by Constantine the second, who
was defeated and slain near Aquileia; and that, after a reign
remarkable for voluptuousness and Nimrodism, he was as-
sassinated by the partisans of Magnentius, at the age of
thirty, A. D. 350.

The character of Constans has been most liberally, or
rather largely, discussed by parties agreeing as cordially as
do fire and water; so that we are, after all our pains, left to
guess between the conflicting authorities. As a zealous de-
fender of orthodoxy, Constans is not only always warmly
greeted among the Christian writers, but is styled the
" blessed" by Athanasius; yet Zozimus is not so courteous,
since he roundly declares that he was the most cruel and
sordid tyrant that ever disgraced a diadem. Some say he
was vigilant, laborious, and pious; while others assert that
he was a slave to gluttony and the worst vices, and that
though he was inordinately elated by the successes over his
brother, little was owing to his own talents or conduct. By
one author we are told that he drank too freely, and by
another that he was the very type of sobriety. Some attri-
bute to him the most vicious licentiousness, while others
mention his carefulness to be such that, like a watchful
master-at-arms, he nightly paraded his palace, javelin in
hand, to see that all was right. Amidst such discordant
details, however, we collect that Constans actually possessed
great personal bravery ; and it appears that he conducted
an expedition into Britain, in spite of contrary weather, and
many other difficulties, magnanimously defying the rigours
of winter, and the natural turbulence of the British sea.
He passed over with a powerful fleet, put down the insur-
gents, and partially pacified the island. Who knows but

86 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

that the coin now described was dropped at Shefford, by
one of his body guard, or other immediate follower ? And
might not the reverse itself be in compliment to his landing
in Britain ? If so, it may have been struck in anticipation
of a victorious result, as hath since been exemplified in the
noted medal of the Napoleon series, inscribed Descents en
Angleterre, which also bears the premeditated falsehood,
Frappee & Londres. S.

XIV.

ON THE SKEATTA ASCRIBED TO WILDFRID
IN ARTICLE III.

SIR,

IN your new and very interesting journal, I find
an account of a skeatta assigned to Wildfrid, archbishop of
York, on which, with your leave, I wish to offer a few
observations.

The legend of this coin, if properly delineated, as I
suppose it to be, does not appear to me to bear the name
of Wilfrid; the first letter seems clearly an M, for even
admitting it to be turned upside down, it will, I believe,
be found that few instances occur, on Anglo Saxon coins,
of the two Vs forming the W being joined at all, much
less in the form of an M reversed : the second letter appears
to be intended for E ; indeed I know no instance of the
Anglo Saxons forming a monogram in the manner conjec-
tured, and I think if they had intended to express the
letters IL by one character, they would, probably, have
denoted it by the letter L alone.

The other letters will bear the reading given to them by
your learned correspondent, but I am not so certain that

ON THE SKEATTA ASCRIBED TO WILDFRID. 87

one or two of them will not admit of a different interpre-
tation.

Having thus given my opinion, that the legend does not
satisfactorily express the word WILFRID, it is right I should
give my own reading of the word.

The first letter I consider M, the second E, the third
seems D, but it may, perhaps, have been intended for G :
the fourth, fifth, and sixth there can be no dispute about,
being plainly FRI : the seventh seems D : the eighth may
certainly have been intended for H or N, but it is exactly
of the form of the V on the coins of Offa, and I think was
intended for that letter: the last letter, although like T,
will, I think, admit of being considered as 3> which, on
Anglo Saxon coins, was as often turned to the left as the
right ; and the whole legend I conceive to form -f MEG-
FRIDVS, or EGFRID VS + M, the last letter being the initial
of Merciorum ; and the letters being all exactly of the form
used on the coins of Offa, I consider a strong additional
proof that this coin belonged to his son and successor,
Egfrid ; but were it not for the M and the form of the other
letters, I should have been more inclined to assign it to
Egfrid of Northumbria.

As to the supposition, that the name may be that of a
moneyer, I admit the possibility, in which case I should
certainly read the coin EDFRIDVS M, which I think is
the most obvious reading ; but I think the appropriation to
Egfrid more probable. As to the supposition, however, that
it may be the name of a moneyer of Egbert, king of Kent,
I must refer your learned correspondent to an article in the
Gentleman's Magazine for February, 1 827, in which reasons
are given for assigning to Edbert, king of Northumberland,
and his brother Egbert, archbishop of York, the coins for-
merly given to Egbert, king of Kent. If, however, he has

NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

seen it, but remains so completely unconvinced by the
arguments there adduced, as to think them unworthy of
comment, I should feel extremely obliged to him if he
would publish his reasons for assigning these coins to
Egbert, king of Kent.

To appropriate coins rightly, must be the object of all
numismatists, and I shall be most happy to give up any
opinion I may have entertained, as soon as public opinion
should have pronounced it to be erroneous. The animal
on the coin described by your correspondent, would seem
to assign it to the same kingdom as those of Egbert, whether
they belong to Kent or Northumberland, but the letters
exactly resemble those of Offa, and as your correspondent
has justly observed, are completely different from those on
the coins of Egbert. I am, Sir, Your obedient servant,

JOHN LINDSAY.

Cork, ItthAug. 1836.

XV.
AN INEDITED COIN OF TITUS.

SIR,

, You will receive with pleasure for the Numisma-
tic Journal, a description of an inedited Roman coin of
great interest, historically considered. This coin was re-
cently found at Pont-sur-Yonne, near Sens in France, and
is now in the possession of M. Leys, a distinguished ama-
teur resident in that town. Its description is as follows :

AN INEDITED COIN OF TITUS. 89

Obv. T CAES IMP AVG F TR P COS VI CEN-
SOR. Laureated head of Titus to the right.

. IVDAEA NAVALIS S C. Judaea seated beneath a
palm tree ; behind her a heap of arms.

The legends Judcea Capta and Judaea Devicta are well
known on the coins of Vespasian and Titus; but Judcea
Navalis was, until the discovery of this example, unknown.
The Jews never enjoyed a great reputation as seamen ; but,
1 think, I have found in Josephus a narration of the event
to which the legend and type of this coin allude, the charac-
ter of which is rather derisory than triumphal. This author
relates, in his history of the war with the Romans (Book
iii. chap, ix.), that when the town of Joppa was destroyed by
Cestius, the inhabitants driven by famine, sought refuge by
sea, the Romans having destroyed the neighbouring towns
and villages. They built vessels (ora^r/) and committed
piracies on the shores of Syria, Phoenicia, and Egypt. The
town being attacked a second time by the Roman troops,
the Jews fled during the night towards their ships ; but a
violent tempest drove them on the rocks which border the
coast of Joppa, and they were exterminated. Soon after,
they were defeated on the Lake of Genesareth, their barks
being unable to cope with the warlike vessels of Vespasian.

To these events, and most probably to the first, the legend
Judaea Navalis must allude, Titus, as it is well known, hav-
ing accompanied his father in the Judaic war. This curious
coin illustrates that of large brass of Vespasian with the
legend Judaa Capta, upon which a Roman warrior is re-
presented resting his right foot on the prow of a vessel, a
type but imperfectly explained until the discovery of this
coin by M. Leys. Receive, Sir, &c.

DUMERSAN.

Du Cabinet des Medailles de Paris.

BlBLIOTHEQUE RoYALE,

Paris, July 22, 1836.

90 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

We feel particularly obliged by the preceding communication.
The legend described (IVDAEA- NAVALIS) is, however, of so
unusual a character, and, indeed, so difficult to reconcile with idio-
matic propriety, that had the information reached us from a less
intelligent source, we should be strongly disposed, either to doubt
the genuineness of the coin altogether, or to consider that it must
have been altered from one with the legend IVDAEA- DEVICTA,
or possibly blundered, by doubly striking, between the two types,
IVDAEA- DEVICTA (or CAPTA),and VICTORIA- NAVA-
LIS, equally well known in the brass series of Vespasian and his
sons. The last-mentioned type occurs, we believe, only in second
brass, of which size also is the type in question (as appears by
the drawing with which we have been favoured), and we cannot
but suspect some confusion to have taken place between them.
The device, too, of Judaea seated under a palm tree, with piled
arms (the common one to denote her military and territorial sub-
jugation), unaccompanied by any emblem peculiarly naval, is in-
consistent with the legend IVDAEA NAVALIS, while its
suitability and beauty are universally felt and admired in con-
nexion with that of IVDAEA- DEVICTA.

M. Dumersan remarks that the legend must be of a " derisory"
character. If decided to be perfectly genuine, we should agree
with him. But the device does not seem to be analogous, being
similar to many others plainly of serious historical import; nor
are we aware of any other instance in which the language of satire,
or derision, is employed on Roman medals intended for regular cur-
rency. These we conceive to be additional reasons for suspecting
either some falsity, or blunder. At the same time we beg to be
understood as not making these observations without due deference
to the judgment of our valued correspondent, who has the oppor-
tunity of inspecting the coin itself. ED. N. J.

XVI.

OBSERVATIONS ON THE COINS OF THE
ANCIENT BRITONS.

THE obscurity in which the early history of Britain is
involved, has led many learned men to indulge in the
wildest speculations. Some have discovered that the man-
ners and customs of the Britons closely resembled those of
the Greeks; others have brought forward weighty arguments
to prove the extensive commerce which our forefathers
had with the Phoenicians; while many, with a still greater
love for the fabulous, have descanted on

" Brute's first arrival and first victory,"

and attempted to shew that the Britons came direct from
Troy ! The few remains of ancient Britain discovered
at various times in tumuli, have thrown but little light on
her early history; and the coins supposed by most anti-
quaries to be of British origin, are sadly deficient in his-
torical illustration. These relics, however, have been
descanted upon with great zeal, and great want of judg-
ment. Pegg, who was the first to consider the British

92 ' NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

coins in detail, has exhausted much learning on the subject,
but has allowed his fancy to prevail against his judgment.
Another writer outstrips Pegg 1 , and attempts to explain the
signification of the most minute symbols on the coins of the
Britons. From him, we learn that the rude representation
of a horse, so often found on the British coins, is the figure
of the Genius, Ked or Ceridwen, and that the joints of the
animal were the various mystic symbols of the Druids !
Pegg, scarcely less fanciful, because he finds an ear of
barley on British coins, immediately concludes that it was
adopted on account of its being the grain of which our rude
forefathers made their favourite drink. An animal which,
if really at that time existing, no modern naturalist could
identify, must, according to this writer, be " either a sheep
or a dog, either of which is, undoubtedly, a proper device
for a British coin, their dogs being famous, and their sheep
most useful creatures to them." This, if founded upon
reason, might be very instructive; but, unfortunately for the
writer, it cannot be satisfactorily proved that a single
British coin bears the representation of any deity, weapon,
or utensil, peculiar to the people by whom they are supposed
to have been minted 2 . We have, besides, many curious
observations in Mr. Pegg's work, upon the prince Cuno-
belinus; the manner of his dressing his hair; his wife (!)
and other particulars ; but as these observations should be
confined to matter of fact, the laughter of the reader shall

1 Mythology and Rites of the British Druids, by Edward Davies.
8vo., London, 1809.

2 It must, nevertheless, be confessed that the two semicircular
objects in the centre of the convex side of the coins engraved at
the head of these remarks, are precisely similar in shape to the
crescent held by the druidical figure given by Montfaucon. These
crescents of gold have been found in Ireland, and may possibly
have been given, intentionally, on the British coins ; but we have
no proof of this.

ON THE COINS OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 93

not be farther provoked by quotations from the learned
and ingenious, but absurdly speculative, tract.

The often-cited passage in Caesar, who tells us that the
Britons, on his arrival among them, had no other money
than rude pieces of brass and rings of iron and copper, has
been, by many, received as sufficient evidence that the
coins under notice are of a date subsequent to the reign
of that emperor. A glance at the specimens here given,
will at once shew that their workmanship is of an earlier
period, or at least, that they are imitated from Greek coins,
minted long before Caesar visited Britain. It should be
remarked that Suetonius informs us that Caesar highly
valued the pearls of this country, and offered them up in
the Temple of Venus ; while Pliny, in his natural history,
describes them as small and of a bad colour. To say that
Caesar's account of this island is correct in every particular,
would be to libel the travellers of every age and country,
for where shall we find two works on the same country,
written by persons who travelled in a peaceful character,
agree on all points ? It must be confessed that Caesar had
no favourable opportunity for acquiring information with
respect to the civil habits of our ancestors, since they fur-
nished ample occupation for the choicest legions, during
his stay in Britain.

E. Lhuyd was of opinion that the art of coinage was
known to, and practised by, the Britons before the Roman
invasion, " because there have been found thick pieces of
gold, hollowed on one side, with a variety of unintelligible
marks and characters upon them;" and he observes that
if the Britons had learnt the art from their invaders, they
would have executed more intelligible coins. That the
rude pieces to which Lhuyd refers are of a date anterior to
Caesar's visit, there can be but little doubt ; but it is more

94 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

than probable that those coins belong to another people,
and that they are, in fact, the earliest attempt of the Gaulish
artists. This conjecture is supported by the number of
rude coins, of the description mentioned by Lhuyd, found
from time to time, in various parts of France.

Montfaucon has expressed his belief that the Gauls coined
money before the time of Caesar ; and of this there can
scarcely be a doubt : and but for the passage in the Com-
mentaries of Caesar, the class of coin distinguished as ancient
British, would doubtless have been assigned to a much
earlier period by our English antiquaries. Strange, indeed,
would it be, if the Britons were unacquainted with the art of
coining money, when the Gaulish merchants were constantly
trading with them ; and stranger still, that Caesar should,
amidst the occupations of war, gather correct information
respecting a people of whose habits he had hitherto been
so ignorant, that he was compelled to make inquiries of
those very merchants previous to his setting sail for that
island.

The rudest, and, as may be supposed, the earliest, speci-
mens of the ancient British coinage, resemble the barbarous
money of the Gauls, who, as is allowed on all sides, took
the coins of the Greeks for their models : indeed, it is
obvious that the money of civilised states has always formed
the models of their less refined neighbours. Thus, the
Saxon coins are, in numerous instances, imitated from those
of the Romans after the time of Theodosius ; and, although
it is doubtful whether the Saxon monarchs ever wore dia-
dems similar to those which encircled the heads of the
emperors, we have many side-faced portraits on the Saxon
coins with the heads thus ornamented.

Although there have been many discoveries in England,
of rude coins, supposed to be of British origin, it is by no

ON THE COINS OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 95

means certain that they are not importations from Gaul.
These, however, if really belonging to Britain, are appa-
rently of the earliest period ; those of better workmanship
would appear to be of a later date, while those bearing the
letters CVN CVNO, and the word CVNOBELINVS at
length, are, doubtless, coins of the prince to whom they
are, by universal consent, assigned. Ruding has engraved
many specimens of the coins of Cunobelinus; and a glance
at these engravings, or the originals, will shew that even
the moneyers of the British prince did not draw on their
own fancy for the subjects represented on their coins.

The coins here engraved are unpublished, and differ
materially from the examples given by Ruding. Both
appear to have the remains of the debated word Tascio on
the concave side. No. 1 bears, on the ornamented convex
side, a T in the centre, and the letter V. This coin re-
sembles one in the British Museum, found, with several
others, in the neighbourhood of West Wickham, a few years
since. No. 2 apparently bears, on the concave side, a
portion of the word Tascio, and on the convex side, in very
minute but distinct letters, VER, which our antiquaries ap-
pear warranted in reading Verulamiwm? ; both are in the
possession of Mr. J. D. Cuff 4 .

It is worthy of remark that these coins, though weighing
as near as possible, alike, namely eighty-four grains each,
differ much in colour, No. I being of red gred, and the
other of a pale hue resembling electrum.

J. Y. A.

3 See Ruding, Plate 5, No. 25.

4 Mr. Cuff considers that these letters may possibly occur on
other types, and that from their minuteness they have been over-
looked, which is by no means improbable.

XVII.
UNPUBLISHED HALF-CROWN OF CHARLES I.

THE above coin, though of rude execution, is one of con-
siderable interest to the English collector, and is a curious
addition to the extensive series of the money of Charles the
First. The obverse bears the equestrian figure of the king,
crowned and clad in the half armour of the time: legend,
CAROL VS D G MAG BR - AN HI- RX (sic): under
the horse are the letters : SA : which I conceive denote that
this piece was struck at Sarum. The reverse has the royal
arms surmounted by a large crown : legend CHRISTO
(AV)SPICE REGNO. The mint mark on the reverse
appears to be a full-faced helmet. The piece has been
badly struck, owing perhaps to its shifting while under
the blows of the hammer. If we admit the supposition
that the king's moneyers often moved from place to place
with the army, this coin was minted while the royal forces
sojourned at Salisbury. J. D. C.

XVIII.

AN INQUIRY INTO THE MOTIVE WHICH INFLU-
ENCED THE ANCIENTS, IN THEIR CHOICE OF
THE VARIOUS REPRESENTATIONS WHICH WE
FIND STAMPED ON THEIR MONEY.

THE coins of the ancient Greeks, when collected for pur-
poses of examination and study 1 , may be looked upon in a
twofold point of view: and the civic coins, in particular,
which first attract our attention, seem naturally to lead us
into two principal branches of preliminary inquiry ; each of
which will be found susceptible of separate investigation,
though both are necessarily and intimately interwoven.

The first branch of inquiry may be said to relate to such
coins, considered as money ; or, in other words, to comprise
a knowledge of all that may tend to the discovery of their
local origin, and age; and consequently, lead to their
geographical and chronological classification in the cabinet,
as well as to their value and denomination.

The second branch may be considered to relate to such
coins, as works of ancient art; requiring explanation as to
the meaning of the various representations which we find stamped

1 The later coins so often throw light upon the earlier ones, that
our notion of a collection of greek coins, should not, by any means,
be confined to the more ancient and beautiful class, struck during
the period of the freedom of Greece, commonly called Autonomous
coins. Experience shews, that for the purposes of useful study, a
collection must necessarily include not only the Regal coins, but
also comprise those which were struck in the cities of Greece and
Asia, during the Roman sway. These latter (having mostly
greek inscriptions) are usually called Greek Imperial coins : and
are continued down to the extinction of the Roman power in the
East about the time of Gallienus, at which period the greek series
terminates: except the few coins of the Byzantine Emperors,
which it may be possible to class to any of the Cities, and which
may still be added to close this important series.

98 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

upon them ; and which representations are technically called
their Types 2 .

The possibility of adding very materially to the common
stock of knowledge, by the study of ancient coins, was per-
ceived soon after the revival of learning; and, hence, we'
may observe, that, with a view to introduce some order and
method in the study, the classification of coins, and the
meaning of their types, have occupied the attention of a
host of learned and eminent men, in succession, from
the middle of the sixteenth century, down to our own
times. Considerable progress has therefore been made, and
among the number of justly celebrated writers to whom
the numismatic world will be ever indebted, the names
of Spanheim, Vaillant, Haym, Haverkamp, Frolich, Pel-
lerin, C. Combe, Torremuzza, Eckhel, Sanclementi, T.
Combe, and Sestini may be particularly pointed out, with-
out any disparagement to the rest, as having contributed
mainly, to the advancement of numismatic study in general,
and, particularly, to the labour of perfecting and correcting
the classification of coins already known, as well as the
publication of those newly discovered.

It must, however, be confessed, that the progress hitherto
made in developing the meaning of the types of coins, has
not, by any means, kept pace with the advancement which
has taken place in most of the other inquiries which the
study has given rise to.

In endeavouring to discover the cause of the slow pro-
gress made in that which has been just distinguished as the

2 In speaking of the types of coins, we must be understood only
to allude to those representations which form the chief subject.
Small symbols in the field, or exergue of a coin, and which vary
in different coins, form no part of the type in our -present view of
it, and should be considered separately. These accessory symbols
are probably a kind of mint marks adopted to supersede the
necessity of placing the magistrate's name on the coin.

REPRESENTATION ON ANCIENT MONEY- 99

second branch of inquiry, it soon becomes apparent that it
must not only be attributed to the obvious difficulties which
oppose themselves to its development, but that it may be
also satisfactorily traced to the existence of an opinion,
which, in a greater or less degree, has been admitted by all
numismatic writers, that a variety of different motives influ-
enced the ancients in choosing the types of their money.

Hence we find, that, although the types of some coins
have been often referred by every numismatic writer to the
religious worship, or mythology of the ancients, it has been,
at the same time, as frequently admitted by them all, that
other types require a different mode of interpretation.

Passing over this part of our subject as rapidly as possible,
since the task is ungrateful of pointing out opinions which
appear to be erroneous, in the works of most learned and
distinguished men, whose names must ever be held in
grateful remembrance by every lover of numismatic study,
it becomes, nevertheless, absolutely necessary, in furtherance
of the object of this Inquiry, to advert to some of these
opinions.

I proceed, therefore, to remark that the types of coins
have been sometimes supposed to allude,

1. To the fertility of the soil.

Thus, to take one of many passages in the works of
Pellerin, he says 3 of a coin of Sagalassus, that the ears of
corn and vine-branch indicate the fertility of the territory.
The same principle is recognised by Frolich 4 and Eckhel 5 .
Sanclementi also says of a coin of Metapontum, that the
ear of wheat, on the reverse, is a suitable symbol of the

3 Recueil de Medailles, vol. iii. p. 143.

4 Notitia Elementaris Numismatum, &c. 4to, Vienna, 1758, cap.
v. p. 56.

5 Doct. Num. Vet. vol. i. cap. xviii. De. typis, p. cv.

100 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

fertility of the soil 6 ; and, again he says of a coin of Myconus,
having on the reverse, a bunch of grapes, and a double ear
of corn, that the type clearly points out the productiveness
of the island in corn and wine 7 , and quotes Pliny's testi-
mony to that effect, without alluding to the connexion of
the grapes with the head of Bacchus on the obverse of the
same coin. Sestini, in like manner, thinks the fertility of
the Agrigentine territory to be indicated by a bunch of
grapes, and not to refer to the worship of Bacchus 8 .

2. Some types have been supposed to allude to the
abundance of particular animals, as fish, horses, goats,
cattle, &c. Eckhel, speaking of the coins of Issa, decidedly
expresses his opinion that the motive for goats being repre-
sented upon them, was the abundance of that animal on
the island 9 : and Sanclementi explains, in a similar manner,
the horse on the coins of Thessaly 10 , and the crab on the
coins of Gaulos 11 . Frolich admits the same principle of
explanation 12 ; and Sestini prefers an allusion to a tunny-
fishery in the type of the coins of Cyzicus 13 , to the more
obvious motive of the local worship of Apollo, which he
himself admits may be conjectured from a passage in
Callimachus.

3. Other types are supposed to represent arts or manu-
factures, or to allude to the commercial pursuits, or the
local situation, of the place to which such coins may belong.
Among the various subjects which Frolich enumerates as
represented on coins, is the cultivation of the arts 14 , and

6 Mus. Sanclementiani Numis. Select., 4to. Romae, 1808, vol. i.
p. 236. 7 Ibid. p. 237.

8 Lettere e Dissertazione Numismatiche, 4to. 1789 1806, (first
series,) vol. ii. p. 5.

9 Num. Vet. Anecdoti, p. 98, and Doct. Num. Vet. ii. p. 159.

10 Ibid. p. 196. " Ibid. p. 190. 12 Ubi supra.

13 Descrizione degli Stateri AnticM, 4to. 1817, p. 49.

14 Ubi supra.

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 101

Eckhel considers that the Baeotians and Macedonians
represented the shape or fashion of their shields on their
coins 15 . The naval pursuits and commerce of the inhabi-
tants of Cius are presumed, by Sestini, to be alluded to by
the prow of a ship 16 on their coins, as well as by the types
of those of Lampsacus 17 . Noeden entertained a similar
opinion of the type of a coin of Brettium 18 .

4. Eckhel was of opinion that natural phenomena were
often represented on coins 19 .

5. Some coins have been supposed to be commemorative
of historical events. The modern custom of striking medals
on such occasions, seems to have induced the belief that
ancient coins were occasionally struck for the same purpose.
Thus, we find Sestini, in a letter on a coin of Agrigentum 20 ,
although he admits that it bears the characteristic type of
Jupiter, nevertheless prefers a very dubious historical ex-
planation to the more obvious one of local worship. In the
same spirit, the erudite and ingenious author of the ex-
planations of some of the most beautiful coins in Lord
Northwick's collection, has considered each coin as a kind
of enigmatical medal. Thus the types on the obverse and
reverse of a magnificent coin of Agrigentum are taken, alto-
gether 21 , as commemorative of the victory gained at Himera
by Gelo, the ruler of Syracuse, and Theron, the chief of
Afgrigentum, over the Carthaginians and their ally, Anax-
ilas, the lord of Rhegium and Messana 22 ; in which opinion
he was preceded by Beger 23 .

However agreeable to our classical feelings the discovery
of an interesting historical signification in these symbolical

5 Vol. i. p. cv. 1G Vol. iii. p. 128. 7 Vol. iv. p. 68,

18 Specimens of Ancient Coins, fol. p. 1.
.' 9 Ubi supra. !0 Ibid. vol. ii. p. 5. 21 Ibid. p. 8.

2 - Ibid, note 12, p. 8. 9;J Thesaur. Brandenburg, vol. i. p. 375.

10 b 2 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

representations would be, it is to be feared that facts will
not sanction the admission of such opinions. The con-
jectures before us, however plausible, and although sup-
ported with considerable erudition and ability, are not ad-
missible, for two principal reasons; the first of which is, that
on many other coins of the same town, but of different ages, the
type recurs so varied and modified, as to be no longer
susceptible of the same historical interpretation. The second
is, that analogous representations occur on the coins of
other cities, totally unconnected with the historical events
supposed to be alluded to. Thus, on two coins (among
many others) of Agrigentum 24 , one eagle is devouring a
serpent, instead of two eagles devouring a hare; and the type
of an eagle devouring its prey, whether it be a hare, a lamb,
or a serpent, is common to the coins of many cities and
people 25 . Thus, also, the monster Scylla, (whose repre-
sentations are most rare on coins, as her worship, probably,
was confined to few places) is nevertheless to be found on
an unique coin of Cuma" 6 in my cabinet; at which place,
according to the learned author of the work just referred to,
she appears to have been worshipped in common with

24 Hunter, tab. 2, fig. iii and ix.

25 Pydna in Macedon, Mionnet, vol. i. p. 487, No. 286 ;
Chalcis in Euboea, Hunter, tab. 17, figs, iii and iv ; Elis, Tab.
27, figs, xvii, xviii, and xix ; Siphnus Insula, tab. 49, fig. xxvii.
See also the coins of Elis, engraved in Stanhope's Olympia, large
fol., London, 1824, particularly Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12, 14,
15, and 17.

Instead of venturing to offer any explanation of the precise
meaning of this difficult symbolic type, I am ready to confess that
it is more easy to shew what such representations are not> than
what they are : we may judge, however, from the various modi-
fications shown in the plates just referred to, and from its general
adoption, as the type of the coins of so many places, that it had a
religious, and not an historical signification.

28 See Millingen's Recueil de quelqucs Medailles Grecques
Inedites, 4to. Rome, 1812; plate 1. fig. 4.

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 103

ZEgaeon, or Briareus^ 7 , and probably with other marine
divinities.

6. Sometimes symbols have been supposed to have
general significations ; and accordingly we find, in explain-
ing a coin of Laodicea 28 , on the reverse of which a cornu-
copia appears in connexion with a caduceus, it has been
observed by Pellerin that the former was a highly appro-
priate symbol of a territory which historians describe as
very fertile ; and that the caduceus is a suitable indication
of peace, the attendant of plenty. Sestini supposes abun-
dance to be indicated by an ear of wheat 29 , and kingly
power to be denoted by an eagle standing on a thunder-
bolt 30 .

Torremuzza, in discussing a coin of Entella, on which
Ceres is represented holding a torch in one hand, and an
olive branch in the other, with a bunch of grapes and wreath
of wheat in the field, takes the whole, collectively, to denote
the productiveness of the country 31 .

Noeden suggests that the ant and the bee on a coin of
Brettium, betoken the industry of the people 32 , and that
the ox's head is a type of agriculture 33 . Others have
adopted the notion, that national wealth, prosperity, and
valour, are respectively indicated by the several symbols
of a cornucopia, an ear of wheat, and a club; and that
strength and power were indicated by bulls, lions, eagles,
c.

7. It has also been supposed, that the types on certain
coins were adopted from their representing, emblematically, the
name of the place to which the coins belong. These have been,

" 7 Ibid, p. 3, et seq. plate 1. fig. 3. 2S Vol. iii. p. 198.

Vol. iii. p. 128. 30 Vol. i. p. 83.

31 Sicilia Pop. and Urb., &c., 1781, p. 28. 32 Ibid. p. 2.

3< Ibid. p. 1.

104 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

in consequence, sometimes called speaking types ; and seem,
at first sight, particularly calculated to induce the opinion
which we find promulgated concerning them. Thus, the
Rose (pocW), on the reverse of the coins of Rhodes, is con-
sidered to mean the name of the island ; the Parsley-leaf
(o-e'Xti/ov), on the coins of Selinus is supposed to indicate
the name of the town. In like manner are explained, the
Pomegranate (atiri) on the coins of Side; the Apple (prj\ov)
on the coins of Melos ; the Seal (tywicr)) on the coins of
Phocsea; the Elbow (dy/cwv) on the coins of Ancona; the
Heart (icapSia) on the coins of Cardia; and perhaps others.

However plausible this method of explaining these types
may appear (and it must be confessed that most numis-
matic writers have adopted it), there is yet reason to think
that it is not correct.

For example, it has never been supposed that the type of
Minerva ('Adrjva) on the coins of Athens, was intended to
express the name of that city; or that such a motive in-
fluenced either the inhabitants of Posidonia, in stamping
the figure of Neptune (Uoffeidtiv) on their coins; or the inha-
bitants of Zancle, in choosing the type of the Sickle (ayjcXq)
for theirs ; because the types of these coins are easily re-
ferable to the mythology, or religious belief of the respective
places where they were struck. At the same time, they
might, with equal propriety, have been considered to belong
to the class of speaking types.

If the rose on the coins of Rhodes be looked upon as in-
dicative of the name of the, island, it may be asked why
the letters PO are always to be found, even on the most
ancient coins: and why, on the more recent, we should find
POAIQN at full length, at a period when it might be pre-
sumed that a speaking type would be perfectly understood,
without any letters at all.

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 105

The rose, though seldom occurring as a principal type
on the coins of other places, is, however, to be found occa-
sionlly 34 ; and, as an accessory symbol, is very common,
and occurs on the coins of many places 35 .

Whatever its meaning may be, there seems to be no good
reason for supposing that there should have been, anciently
many meanings attached to the same symbol ; and unless
we assume that this was the case, it will be impossible to
explain the rose when it recurs on the coins of other
places.

The difficulties which it is presumed these considerations
may offer to the notion of a speaking type, may be all ob-
viated by the adoption of the opinion, that the natural and
uniform motive of religious belief influenced the choice of
the rose., as the symbol of Venus; whose daughter, by a
beautiful poetical fiction, the island of Rhodes was said to
be ; and, at the same time, feigned to have been espoused
to the sun 36 , the peculiar object of Rhodian worship.

In speaking of the coins of Selinus (as, in fact, in at-
tempting to explain the meaning of any of the very ancient
symbolical types), it must not be expected that the slight
data left us, after a lapse of so many centuries, will enable
us often to obtain more than a very imperfect glimpse of
the truth. I am therefore only desirous of showing the
probable existence of a religious motive in the type before
us.

The town of Selinus was situated between the two rivers,
Hypsa and Selinus 37 , and the banks of the latter, it is said,

34 See the coins of Traelium, Mionnet, vol. i. p. 505 ; of Cyth-
mis, vol. ii. p. 315 ; of Soli, vol. iii. p. 612, &c.

35 Nagidus, Corinth, and many others.
30 Pindar, Olymp. Od. vii. ver. 25.

17 Sclinuntine Sculptures, described by S. Angell and T. Evans,
folio, London, 1826, page 28.

106 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

were covered with parsley 38 . The inhabitants of Sicily, it
is well known, were remarkable for the worship of their
rivers 39 ; and on consulting the later coins of Selinus, there
seems reason to suppose, not only that the people of that
town paid divine honours to both the adjacent rivers 40 , but
that the leaf of parsley was symbolic of that worship, since
we find it, as an accessory type, on the representations re-
ferred to. This plant appears therefore to be connected
with the worship of the inhabitants of Selinus; and that it
was in other respects a sacred plant, may be inferred from
its being used at funerals, and for wreaths at the Nemaean
and Isthmian games 41 . The passage in Plutarch which
Eckhel quotes 42 , seems strongly to confirm the sacred
motive of the type : for we learn from it, that the people of
Selinus dedicated to Apollo a golden parsley-leaf 43 , the
sacred symbol of their city; which religious act, is in
perfect analogy with that performed by the people of Meta-
pontum 44 , who dedicated at Delphi a harvest of gold (pro-
bably a wheat-sheaf), the type of their coins being an ear of
wheat : and that of the inhabitants of P/afcea 45 , who dedi-
cated a brazen bull at Delphi, the type of their money
being a bull.

Finally, the remark made on the letters which are found
on the earliest Rhodian coins applies with equal force to

28 Ibid. Note 1.

9 Eckhel enumerates eight of the principal towns in Sicily
which represented their rivers on the coins. Doet. Num. Vet. vol.
i. p. 185.

40 Hunter, p. 268, Coins, No. 4, 7 and 9.

41 See Potter's Archceologia Grceca, book 2, chap. xxiv. and the
circumstance quoted from Plutarch, relative to Timoleon, when in
Sicily.

42 Doct Num. Vet. vol. i. p. 238.

43 De Pythra. Oc. p. 399. 44 Strata, lib. vi. 6.

46 Millingen, dncient Coins of Greek Cities and Kings, 4to.
London, 1831, p. 58, plate IV. fig. 10.

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 107

those of Selinus ; for they may be found of very early date
with the letters SEAL

The attribution of the coins with the type of the pome-
granate to Side 46 , and to which Eckhel refers 47 , appears
to have taken place in consequence of the presumed
allusion of the type to the name of the place. The attri-
bution of these coins is, however, somewhat dubious ; and
appears to require that peculiar species of confirmation
which can only be afforded by the discovery of new coins.
On comparing, however, the coins in question with others 48 ,
and especially considering, that the pomegranate is the constant
symbol in the field of the later coins of Side 49 , we may per-
haps not err in admitting these coins to belong to that
city. In doing so, however, I would still contend, that
the sacred signification of the pomegranate was the motive
for its appearing on the coin ; perhaps as symbolic of Juno.
A very remarkable passage in Pausanias 50 may be connected
with this fruit, as having a meaning peculiarly sacred.

I should apply the same arguments to the apple on the
coins of Melos.

The apple was the symbol of Venus, and her worship at
that island may be inferred from the late discovery there>
of the beautiful statue of that goddess 51 , now in the Royal

40 See Hunter, Vet.Pop. etUrb. p. 270, and tab. 49, figs. in. iv. v.
vi. and vii.

47 Doct.Num.Vet. vol. i. cap. xviii. pag. cv. De Typis, and vol. iii.
p. 14.

48 Mionnet, vol. iii. p. 471 ; N. 137, 141 to 145, 174, 175, 176,
177, 179 and 180.

48 Ibid. N. 146 to 173.

50 Lib.ii. cap. 17.

51 See an interesting Dissertation connected with this exquisite
statue, in the elegant and erudite work of my friend Mr. Millingen.
Ancient Unedited Monuments. Series 2, p. 7, plate VI. See also
note 5, page 7 ; from which it appears, that a left hand holding an
apple was found near the statue.

108 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Museum, at Paris : I have also had occasion to observe
several small gold laming from tombs at Melos, on which
an apple is embossed. These objects were deposited with
the dead, from the influence of religious motives, and cannot
reasonably be supposed to present us with speaking types.

The seal on the coins of Phocaea, in the present state of
numismatic knowledge, is as difficult to explain as the tor-
toise on the coins of .ZEgina, or the bee on those of Ephesus.
The remark made, when speaking of the coins of Selinus,
will apply with peculiar force to the type of the coins of
Phocsea, which is so obscure, and of such rare occurrence,
that little can be said in illustration of it ; except that, as a
maritime symbol, it is by no means out of place on the
coins of a maritime city, which doubtless paid divine
honours to Neptune. Stephanus relates 52 , that the founders
of Phocaea were followed by a shoal of seals, from which
circumstance the place took its name ; and possibly, some
mythological tradition of the kind may have been a motive
for the adoption of the type, which it would be quite unrea-
sonable to suppose should form an almost solitary exception
to the whole range of Greek coins ; and, instead of the usual
sanctity of motive, present us with an unworthy and puerile
conceit.

The Elbow on the coins of Ancona 53 , might rather be de-
scribed as an arm holding a palm-branch, above which are
seen two stars. For the mere purpose of a speaking type,
an elbow would have been sufficient, and the additional
symbols must naturally be looked upon as showing that
something more was contemplated. The symbols appear
clearly to be susceptible of a religious interpretation. The
two stars obviously referring to the Dioscuri ; and the palm-

52 In voc. Phocaea.

* Pellerin. Plate VII. fig. 1.

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 109

branch, which was sometimes represented in their hands 5 *,
being symbolic of the games and festivals ( Dioscuria) cele-
brated in honour of those divinities. On the coins in ques-
tion, we find also the word ArKftN invariably inscribed at
full length, which would rob the conceit of its point.

It only remains to consider the coins attributed to
Cardia ; the types of which are supposed to be emblema-
tical of the name of that place. Pellerin appears to have
been the first who published a coin without any inscription,
on which is represented an object resembling a heart in
shape 55 , and which the received opinion of speaking types
(strengthened by passages in Pliny and Solinus) induced
him to believe was indicative of the name of Cardia ; to
which place he, accordingly, ventured to attribute the
coin.

Eckhel, evidently influenced by the same notion of a
speaking type, also classed the coin to Cardia 56 , citing Pel-
lerin, and adding, " typus cordis. quod Greeds icapdia, epigra-
phen abunde supplet."

The attribution of this coin having been thus sanctioned
by such high authority, was apparently confirmed by Ses-
tini ; who, subsequently, published two copper coins with
inscriptions at length, and having apparently a heart on the
reverse 57 , and remarks (notwithstanding the inscription)
when speaking of the latter of these coins, " that it affords
a second example of a speaking type, namely, a heart ; from
which the city derived its name."

54 See Millingen's Ancient Coins of Greek Cities and Kings. 4to,
London, 1831, p. 10; and plate i. n. 12.

55 Peuples et Villes, vol.i. p. 196. and plate xxxiv. No. 24.

56 Doct. Num. Vet. vol. ii. p. 50.

57 Lettere, Sfc. (first Series) vol. vi. p. 23. plate i. fig. 10. and vol.
ix. p. 17. plate i. fig. 21.

110 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Having thus briefly pointed out the origin of the attribu-
tion of certain coins to Cardia, and shewn, at the same
time, that the attribution in question gave rise to the notion
that another speaking type was discovered, it becomes
necessary to inquire how far that notion has any good
foundation.

Having become possessed, many years since, of a silver
coin similar to that published by Pellerin, I was very
dubious, on an attentive consideration of the type, whether
it could be supposed to represent a heart or not. This
doubt was subsequently confirmed by the acquisition of two
most rare coins, of the same metal, evidently (from the
analogy of type) belonging to the same place ; but on each
of which are to be observed two of these double-lobed
objects, supposed to be hearts. These are placed side by
side on one of the coins, and so disposed on the other, as to
bring the upper extremities of the two hearts in contact.
The former of these coins, which is of remote antiquity, and
has an oblong indentation on the reverse, has never been
engraved ; but a similar coin to the latter has been lately
published 58 .

It will be evident from an inspection of the plate, that
these objects are not hearts 59 ; but even supposing that such
a representation was intended, it may be reasonably pre-
sumed, that the emblematical signification of the type is
destroyed by the representation of two hearts on the most
ancient coin. Had Pellerin and Eckhel seen these coins,
it is due to their knowledge and sagacity to presume, that
we should never have heard of the speaking type of
Cardia.

58 See Cadalvene's Recueil de Medailles Grecques incdites, 4to.
Paris, 1828, plate i. fig. 10.

59 They are perhaps seed-vessels or other objects of natural his-
tory now very difficult to recognize.

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. Ill

Further, and to remove all doubt with regard to this
supposed speaking type of Cardia on the silver coins in
question, I have no hesitation in pronouncing, from the
fabric, as well as from other considerations, that they are
all Asiatic coins, and most probably belong to Miletus 60 .

We proceed to consider the only remaining point con-
nected with this discussion; namely, the two copper coins
described and engraved by Sestini 61 . It will be easily per-
ceived, both by the description and the engraving of these
coins, that they were in such a bad state of preservation, as
to be unfit for publication : purporting to be new coins, it
required more caution in giving them to the public, than
seems to have been exercised. Never having been able to
see a coin of Cardia with the type of a heart, and no such
coin existing in any collection, or in any numismatic work,
with which I am acquainted, I am led strongly to suspect,
that we may attribute to the bad condition of these two
coins, aided by the preconceived opinion of speaking types,
the mistake into which the learned author appears to have
been led.

It is not difficult to point out a type which might occasion
such a mistake ; the ivy leaf on the reverse of such a rare
little coin of Philetaerus as that published by Eckhel 62 ,
when somewhat corroded, would present an appearance
approximating extremely to that form, which is conven-
tionally used by the moderns to represent a heart; but
which does not occur to my knowledge, with the same
meaning, on ancient monuments.

Should future discoveries, however, prove Sestini to be
correct, the reader's attention must be again directed to the

50 The question of the right attribution of these coins, however
interesting, is foreign to the purpose of the present inquiry.
61 Loco citato.
82 Doct. Num. Vet. vol. ii. p. 474.

112 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

circumstance, that, as in the preceding examples, the in-
scription on both these coins is at full length, and seems,
therefore, to preclude the idea of a speaking type: in
addition to which, might be adduced the curious tradition
connected with Cardia, recorded by Stephanus 63 ; which
would offer an explanation of a heart, more in accordance
with the motive which may be shewn to have, probably,
influenced the choice of the types on the certain coins of
Cardia. Thus has been exemplified the practical evil
which must ever result from the admission of a false prin-
ciple in the classification of coins.

But it is not only to some of the coins of cities, that the
notion of a speaking type has been attached. Examples are
to be found of the same notion having been extended to coins
of kings ; and it may be even slightly hinted in this place,
that certain of the Roman Consular Coins seem also to offer
very knotty points of this nature for discussion. It would,
however, lead me too far away from the main purpose of our
inquiry to follow this subject to the Roman Consular Coins ;
more especially as the same arguments would be employed
in discussing Roman, as in treating of Greek coins. To
avoid repetitions, therefore, which might become tiresome, I
will only take one example of a regal speaking type^ namely?
*he representation of Ceres (AHMHTEP) on the silver tetra-
drachms of Demetrius I. king of Syria, which has been re-
cently promulgated by a distinguished antiquary 64 , doubtless
without his having perceived its obvious tendency to mislead.
This example seems the more fit for discussion, because the
very high authority on which it rests, and the erudition with
which it is supported, render it peculiarly calculated to give
a wrong impression of the motive of the types of coins.

03 In voce Cardia.

81 Visconti, Iconog. Grccque. vol. ii. p. 323.

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 113

We may, in the first place, observe, that the arguments
advanced in support of the opinion, that the goddess Ceres
is represented on the coins in question, however plausible
and ingenious, cannot be considered as quite conclusive;
and it is not improbable that the name of Demetrius sug-
gested the opinion, which the arguments so pertinently sup-
port. It is moreover to be inferred, from the silence of
Eckhel 65 , to which Viscoriti alludes, that the learned keeper
of the Vienna cabinet felt a degree of uncertainty, which
prevented his offering a conjecture on this figure. The
opinion of Visconti, however, may be perhaps considered so
far probable, as to be passed over without further comment
at present.

If, however, this type on the large silver coins of Deme-
trius be supposed to present us with a kind of pun on his
name, there would be much stronger grounds for supposing
another speaking type to exist on the coins of Philip of
Macedon, as a lover of horses ($IAIIIIIOS), since we uni-
formly find on his gold coins a car at full speed; and on
those of silver and copper, no types are known to exist but
of horses with riders : notwithstanding this peculiarity how-
ever, no one, I believe, has ever advanced an opinion that
the types of the coins of Philip had any reference to his
name. It is, therefore, the more remarkable, considering
that the types of the coins of Demetrius vary occasionally,
both in silver and copper, that the learned Visconti should
have assigned such a motive for the type in question.

On an unique tetradrachm of this king in my cabinet,
the type of Apollo sitting occurs. Would it not, therefore,
be more natural to refer the motive of the type, or the
meaning of the Ceres on the tetradrachms of Demetrius,

65 Doct. Num. Vet. p. 226.

114 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

to the peculiar devotion of Demetrius to that Goddess?
instead of gratuitously involving ourselves in an obvious
difficulty, by being obliged to admit two distinct motives to
have influenced the choice of the types of the coins of this
king alone, and that Ceres (Ar/p^p) was placed on
one tetradrachm, because the king's name was Deme-
trius; and Apollo on the other, because Apollo was the
deity peculiarly reverenced by all the Syrian kings. The
real motive is presumed to be, however, too clear to admit
of further question, and the most that can be conceded is,
that Demetrius might have been peculiarly devoted to
the worship of Ceres, from some peculiar event connected
with his birth 66 ; and which might have influenced his pa-
rents in the choice of his name.

We may conclude by applying to regal coins a remark
analogous to some of those already made on coins of cities;
namely, why should we not find on the coins of Demetrius
II. or Demetrius III. a renewal of the type of Ceres?
since it would have been equally applicable to their names,
and they had the authority of precedent for adopting such
a type. As, however, no such type has yet been found on
their coins 67 , my opinion may perhaps be considered to de-
rive some support, even from this negative evidence.

We have now concluded 68 the review which we proposed

66 See chap. xiv. of the fourth book of Potter's Arch&ologia
Grceca.

67 In point of fact, it must be remarked, that Visconti (vol. ii.
p. 323, note 1), with his usual judgment and acuteness, has sup-
ported his argument by citing, on the authority of Eckhel (Doct.
Num. Vet. vol. iii. p. 229230), a coin of Demetrius II. with the
same type as on the coins of Demetrius I : but the existence of the
coin described by Eckhel may be doubted; 1st, because in this in-
stance he deviates from his usual practice, and gives no authority;
and 2ndly, because such a coin is not to be found in any cabinet, as
far as my observations have extended.

68 It will be perceived that I have abstained from quoting the
works of living authors. It appeared to be abundantly sufficient

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 115

to take, of the various opinions which have been entertained
by the best numismatic authorities on the types of coins;
and which I believe, to have had a tendency to impede the
progress of the study which they intended to advance.

In the course of this review, it will no doubt have been
perceived, that a uniform and religious motive in the types
of coins has been frequently spoken of. That this motive is
very often religious, is, indeed, so evident, that it has been
necessarily admitted by every one ; but as the view intended
to be developed in these pages 69 , recognizes no other mode of
interpretation, it now becomes necessary to explain that view
as briefly as possible.

We are apt, in speaking of the types of ancient coins, to
consider them as allusions. This has been a source of fun-
damental error; they are not general allusions, but repre-
sentations, having a distinct and specific meaning 70 . That

for the purpose of this brief inquiry to refer to works which are
justly looked up to as the highest numismatic authorities, more
especially, as the opinions of the present day may be considered
to have been derived from those sources.

69 1 have been encouraged to prepare this sketch of the view which
suggested itself to me above twenty years ago, during a long prac-
tical study of coins in Turkey ; and having since made many observ-
ations uniformly tending to strengthen my opinion on this subject,
I have only to hope, that notwithstanding the compressed form in
which it now appears, and its many imperfections, it may not prove
altogether unserviceable in directing the attention of younger nu-
mismatists to a long-established source of error.

70 1 hold an opinion in this particular, to which I will presently
recur, and which I would fain possess learning and leisure enough
to develop fully. I do not believe that the types of coins are, on
any occasion, original compositions ; but always copied (from the
earliest to the lowest times) from some sacred public monument.
Thus, when we find what is called a Boeotian buckler on coins, we
are not to look upon the representation as a Boeotian luckier, but
as the luckier of some Boeotian hero, well known to the ancient in-
habitants of that country, and accounted to be sacred by them.
In like manner, when we find Minerva represented on coins, we

116 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

meaning cannot now, on every occasion, be discovered at
first sight; and, in my humble opinion, will never, on any
occasion, be discovered except sought for, as about to be
proposed; that is to say, through the medium of the motive
which influenced the choice of those types; and which motive
or principle, is the religious 71 belief of the ancients.

There can be no doubt, that our advancement in the
knowledge of the types of coins would have kept pace with
our progress in the other great branch of numismatic study,
which we defined at the commencement of this inquiry, had
the united labour which has been bestowed on this subject,
been uniformly directed in the right channel.

I will therefore repeat, that from the first striking of
money, down to the extinction of the Byzantine empire 72 ,

are not to understand the type as a Minerva, but the Minerva of
that place ; and, in some cases which might be brought forward,
the individual statues which are represented on coins, or ancient
copies, will be found still to exist. The only example of originality
of composition apparent on coins, is where types have been doubled,
or halved, to express similar modifications of value. Thus are to
be explained such types as two owls, or one, three, or four crescents
on coins of Athens ; double tridents on coins of Troezene ; half
bucklers on coins of Bceotia, &c. &c.

71 In order to explain what I mean by religious belief, I will
refer to a work, by a very profound scholar, which is in the hands
of every one. See Potter's Archceologia Grceca; book ii. passim,
book iii. chap, xii ; book iv. chaps, i. to viii. on the religious
worship of Greece, and on the sacred Games, Festivals, Funeral
Ceremonies, and Dedications, which formed such important parts
of it.

72 After the conversion of Constantine to Christianity, we find,
?s might be expected, a change in the types and inscriptions of the
coins. Such inscriptions, as Jovi Conservator^ give place to
Gloria Romanorum ; Felicitas Perpetua, &c. On a coin of his
son Constantius, the type of the reverse is the monogram of Christ,
between the letters A and il, with the inscription Salus. Aug.
Nostri ; and on another, the same monogram appears on the
standard, with the inscription Concordia Militum. (Banduri, Nu-
mismata Imp. Roman, folio, 1718. torn. ii. page 368, plate.} At
this period, the deification of the emperors, to which we shall

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 117

religion was the sole motive of the types of coins; and that
this is the invariable principle which is to guide our search
in endeavouring to explain them 73 .

At first sight, it may not appear probable that such ob-
jects as coins, which must, no doubt, be considered originally
to owe their existence to commercial wants, should have
representations upon them so intimately mixed up with
religious belief.

Passing over, however, for the present, the well-known
and intimate connexion of the religious and civil govern-
ment of Greece, especially in early times, we may be per-
haps allowed to make a short digression on the probable
origin of coinage, as tending to support the view taken of
the sacred meaning of the types of coins, and as favouring
the inference that a religious feeling influenced the choice
of them.

It cannot reasonably be doubted, that the common use
of uncoined pieces of gold and silver (probably adjusted to
particular weights) preceded the use of coined money
among the Greeks ; and it may be further supposed, that
considerable inconvenience was long felt, and that many
evils resulted to individuals from the want of some public
pledge or assurance, that the weight and standard of the
circulating medium might be depended upon by the com-
munity at large, as well as by strangers. Such a state of

shortly advert, had become a consecration, from which the sacred
ceremony of coronation has been handed down to us.

On coins of later emperors, we find at length Jesus Christus
Rex Regnantium ; Jesus Christus Basileus Basileon, &c. (Tanini,
Supp. to Banduri, folio, 1791, plate x.)

13 The same motive evidently influenced other nations, as the
Persians, &c., who, in adopting or deriving from the Greeks the
use of coined money, also adopted at the same time the religious
motive of the types, which they modified to their peculiar views, as
is evident even from the Pelvi coins.

118 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

things may be supposed to have led the heads of the com-
munity, whether civil or sacerdotal persons, to devise a
remedy for the evil, by the issue of money adjusted to a
particular weight and purity, under their authority and
particular sanction.

Further, As the act of impressing a seal or signet was an
understood sign of solemn compact from the most early
periods; and as engraved seals and signets were undoubtedly
in general use long anterior to the invention of coming, it
appears highly probable that the original idea of impressing
a stamp on the uncoined lumps of gold or silver, was most
probably derived from the common application of a seal to
wax. The earliest coins may be therefore looked upon as
pieces of sealed metal, which in fact they are ; it being well
known, that at first, coins were impressed only on one
side.

No device that could be imagined, was so well adapted
to the peculiar necessity of the case, or so likely to satisfy
the public mind, as the impress, by public authority, of the
symbol of the tutelar divinity of their city; or some equally
sacred and well-known emblem : and even with respect to
the inhabitants of distant cities, to which the coin might be
carried for purposes of commerce, the common reverence
for the gods which was universally entertained, as well as
for the sacred games and festivals instituted in their honour,
would render sacred symbols not only grateful to their feel-
ings, but would have the great additional advantage of
speaking a language universally intelligible.

Returning, however, from this digression, we resume our
remarks on the various opinions which have been enter-
tained by others, in explaining the types of coins ; and in
dissenting from which, it must not be imagined, that the
facts on which those opinions are based are called in

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 119

question. Thus it is readily conceded, that those ancient
people who stamped the fruit of the vine and ears of corn
on their money, were eminently blessed with those natural
productions ; but it is contended, that the local worship of
Bacchus and of Ceres was the sole motive for representing
those objects on their coins.

It is also granted, in accordance with ancient testimony,
that horses were excellent and abundant in Thessaly, and
that the Thessalians were excellent horsemen; but we
contend, that those circumstances did not constitute the
motive of the types of the coins of that province, which,
either in honour of Neptune, or the Games, present us with
a horse.

There is no more reason for believing this animal, on
the coins in question, to be indicative of abundance of
horses in Thessaly, than for ascribing to Eleusis an abund-
ance of sows; to Ephesus, an abundance of stags; or to
Athens, an abundance of owls. But when we consider that
the sow is an animal well known to have been peculiarly
sacred to Ceres, the goddess of Eleusis; that the stag was
the well-known symbol of the " Diana of the Ephesians ;"
and that the owl was the bird of the Athenian Minerva;
not a doubt can be entertained as to the real motive of these
types. If we do not so readily recognize a religious motive
in the horse, it arises solely from our being less familiar
with the objects of Thessalian worship.

In like manner, we concur in the belief, that a prow may
sometimes indirectly indicate a maritime situation and
naval importance, by occurring on the coins of a people
remarkable for both ; but, as the contrary will sometimes
happen, the motive for the representation must, invariably,
be sought in the mythological traditions or ceremonies of
the people ; as in the case of the sacred galley on coins of
Megara, and many others.

120 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

There is no difficulty in referring to religion the types
representing those natural phenomena before spoken of,
and alluded to by the learned EckheL

Again, it is not contended that historical events were
never indirectly commemorated on coins, especially on
those of later times ; but the opinion sought to be estab-
lished, is, that it is only incidentally, and through the reli-
gious ceremony of consecrations, or dedications, that such
representations ever occur.

With respect to the general significations of power, in-
dustry, valour, plenty, &c., which have been attributed to
certain symbols, very little need be said; as these assumptions
are too vague to be answered, without reference to the indi-
vidual coins on which the symbols occur.

It only remains to consider the speaking types ; concerning
which we would not be supposed rigidly to assert, that there
was absolutely on no occasion any allusion whatever to the
name of the place; but the object I have in view, is, to show
that even this allusion, if it exist, must still be viewed as
connected with some unapparent or lost religious tradition
or motive ; the elucidation of which must be left to future
researches.

I would remark, in addition to the foregoing observations,
that it would necessarily follow from the admission of the
various opinions which have been examined, that each coin
would become a kind of numismatic enigma: to the solution
of which, might be alternately applied any of the supposi-
tions pointed out: and therefore it is clear, if such views be
correct, that there could not have existed that uniformity of
motive among the ancients, in the types of their money,
which is a main point for which we contend.

The confusion necessarily resulting from the admission of
such a variety of opinions, would not only increase the ac-

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 121

knowledged and natural difficulties which attend the explan-
ation of the types of coins, but tend to prejudice the study
itself, by making it appear to be so much beset with inter-
minable uncertainty, and unsurmountable difficulty, as not
to deserve the care and attention of the rational and sober
inquirer.

Having endeavoured to point out the importance of some
steady light in all attempts to explain the types of coins,
as well as the disadvantage resulting from unsettled opinions,
which not only confuse and paralyze the efforts of the be-
ginner, but may be said to close up the avenue to a vast and
unexplored field of information, it may be well to endea-
vour to ascertain how far a cursory survey of a collection of
Greek coins will support the view taken.

In the absence of any sufficient and positive ancient tes-
timony, illustrative of our subject, a discussion, founded on
the scattered and scanty materials to be gleaned from ancient
authors, would be insufficient for the purpose of this inquiry;
and as it will, moreover, always be found in numismatic
questions, that coins are the most correct and valuable com-
mentators on coins (for no class of ancient objects illustrate
and explain each other so frequently) it will be more safe,
and more to the point, to refer directly to coins themselves,
as furnishing the only unerring data which have been handed
down to us.

In proceeding in our endeavour to illustrate the question
before us, it will be necessary to begin with the evident and
uncontroverted fact, that, on the most superficial examina-
tion of a collection of Greek coins, there will be found to
occur many types, of which we shall understand the meaning
by mere inspection : and it will also be found equally evi-
dent, that all such types are susceptible of a direct and
uniform reference to the religion of the nacients ; and more

122 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

especially to the particular worship, or some prevalent my-
thological belief of the places where such coins were
struck 74 .

74 Among many thousands of coins which might be adduced in
proof of this assertion, by an extended reference to the plates "of
numismatic works, we will confine our examination to such coins
only as are to be found engraved in two well-known modern cata-
logues, for the sake of brevity and easy reference.

ITALY. Crotona : Apollo and infant Hercules. (Mionnet, De-
scription de Medailles, &c. vol. vii. pi. Ixv. fig. 6. and Hunter-,
Num. Vet. Pop. tab. 22. fig. vii. and viii.) Posidonia : Nep-
tune. (Mionnet, pi. lix. fig. 4.)

SICILY. Syracuse : Minerva and Diana. (Mionnet, pi. Ixvii,
fig. 6.) Agrigentum : Jupiter. (Hunter, tab. ii. fig. vi.) Mes-
sana : Neptune. (Hunter, tab. 37. fig. ix.)

EPIRUS. Jupiter. (Hunter, tab. 26. fig. xv. and xvii.)
THESSALY. Apollo and Minerva. (Hunter, tab. 59. fig.xii.)
ACARNANIA. Leucas : Hercules. (Hunter, tab. 33. fig. xiii.)

THRACE. Byzantium : Ceres and Neptune. (Hunter, tab. 13.
fig. xvii.)

MACEDONIA. Chalcis : Apollo. (Mionnet, pi. Ixxiv. fig. 1.)
Heraclea : Apollo and Hercules. (Hunter, tab. 30. fig. iv.)
Pella : Apollo. (Hunter, tab. 42. fig. iv. and v.) Thessalonica ;
Hercules. (Hunter, tab. 59. fig. xxvi.)

ATTICA. -Athens : Minerva. (Hunter, tab. 8. fig. vii. &c.)
. Megara: Apollo. (Hunter, tab. 36. fig. xxi.)

BCEOTI A. Thebes: Bacchus and Hercules. (Hunter, tab. 59.
fig. iii. iv. and vi.)

ARGOLIS. Epidaurus : JSsculapius. (Hunter, tab. 26. fig. xiii.)

ELIS. Jupiter. (Hunter, tab. 27. fig. xvi.)

LACONIA. Lacedaemon : Jupiter. (Hunter, tab. 31. fig. xix.)

ISLANDS Zacynthus : Apollo. (Hunter, tab. 62. fig. xxi. and
xxix.) Thasus : Diana and Hercules. (Hunter, tab. 58. fig.
xxiii.) Bacchus and Hercules. (Mionnet, pi. Iv. fig. 5.) Delos :
Apollo. (Mionnet, pi. Ixxiv. fig. 4.) Naxos: Bacchus. (Hunter,
tab. 39. fig. xv.) Seriphus : Perseus. (Hunter, tab. 49. fig. ii.)
Rhaucus (in Crete) : Neptune. (Hunter, tab. 44. fig. x. and
xii.) Cos : jEsculapius. (Mionnet, pi. Hi. fig. 6. Hunter, tab.
21. fig. vi.)

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 123

On extending our examination, after having well consi-
dered the coins just referred to, we shall discover, that in
fact we can find but few towns, whether situated in Europe,
Asia, or Africa, the coins of which (provided numerous
specimens are extant) do not present some types, which,
either on the obverse or reverse, can also be readily and
certainly understood by mere inspection ; and these types
will uniformly be found to confirm our previous observation,
that the existence of the religious motive of the types of
coins was to be found throughout the ancient world.

But it will necessarily be asked, how the motive of reli-
gion, having solely influenced the types, can possibly be
applied to the coins of kings, queens, emperors, &c., and
especially to persons of less rank, and far inferior power to

PAPHLAGONIA. Amisus : Bacchus and Jupiter. (Hunter,
tab. 4. fig. xi. and xii.)

BITHYNIA Chalcedon: Ceres and Apollo. (Mionnet, pi. Ixxiv.
fig. 9.)

TROAS. Ilium : Minerva. (Mionnet, p\. Ixxv.fig. 6.)

MYSIA. Cyzicus: Ceres and Apollo. (Hunter, tab. 24. fig. vi.
viii. ix. and x.) Pergamus: Minerva, yEsculapius, and Jupiter.
Hunter, tab. 42. fig. xi. and xii.)

IONIA. Erythrae : Hercules. (Mionnet, pi. Ixxvi. fig. 4.)
Ephesus : Diana. (Mionnet, supp. vol. vi. pi. iii. fig 2. 3, 4. and
5. rev.) Magnesia: Diana and Apollo. (Hunter, tab. 35. fig.
ix.) Smyrna : Hercules, (Mionnet, pi. Ixxvi. fig. 5.) \ Jupiter
and Apollo. (Hunter, tab. 50. fig. xxi. and tab. 51. fig. x.)

LYDIA. Sardis : Diana and Minerva. (Hunter, tab. 47. fig.
xiii.) Thyatira : Jupiter, Serapis, and Minerva. (Hunter, tab.

60. fig. viii. and x.)

PHRYGIA. Docimeum : Hercules and Mercury. (Hunter, tab.
25.fig.ix.)

SYRIA. Seleucia : Jupiter. (Hunter, tab. 48. fig. xi.)

PHOENICIA. Tyre : Hercules and jEsculapius. (Hunter, tab.

61. fig. xiii. and xiv.)

CYRENIACA. Cyrene : Jupiter. (Hunter, tab. 23. fig. ix. x.)
Barce : Jupiter Ammon. (Hunter, tab. 12, fig. xxviii.)

124 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

these personages. This question, so far from being a diffi-
culty, is one of the strongest arguments in favour of the
universal range of the religious motive of the types.

It is not, perhaps, generally imagined, that there is the
strongest possible ground for concluding that no mortal
ever appears upon an ancient coin, but in the character of a
deity.

It is well known that the ancients, in conferring divine
honours on mortals, used two different degrees : they either
paid them the honours of heroes, or raised them to the
rank of gods. These differed considerably in degree; for
to worship the former was called svayifciv ; but the latter
&/i*> 75 . The former, may perhaps be considered to corre-
spond in modern language with canonization 76 ; and the
latter with deification 77 . Both were however parts of the
religion of the ancients, which became, in later times, so
corrupt in this particular, that divine honours were paid
to the most abandoned and worthless, and even on the very
slightest occasions; of which abundant proof might be
produced from coins, as well as from ancient authors, if it
were necessary.

This consideration will explain many coins of this class ;
and so far from invalidating, in any way, my opinion of the
universal and uniform sanctity of the types, will always be
found to confirm it.

We must not expect that the deification of every indi-
vidual whose portrait may be found on a coin, can, at this

75 Potter, Archaulogia Grtzca, book iv. chap. 8.

76 We cannot but perceive that the usage of the church of
Rome, in the canonization of saints, may be traced to this custom
of the ancients of conferring divine honours on distinguished in-
dividuals. It is well known that this was sometimes done, bot 1
in ancient and modern times, many centuries after the death of
persons so honoured.

77 Knight's Inquiry, c. 225.

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 125

distance of time, be distinctly proved; but the fact may be
nevertheless most readily and satisfactorily inferred, from
the numberless examples which are well-established.

The few difficult coins which may occur, are not to be
considered as exceptions to a custom, necessarily uniform
and universal, from its peculiar nature. Thus there can be
no doubt that Cicero 78 received divine honours at Magnesia
ad Sipylum, though history is silent on the subject; and
such a local and almost private event appears to have been
no where recorded. On the other hand, an unique gold coin
of the Roman consul, Titus Quinctius Flaminius, in the
magnificent public collection at Paris 79 , furnishes at once
an agreeable illustration of the preceding conjecture, and
affords a most remarkable and striking confirmation of our
main argument; since there happens to be abundant tes-
timony to the fact, that divine honours were paid to this
Roman General 80 .

This coin, if no ancient testimony had been happily
found to support the fact of the divinity of the personage
represented upon it, would, no doubt, in sceptical hands,
have furnished an apparently triumphant argument in re-
futation of the universality of the principle contended for ;
since it would have appeared, that there might be occasion-
ally found solitary instances of coins struck in the spirit of
modern times; namely, for the mere purpose of giving a

78 I possess a very rare copper coin, with the portrait of Ci-
cero, inscribed with his name at full length, MAPKOS TYA-
AIOS KIKEFUN, struck at Magnesia ad Sipylum ; and which,
from the type of the reverse (a hand holding a wreath, a palm-
branch, an ear of corn, and branch of vine with a bunch of grapes),
must allude to some games celebrated in his honour.

79 Engraved at p, 260 of Miormet's supp. vol. iii. I cordially
concur with M. Mionnet in the opinion he has expressed in the
note (a).

i0 Visconti, Iconoy. Grecque. voL i. p. 59.

126 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

portrait without any admixture of religious motive. This
is a memorable example, and shows the danger of accepting
on such occasions, the negative evidence of the silence of
classic authors.

As it might, however, appear to an inexperienced observer,
that, in the immense number and endless variety of types,
some might be found to which the principle of religious ex-
planation could not be applied; it seems desirable, before
taking leave of the subject, to shew, that the view developed
in the preceding pages may be supported by an analysis, or
general classification of the types, to which we will therefore
proceed.

The types of coins, though very numerous, appear to be
susceptible of being divided into four classes; namely, 1,
Symbols; 2, Divinities; 3, Sacred Localities; and 4, Dedi-
cated Pictorial Representations connected therewith. These
classes are mentioned with some reference to the order of
their antiquity; the symbolic types being generally found
on the oldest coins, and the sacred localities and pictorial
representations, &c. generally on the most modern. This,
however, is by no means a rule, because in later coins the
first and second classes of types are often united in the same
coin; and thus the older coins are illustrated by those of a
later period, the old symbol being, as it were, superseded by
the representation of the Divinity itself, although it may still
occupy the reverse. The later types, by careful study in the
spirit pointed out in the preceding pages, will be found to
illustrate the older coins in the most remarkable manner,
by frequently giving us the most positive explanations of
most difficult symbolic types.

1. The symbolical types may be considered to include
not only those which appear referable to particular divinities,
as a trident, a thunderbolt, &c. but also those referable to

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 1*27

the sacred games and festivals; as cars 81 , race-horses 82 ,
wreaths 83 , metae 84 , and prize vases 85 , armour 86 , and other
aihla*x\ as well as those referable to ceremonies, particularly
dedications; as votive bucklers 88 , arms, trophies 89 , &c.

Thus, symbols are representations either of natural 90 , ar-
iaficial 91 , or ideal objects 92 , as well as of real 93 , or imagi-

81 See Hunter, tab. 52. fig. ix. rev.

82 Ibid. tab. 55. fig.xiii. & xv. rev.

83 Ibid. tab. 26. fig. vi, rev.

e* Ibid. tab. 56. fig,xv. & xvi. Tab. 57. fig.ix. Tab. 60. fig. xv.

85 See Mionnet, pi. xxxix. fig. 3. In complete elucidation of
this symbol, see a Dissertation on Panathenaic Vases, by the
Chevalier Brondsted in the Transactions of the Royal Society of
Literature, vol. ii. part 1. page 102; and note 36, page 118. At
the end of the Dissertation, an accurate engraving will be found of
an unique coin of Athens in my collection, on which a Panathena'ic
prize amphora is represented.- Noehden, Specimens, &c. p. 13.
pi. 5.

86 See Milling en. Ancient Coins of Greek Cities and Kings,
4to. London, 1831, tab. 1. fig. 17.

87 Ibid. tab. 1. fig. 21. Hunter, tab.ii. fig.vii. viii. ix.

88 See Stanhope's Olympia, plate of coins, N. 1, 2 & 6.

89 See Millingen, tab. 1. fig. 17. Mionnet (plates) vol.vii. pl.l.
fig.2& 3, rev. Noehden, Specimens, &c. p. 41. pi. 13.

90 Hunter, tab. 36. fig. xxvi. (worship of Venus). Tab. 45. fig.l.
rev. (worship of Venus). Tab. 49. fig.iv. rev. (pomegranate?
worship of Juno ?). Mionnet, pi. xl. fig. 6. (sacred games) pl.xlviii.
fig. 5. rev. (worship of Bacchus); pi. li. fig. 8. rev. (worship of
Bacchus).

91 Hunter, tab. 1, fig. xi. rev. Tab. 21. fig. xix. (worship of
Apollo). Tab. 43. fig. xi. (dedication?). Mionnet, pi. xxxix. fig.3.
(sacred games), and 4. (dedication) pi. xl. fig. 4 & 5. (wheels of cars,
symbolic of sacred games). Mionnet, supp. vol i. pl.xi. fig. 5.
obv. (dedication), rev. (Apollo). Vol.v. pi. 3. fig.l.

93 Hunter, tab. 1, fig.xi. obverse, (^Egis, worship of Minerva ; or
head of Medusa, worship of Perseus) ; tab. 7. fig.xvi. rev. (symbolic
of the foot-race in public games) ; tab. 17. fig.i. obv. (JEgis, wor-
ship of Minerva) ; tab. 18. fig. xv. and xvi. rev. (labyrinth ;
mythology) ; tab. 27. fig. xvii. rev , (worship of Jupiter) ; tab. 40.
fig. iii. (head of Medusa, worship of Perseus ?)

9 * Hunter, tab. 1. fig. xvi. Tab. 2, fig. ix. Tab. 16, fig. xv.
Tab. 27. fig. xvii. obv. Tab. 28. fig. xx. rev. (species of Saepia;

128 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

nary 94 animals. These, whenever they can be understood,
will be always found to indicate the public religious belief,
and particularly the sacred games, festivals, and ceremonies
in honour of certain divinities, which formed so prominent
a part of the religion of the Greeks.

As it is not the object of this inquiry to explain the types
of coins, but merely to point out the existence of an uniform
motive or principle, the knowledge of which, may facilitate
such endeavours by narrowing the field of conjecture on this
very difficult class of types, I have, in the notes just referred
to, only hinted at the probable meaning of such symbols as
appear explicable without discussion.

2. The Divinities include also heroes 95 , founders 96 ,
personifications of people and towns 97 , august assemblies 98 ,
rivers 99 , springs 100 , &c. ; as well as kings, and other individuals
who had received divine honours 101 .

3. By Sacred Localities, are meant such representations

(worship of Neptune.). Tab.30.fig.xix. Tab.34. fig.vi. Tab 37.
fig.ii. Mionnet, pl.xxxvii. fig. 5 and 7. (worship of Neptune?);
pi. xxxviii. fig. 5. (worship of Silenus ?) ; pi. xxxix. fig. 1, 2, and 10.
Mionnet, supp. vol.3, pi. 3. fig. 4. -pi. 7. fig. 1,2, 3. (Bacchus or
Silenus.) pi. 9. fig. 4. pi. 9. fig. 8. Vol.vi. pl.3. fig.5. obv.

94 Hunter, tab. 17. fig.x. Tab.28. fig.iii. obv. (a river.) tab.
33. fig.iv. (Metope?); tab. 49. fig.l. obv. (worship of Bellero-
phon); tab. 57. fig. xiv. (worship of Bacchus); tab. 20. fig. vi. and
Mionnet, pi. xxxviii. fig. 9. (worship of Bellerophon). Mionnet,
supp. vol.3, pl.xiii. fig.5. rev. (Pluto?)

95 See Mionnet, supp. vol. v. pl.v. fig. 3. (Hector). Millingen,
Ancient Coins, &c. pl.i. fig. 12. (Dioscuri.)

96 Eckhel, vol.iv. cap.xvii. p.347.

97 Millingen, tab.ii. fig. 2. (Terina) . T. Combe, Vet. Pop. et
Reg. Numi in Mus. Brit, tab.xi. fig. 5. (Magnesia); 12, (Tralles,)
and 16, (Cadi.) T. Combe.

98 T. Combe, tab.x. fig. 22. Tab. xi. fig. 2, 9, 10, 19, 20,

99 Eckhel, vol. iv. cap. 10, 6, p. 317. 10 Ibid.

101 Mionnet, vol. ii, p. 97. N. 30. vol.iii. p. 226. N.1262; p.
70, N.79; p.212, N.1172; p. 82, N.147; p.83, N.149. Vis-
conti, Iconog. Grecque, vol.i. p. 236. note 2.

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 129

as Parnassus 102 , Mount Argaeus 103 , the Acropolis of Athens 104
and of Corinth 105 , the port of Cenchrea 106 , &c., and, of
course, temples, and other sacred edifices.

4. By Dedicated Pictorial Representations, are meant
such compositions as the Dream of Alexander 107 , Hero and
Leander 108 , et cetera, 109 , as well as sculpture on temples, as
metopes, or other basso-relievos; of which there may be
found ancient examples 110 , as well as modern 111 .

Lastly, to meet as much as possible every difficulty in
uniformly referring the motive of all types to religion, a few
words of digression, intended to elucidate the probable ori-
gin of the most difficult class (the symbolic types), may be
permitted.

It is generally acknowledged, that, at a remote period, the
divinities venerated by the Greeks, or rather, perhaps, their
attributes, were represented by symbols. This custom of-
using symbolic representations may probably be attributed,
. in its origin, to a defective state of art; but having been
sanctioned, and become familiar by usage, it was ever after
continued in consequence of its early and intimate con-
nexion with all their religious associations.

loa Millingen, Recueil, &c., 4to Rome, 1812; plate ii. fig. 11.

103 Hunter, tab. 27, fig.xiv.

104 Mionnet, supp. vol.iii. pl.xviii. fig. 3.

105 Ibid. vol. iv. pi. iii. Bis. fig. 4. Millingen, Recueil, &c., pl.ii.
fig. 20 and 21.

106 Millingen, Recueil, &c., pi. ii. fig. 19.

107 Mionnet, vol.iii. p. 231, No. 1296.

108 Ibid. supp. vol.v. pl.v. fig. 1.

109 See Mionnet, vol.i. p.409, N.307. Supp. vol.ii. pl.i. fig.2.
and pl.viii. fig. 1. Supp. vol. vi. pi. iv. fig. 1.

110 Mionnet, supp. vol.ii. p. 545, plate, fig.2, 3, and 4. Supp.
vol.iii. pl.vi, fig.3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 ; and pl.xii. fig.l. rev. fig. 2.
obv. Vol.vii. pl.l. fig. 2 and 3, obv. Mionnet, (plates) vol.vii,
pi. 1. fig.2 and 3, obv.

111 See T. Combe, tab.vi, and vii. (Copper coins of Athens.)

130 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Hence these symbolic representations were looked upon
as sacred, from the most ancient times; and we may reason-
ably conclude, that a religious motive or feeling influenced
the stamping of such symbols on coins: religious belief
having been found at all times to exercise, not only the
most strong, but the most universal influence, over the
minds of men in every state of society.

In conclusion, I would remark that if the explanations
of the types of coins can be facilitated by the removal of
unnecessary difficulties, and the study thereby placed on a
firmer footing, it will soon be readily acknowledged that
the representations in question open, perhaps, a wider field
for useful research than any other single class of objects
of ancient art.

Owing to the peculiar nature of coins, they have survived
uninjured the wreck of the many states and kingdoms
which gave them birth; and these curious specimens of the
taste and skill of a highly civilized and celebrated people,
now form a class of ancient monuments, which, unlike
Marbles, Bronzes, Vases, Terra-Cottas, or Gems, have not
only the peculiar advantage of being free from any doubt
as to their original destination or use, their age or their
country ; but each coin forms a whole, and having been
struck by public authority, cannot have been subjected to
individual caprice. Coins derive additional importance
from their wide range over all the countries inhabited by
the Greeks ; and from their having been gradually produced
in those countries, during a lapse of at least one thousand
years 112 , which terminated above one thousand five hundred

113 From the invention of money, to about the time of Gallienus ;
with whose family the Greek series of coins may be considered to
terminate.

REPRESENTATIONS ON ANCIENT MONEY. 131

years ago : thus becoming data of the greatest importance
for reference and comparison, in ascertaining the age, or
in elucidating the style, of other ancient monuments ; as
well as in solving many of the interesting inquiries to which
the study of the remains of Grecian Art gives rise.

THOMAS BURGON.

Brunswick Square,

August 29th, 1836.

MISCELLANIES.

DISCOVERY OF ROMAN COINS IN WALES. In June 1835,
a tremendous thunder storm happened near the Gwindy 1 in
Llansamlet. The heavy rain which fell, exposed, what a little
girl, who was passing just after the storm had ceased, supposed
to be a quantity of buttons. She picked up a handful and carried
them home, when they were discovered to be coins. The fact
soon became known ; and a number of persons repaired to the
spot, when the urn or vase which contained the coins was scrambled
for, and pulled to pieces. George G. Francis, Esq., of Swansea,
hearing of the discovery, with a laudable anxiety for the preserva-
tion of the whole hoard, sent over a person with instructions to
obtain the vessel and its contents, but only two hundred and
sixty, out of about five hundred of the coins were recovered.
This gentleman, and a friend subsequently had the ground ex-
cavated at the spot where the vessel was found, but the result
was only a few bones and shells. A workman stated that he had
seen some bones which were found near the coins, thrown into
the stream and washed away by the current. Mr. Francis states
that the shape of the vessel was oval, eight inches by five, and
about four inches high, with a large mouth, and no cover ; but
apparently it had had one. It was formed of coarse brown earth.
The coins (all of brass and of the third size) were of the following
emperors, &c., Gallienus, Salonina, his wife ; Victorinus ; Marius,
Claud Gothicus, Quintillus, and Aurelianus, of which those of
Marius are rare, the others are very common. Perhaps the
gentleman who exerted himself for the preservation of this very
interesting collection, will, at his leisure, give us some account
of the types of the coins of that usurper, whose money, although,
as we are told, he reigned only three days in Gaul, reached this
country. Eckhel supposes that he reigned for a longer period, as
his coins, though comparatively rare, are of numerous types. This
is the case with the coins of other usurpers who reigned but a
short period ; but it appears to us that the descrepancy may be
thus explained. The friends of the usurper, in all probability,
made due preparations for the announcement of his design ; and as
money was no less powerful in those days than in the present, a

1 The Gwindy is about two miles from Swansea, and not very far from
the Via Julia, between the Nidium and Leucanum of the Romans.

MISCELLANIES. 133

fund was prepared beforehand for the occasion. The day arrived ;
and when the usurper appeared and announced his intentions, a
shower of coins, which had been secretly prepared with his effigies,
was thrown among, the soldiery. Such must have been the case
with the coins of Marius, if we may credit the relations of
historians, who say his usurpation extended to three days only.

THE DIOSCURI ON REVERSES. As an addendum (modestly
intended) to the observations, p. 16. No. 1. of this journal (from
the valuable posthumous papers of Dr. J. G. King), respecting
the Dioscuri, or Castor and Pollux it may be remarked, that
when they appear, as they so frequently do on the earlier consular
coins, riding at full speed, with levelled spears, they are supposed
to be in the act of charging in the battle near Lake Regillus, in
aid of the Romans under Postumius against the Latins, and the
party of the exiled Tarquins.

There is a reverse in the family Postumia, with three horsemen
abreast, galloping over a retreating enemy on foot, and the two
caps of the Dioscuri flying in the air immediately before them, signi-
fying the irresistible charge of the Roman cavalry associated with,
and inspirited by, these celestial heroes ; and illustrating a passage

in Florus : " Apud Regilli lacum dimicatur commilitonibus

deis." Lib. 1, Cap. 2.

On a well-known reverse of the Servilian family, they are
represented caracoling together, with the points of their spears
downwards, as exulting after the victory achieved, indicated by
the laurel-wreath behind the head of Rome on the obverse.

On one equally well-known of the Postumian family, where
they appear dismounted, watering their horses on the eve-
ning of the same day at the fountain near the temple of Vesta
at Rome, there is a further allusion to the elegant fable respecting
them narrated by Dionysius of Halicarnassus.

The reverse first mentioned is quite common till about the
period of the decline of pure republican principles in the Roman state,
or the era of the dictatorship of Sylla, when the principal families,
who obtained, at different times, the controul of the mint, were
chiefly desirous of commemorating circumstances that would per-
petuate the fame of their own ancestors, and keep up their influ-
ence with the people during the struggle among themselves for
political power.

It was this spirit that led ultimately to the head of the first
Caesar, as a living ruler, being stamped upon the coin, and to all
the ensuing types of imperial despotism. E. C. B.

N.B. Many coins of comparatively late date have the heads
only of the Dioscuri, as Dei Penates,

134 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

ADLOCVT COH- First Brass of CALIGULA. It must
have been observed by numismatists, that this type wants the S. C.
(Senatus Consulto). The deficiency, if it occurred on any other
coin than one of this imperial madman, would occasion more sur-
prize. But he, who is said to have intended to make his horse
consul, and who put numbers of senators to death merely from in-
furiate malice, may well be supposed to have usurped their right
in this instance, by commanding the allocution type of his first
brass to be struck independently of their decree. He may have
been piqued at their recommending him to accept of an ovation
only, instead of the triumph which he demanded for his military
exploits on the shore of the German ocean, where, after a pom-
pous harangue, he ordered the soldiers to fill their helmets with
cockle shells as the spoils of conquest. This usurpation of the
senate's right and privilege may have contributed to induce them,
after the tyrant's assassination, to call in and melt his money ;
from which fact the coins of Caligula are comparatively scarce.

E. C. B.

COINAGE OF THE UNITED STATES. By the law and mint
regulations of the United States, the American gold eagle con-
tained 247^ grains of pure gold, and was a legal tender for ten
dollars.

But by an act of Gongress of July 1834, the weight of the
gold eagle was reduced to 232 grains of pure gold, but no al-
teration having been made in either the weight on fineness of the
silver coins, and the gold eagle though reduced in weight, being
still a legal tender for ten dollars, the relative proportion between
gold and silver in the American coinage was altered, and by the
reduction in the weight of the gold eagle, the intrinsic par of
exchange between America and every other country was also
altered.

The English gold sovereign, according to mint regulations,
contains 5 dwts. 3 gig grains, or 123 H% grains of standard gold,
of 22 carats fine, and the American eagle containing by mint re-
gulations 232 grains of pure gold, the intrinsic value of the
sovereign in American gold coin, is 4 dollars 87 cents, as will ap-
pear from the following statement:

1 Sovereign is equal to 123 ^3 grains,

24 grains standard. 22 grains pure,

322 grains pure 1 eagle.

1 eagle . . 10 dollars.

Result, 4 dollars 87 cents.

MEDALS OF TEMPERANCE. The Society of Emulation of
Abbeville, in France, has resolved that a bronze medal and a sum

MISCELLANIES. 105

of money, in amount according to the society's means, should be
granted annually to such workmen belonging to the town or ar-
rondissement, as shall have distinguished himself by his moral
conduct, his love of industry, his economy, and above all his tem-
perance. The medal is to bear on one side the inscription,
" Medaille de Temperance Prix de Travail." And on the other
the name of the individual to whom it is granted.

ORIGINAL LETTER OF AINSWORTH. It is said that Ains-
worth the compiler of the excellent latin dictionary which bears
his name, was a coin collector; and that such was the fact appears by
the following letter (the original of which is in the possession of
Dr. J. Lee,) to Brian Fairfax, Esq. the antiquarian. This letter
is interesting from the circumstance of its appearing to indicate
that the writer's means were on the wane, and that he had already
parted with a portion of his collection,

Kind Sir,

Since you had not time the other day to take my Thanks
along w 1 } 1 you for y r late civilities, you oblige me to send them
after you, & desire your acceptance of 'em ; & to assure y u I am
heartily sorry it is not in my power to serve you. I conceived
hopes from Mr. Beeches' ace 1 , drawn, I suppose, from your
modesty, that I might have done y u some little service, either by
my knowledge in Medals, or my assistance in procuring some for
you, but the former vanished in my Conversation with y u , and the
latter upon the sight of your Collection. All I can do for the
present is to shew all the broken remains of my Medals, out of
w ch y OU s hall pick any thing y? please, on what terms y u please,
and will faithfully endeavour to procure what you want, but that
must be the work of some time. I desire yV to give me notice
the day before y 1 ? shall be pleased to honour me with a visit, that
I may be ready to attend y u , who am, as y r Goodness has made
me.

Kind Sir,

7 br 12" 1730. ; Obliged Serv*,

Fairfax, Esq. Robt. Ainsworth.

This.

MEDALS OF THE POPES.-=-!S there not to be found a medal
engraver who would undertake to continue in the same style as
the last, the suite of popes in pewter by Caspar Theodore Lauffer,
which contains Pope Clement XIII. As the collection by Lauffer

136 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

is scattered in many hands, it is to be expected that the under-
taking would pay, but to make it more certain a subscription
might be opened for the purpose, so that the continuation could
be had in silver, copper, or pewter. Blatter fur Munzkunde.

GENERAL ALLARD has brought to Paris from India, among
other curiosities, a considerable quantity of old coins, most of them
belonging to the kings of Bactria. The coins were found in north
India in the territory of the Seikhs, whom General Allard in-
structed in tactics. It is reported that the general is in treaty
with the French government to exchange his coins (value 400, 000 fs.)
for arms, &c. from their arsenals, and that he has already chosen
four hundred cuirasses for the equipment of a regiment in
Lahore; others say he has presented his collection to the king of
the French. Ibid.

A young medal engraver at Paris named Rogat, had a desire
to engrave a medal representing the head of Rouget de L'Isle,
author of the Marseillaise, and on the reverse, the poem and the
melody; but according to an existing law of the French republic,
all medals must be stamped in the mint, unless a special permis-
sion be obtained for executing them elsewhere. Mons. Rogat ac-
cordingly applied to the authorities, but was denied the required
permission ; and his petition to the minister of the home depart-
ment had no better success. He considered this double refusal a
kind of censure that he was not bound to submit to, under the
charter of 1830; and accordingly put his design into execution
about two years ago. The tribunal only lately cited him before it ;
and notwithstanding the very able defence by his counsel, he was
sentenced to pay a fine of 1000 francs. This same person, in the
year 1832, obtained permission to have a medal of Marshal Ney
struck with the inscription, " Executed notwithstanding the military
capitulation of the 6th July, 1815." A few months ago the copies
being all disposed of, he applied to have more struck from the
same dye, when the reply was, " That it could only be done if the
inscription were omitted." Ibid.

GOLD MEDALLION OF CHARLES THE FIRST. The illus-
tration of our present number, is a gold medallion of Charles the
First, in the collection of the British Museum, bearing on the
obverse side the legend, CAROLUS D G MAG'BRITAN
FRAN ET HIB REX FI DE. And on the reverse an
armed equestrian figure, and the letters, C * P. It is doubtless one
of the numerous memorials of the kind worn by the cavaliers in
those stormy times. The plate is a fac-simile of the medal, ex-
ecuted by Mr. Bate, who has made considerable improvements in
this style of engraving.

137

THE above is an accurate representation of the new rupee for
India. It is the work of a native artist, and though deficient in
design, the common fault of all modern coins, is a respectable
performance.

Silver is the legally constituted medium of exchange in all
money transactions throughout the British Indian possessions.
Gold coin is a legal tender, at a fixed value of 16 rupees for the
gold mohur of Calcutta, and 1 5 rupees for the gold rupee of Madras
and Bombay; but it is not demandable in payment, and is left to
find its current value in the market. Copper coin is only a legal
tender at the established rate of 64 pysa to the rupee, on payments
falling short of one rupee.

The rupee is, then, the unit or standard measure of value
throughout India; and by the regulation lately passed, a perfect
assimilation in weight and fineness has been effected in this unit
of currency of the three presidencies, so that the rupee of upper
India, of Madras, and of Bombay, are now identical in value.

Weight, 180 grains standard quality. W. D. H.

CORRESPONDENCE.

Mr. Francis has our best thanks for his communication.

Our correspondent Omega has wasted much time upon a very
worthless forgery : all shekels with the common Hebrew
characters are forgeries of a recent period. The genuine,
which are of considerable rarity, have Samaritan characters.
The medals with Hebrew characters, given by Dr. Walsh,
are modern forgeries, of which the very style of the work-
manship is a sufficient proof. The earliest representations
of the Saviour, on coins or medals, are those which appear
on the rude money of the Byzantine Emperors.

The Edward groat with HVBER is curious, but not of sufficient
interest to warrant a particular notice of it in the Numismatic
Journal. It shall be carefully preserved and returned.

J.S.'s coin is certainly a brass Otho, and of some rarity ; but it was
struck at Alexandria, not at Antioch. The Pescennius Niger
is a forgery, and a very clumsy one;

Mr. Stephenson will find nearly all the varieties of his coin en-
graved in Morell.

Mr. Green will find his coin described in Banduri, torn. ii. p. 106.

G. C. of Camden Town. The coins are forgeries, and clumsily
executed: they shall be returned as directed. The silver
coin of Athens is very common.

Mons. de L. is thanked for his letter, but the siibject has been
illustrated by Pellerin. The coin of Abydos does occur in
the Catalogue D'Ennery.

H***. The silver medallion of Claudius described in " Coins of
the Romans relating to Britain,'" is undoubtedly genuine. It
has been recently obtained for the British Museum, together
with another example of the same type, but not so well pre-
served.

G. C n. The coins are all of consular families, and are de-
scribed and illustrated by Vaillant and Morell.

The very valuable communication of Mr. Burgon, appeared to us
of so much importance, that, though the printing of the whole
of it has greatly increased our present number, we could not
resist the desire of presenting it in a complete form.

ERRATUM.
Page 27, line 23, for understood read misunderstood.

XIX.
ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS.

" Money being the common scale
Of things by measure, weight, and tale ;
In all th' affairs of church and state,
Is both the balance and the weight."

SUCH being the recorded opinion of the sagacious Butler on
the importance of money as a moving power, it may seem
strange to pass the gold florins, nobles, angels, and spur-
ryals of an Edward, a Henry, or an Elizabeth, in order to
descend to the base metal and paltry symbols of a Smith,
a Brown, a Jones, or a Robinson. But fate impels us
onwards, although we feel aware that many old square-toes
of the numismatic world will no sooner perceive the
ominous title to our rambling remarks, than their noses
will be released by the return of their spectacles to the
morocco cases in which they repose, while a growl, perhaps
maledictive, will be poured against the writer.

Nor is it by the living antiquary only that our path will
be obstructed. Evelyn, a gentleman after our own heart,
predicts that the tokens which abounded in every tavern
and tippling- house, would be hereafter pored over with ill-
spent diligence, and "may haply, in after-times," says he,
" come to exercise and busy the learned what they should
signify, and fill whole volumes with conjectures, as 1 am
persuaded as arrant trifles have done/' This is manna
compared with Pinkerton's oppugnancy, who, however, was
no great medallist, and often mistook the "venom of the

140 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

shaft for the vigour of the bow." This gentle dictator
assures us that such small coins are collected by some anti-
quaries with an avidity truly puerile. " I will venture to
say," he continues, "that their workmanship is always
utterly contemptible, and that not one purpose of taste,
information, or curiosity, can be drawn from them. It
needs hardly be added that they are recommended to the
supreme scorn of the reader, who may justly regard the
studying or collecting of them, along with the admiration
of counters, as beneath any man of taste."

This, as the comic Listen would say, is " coming it strong,"
in rampant phrase ; but we have assumed our panoply, and
nothing daunted by the contemptuous prophecy of the one,
or the bitter sarcasm of the other, shall pursue our purposed
inquiry; for, however unimportant some may deem it, in
recollecting "Suave enim est in minimis etiam vera wire,"
they must acknowledge that truth is desirable even in trifles.
But, since some of our readers may, in consequence of such
satire, scarcely know the meaning of the term " Tradesmen's
Tokens," we shall be excused a few prefatory words on
their story ; hoping that our temerity in running counter to
these recorded denunciations may place the problem on
the horns of a dilemma, arid cause a repetition of the often
asked

"Who shall'decide when doctors disagree,
And antiquaries doubt ?"

The British coinage is too well known to those for whom
this is written, to need much remark ; but we must remind
them of the great scarcity of copper money, for the purpose
of small change, which prevailed during the time of our
early sovereigns. The Saxon stycas offer no obstacle to
this axiom, since they relate to a very confined circulation,
and are mostly of billon, or copper slightly alloyed with

141

silver; and the easterlings, or sterlings, seem to have been
pennies. So much was this want felt, that the Saxon
silver coins were halved and quartered on the reverse, for
the convenience of breaking them into smaller money, a
practice which, according to Hoveden, continued till the
time of Henry the First. This has been impugned as a
gratuitous assertion by Leake, who treats Camden with no
small disrespect on the occasion. But the Britannia is not
the only evidence that those pieces were actually quartered
into fourthings, or farthings, for currency. Besides the
passage in Whitaker's Richmondshire, Stow asserts that
" the penny was wont to have a double cross with a crest,
in such sort that the same might be easily broken in the
midst, or into four quarters." And there can be no reason-
able doubt that the custom of breaking love-money as a
pledge of fidelity, originated from the public practice :

"The half of silver sixpence broken
'Twixt youths and maids a true-love token."

During this time the old English silver pennies, which
formed our staple currency in the middle-ages, maintained
the highest character for neatness of fabric, and purity of
metal ; and were consequently a favourite piece in all parts
of Europe. The small change seems to have been chiefly
managed by means of counterfeit coins, as maile, black-
maile, Nuremberg tokens, crokards, turnkeys, dotkins, galley-
pieces, staldings, pollards, and similar base currency, which
were introduced by Jews and other foreigners : and against
which Edward the Third, and other sovereigns, fulminated
severe edicts. This state of silver money continued till
the reign of Henry the Eighth, when a most extensive de-
terioration took place. This Prince, who threw his hand-
kerchief as he listed, and showered domains upon court-
parasites, like an Arabian-Night caliph bestowing kingdoms,

14*2 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

among other meddlings, debased the currency of the realm
to the disgraceful pitch of upwards of sixty-six per cent. So
mean a resort of despotism was not likely to flourish in
English soil, as it has done in Austria and in Turkey;
accordingly we find that in 1552, the silver coin was restored
to the old standard, at which it has ever since steadily
remained. A curious circumstance occurred on this occa-
sion, which, though it has no more to do with our tokens
than with the squaring of a circle, or the tri-section of a
triangle, we cannot but relate. It is recorded that the
workmen who were employed in melting down Henry's
base and full-faced money, fell sick with the " savour,"
(probably the fumes of arsenic), and that they were saga-
ciously advised to drink from a dead man's skull for their
cure. The advice was thankfully accepted; government
was petitioned, and accordingly a warrant was procured
from the council, to take away the heads which then bedecked
London-bridge, to make cups of them for the patients.

These general remarks, by shewing that there was no
authorised copper money, will account for the appearance
of Town and Tradesmen's Tokens. We know that some
medallists, backed by an old and barbarous poem, wish to
maintain that Edward the First ordered a coinage much in
the present form ; but further inquiry will prove that he
merely directed that the money should be made round; and
all which the poet enumerates were then of silver, as plainly
appears from the " crosse" therein mentioned. This sacred
emblem was so habitual a reverse on our "white" coinage,
that its name was bestowed on the money so distinguished ;
and not only does Shakspeare frequently quibble upon it,
but that old proverb "the worst of crosses is never to have
had any," may, like Paddy Macoul's broad hint, have a

ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS- 143

double meaning. We must now append the lines alluded
to:

"Edward did smite round penny, halfpenny, farthing;
The crosse passes the bond of all, throughout the ring:
The king's side whereon his name was written ;
The crosse side, what city it was incoyned and smitten.
To poor man, ne to priest, the penny frayes nothing,
Men give God ay the least ; they feast him with a farthing.
A thousand, two hundred, fourscore years and mo,
On this money men wondred, when it first began to gx>e."

To proceed. Before the time of James the First, there
was no royal brass or copper money coined for England,
though most of the neighbouring states had used it some
time before. Notwithstanding her known aversion to the
measure, it is evident that Queen Elizabeth intended a
copper coinage, from the proposition of Sir Richard Martin 1 ,
her warden of the mint, as to whether the new farthings
should be made of silver, silver debased, or copper, him-
self preferring the latter, since silver would be inconvenient
for striking, as well as for handling, from the minuteness of

1 An Elizabeth shilling, with a martlet as a mintmark, was
coined by Martin ; but instead of an allusion to the warden, the
public, who were not much illuminated by the artist's power of
representation, mistook the bird for one of the Anas tribe, and
thereby intended as an honour to our illustrious navigator. Hence
that shilling was commonly called a Drake. We admire this
stroke of popular feeling, as well as that conveyed in the epigram
on the Thalassiarclius Anglus and his sovereign,

" O Nature ! to Old England true,

Continue these mistakes ;
And for our Kings give us such Queens,
And for our dux such Drakes."

As this sketch is not to be considered under scholastic trammels,
we must add the contrast to this epigram. It was let fly by the
French at tbe murderer of Raleigh,

"Tandis qu' Elizabeth fut Roi

L' Anglais fut d'Espagne Teffroi,
Maintenant devise et caquette,
Regi par la Reine Jaquette.''

144 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

its spread, arid, moreover, as easily counterfeited as any.
Nothing, however, was made of the motion; whence, for
want of some such state money, most of the chandlers,
victuallers, grocers, and other dealers, made tokens of lead
or brass, which were current among their customers and
townsmen : upon returning which to the issuer, he gave
current coin, or value for them, as desired.

This autonomic derogation of the king's prerogative
increased so extensively towards the close of Elizabeth's
reign, that after the accession of James, the absolute neces-
sity of coining a small currency under authority became
obvious. Sir Robert Cotton estimated that, in and about
London, there were no fewer than three thousand retailers
of food and small wares, who used their own tokens, in an
average annual quantity to the value of 57. sterling each,
whereof not a tenth remained at the year's end; besides
what was used and expended in other parts of the nation.
He therefore proposed a coinage of royal farthing tokens,
which received the king's assent: and in 1613, the new
patent coppers were issued by proclamation, but not forced
upon the people as established coin. They were of poor
fabric, bearing on one side two sceptres in saltier, sur-
mounted by a diadem, in allusion to the union between
England and Scotland, and on the opposite side a harp,
the symbol of Ireland, each side inscribed IACOBVS D.
G. MAGN.E. BRIT. FRAN. ET HIB. REX. These, from
a judicious method of re-change being established, obtained
circulation, though not a brisk one, through the king-
dom, without any loss being sustained by the holders of
Tradesmen's Tokens. Small payments were thus readily
made under James and Charles the First : but no copper
money being struck by authority under the commonwealth,
the former practice was renewed ; and cities, corporations,

ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS. 145

and tradesmen, again resorted to their particular brass or
copper tokens, of different dimensions and stamp, till A. D.
1672, when the king's copper coinage, superseding private
mints, became duly authorized, and has ever since been
continued. In thus giving the genealogy of the farthing, let
not the hoarders and admirers of rose-nobles and spur-ryals
slue their sterns round in contempt ; for that humble coin
has been honoured with the talents of our very best numis-
matic artists, as witness the patterns of Simon for Oliver
Cromwell, of Croker for Queen Anne-, and of Wyon for
George the Fourth.

Such was the rise, progress, and decline of the money
called Tradesmen's Tokens ; for that which suddenly started
forth a hundred and twenty years afterwards, and had a
short run, was contradistinguished as provincial coin and
pocket-pieces. We have now to acquaint the reader with
a circumstance which may go far to prove that Pinkerton,
however positive and pragmatical in assertion, is not
altogether a true prophet in pronouncing "that not one
purpose of taste, information, or curiosity, can be drawn
from tokens."

The snug and neat county town of Bedford is equally
notable for the wealth of its endowments, and the general
liberality of their administration. But, as in all cases where
the petty notions of petty people must be listened to,
acerbities occasionally interrupt the general harmony,
though, thanks to the firmness of the most steady and

2 We are amused, or rather concerned, to find that the popular
delusion respecting the wonderful virtue of Queen Anne's farthings
still continues, notwithstanding the efforts of medallists to dispel it.
In this very summer, a poor fellow travelled from Exeter with one
to London, at considerable expence, thinking to make a little for-
tune by its disposal : his consternation may be imagined at being
offered a shilling for it !

146 [NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

disinterested of its trustees, such effervesences merely retard
rather than seriously interrupt the main progress. In at-
tending to several astute discussions respecting the allotment
of alms-houses, and other charitable dispensations, we often
heard of the unalienable rights of the " Bedford-born," an
alliterative laconism which equally fills the labial, the guttural,
and the nasal enunciation of those who correctly speak His
Majesty's English, or those who clip it, for clipping is a
word not assignable to coiners only. The strength of an argu-
ment, however, must not be estimated by that of the lungs;
nor is the ear to be deceived by the mouthing of a mere phrase.
" Bedford-born " would come trippingly enough, were the
glib utterers of it lineal descendants of the companions of a
Harpur, a Hawes, a Paradine, or a Christie, names which
ought ever to be venerated in Bedford. But in the course
of such debates, we were struck with the fact, that some of
the most blatant asserters of this claim, albeit they may
esteem themselves before all men, cut but little figure in
the parish registers, tombs, deeds, and other records,
wherein the line of provincials is to be traced.

Following up the enquiry, and recollecting the utility of
medals to history on the grand scale, we resolved to reduce
that system to a more confined object by calling in the aid
of Tradesmen's Tokens. For this purpose, besides our own
collection, we examined those of some friends; and, more-
over, had access to all those in the possession of the well-
known Mr. Matthew Young, of London, which were the
fruits of many years' collecting by the late Mr. Tyssen.
These steps soon opened a new mine in a statistical light,
for in the examination of pieces of money struck in the
different towns and villages of Bedfordshire, it would appear
that some places, now too inconsiderable to support more
than a mere huckster's hovel, were formerly the locale of

ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS. 147

substantial tradesmen; and that the borough of Bedford
has undergone a total change of population since the year
1672, the sera when tokens were extinguished. Nay more,
the standing of most of the present residents is under half
a century; and none of the oldest whom we have traced
can reckon much more than a century of settlement. This
is a singular vicissitude for the quiet capital of an agri-
cultural county to have undergone in so limited a period,
and one which offers much food for reflection.

Nor has the county itself changed hands in a less re-
markable degree, as is visible even to the mere sight while
riding about it, in the numerous mansions and manorial
residences of former days, now occupied as farm-houses.
"Hungry Time," said the observant Fuller, "hath made a
glutton's meal" on the gentry of Bedford, " and hath left
but a very little morsel, for manners, remaining." But what
would that good old worthy have said now? In the Lans-
down MSS. No. 887, in the British Museum, fifty families
are mentioned as having removed or gone to decay within
one gentleman's time; and of seventeen baronets residing
round Bedford one hundred years ago, only one now remains ;
and his claim to the title is such as Segar would have
stickled at. There are still vestiges of the names of Gost-
wicke, Conquest, Devereux, Blundell, Boteler, and Gas-
coigne, but they have dropped upon persons of low station,
who, apparently, can advance but little legitimate right to
them 3 . This may be partly owing to the circumstance

3 The prestige for investigating the concerns of our ancestors,
is a very prevalent passion among educated Englishmen, though
at present absurd notions about the perfection of the age, some-
what tamper therewith. It was in the full enjoyment of such plea-
surable sensations that, on our first visit to Stratford upon Avon,
in passing the bridge, we met a cart bearing, in uncial letters, the
renowned name of LVCY. Nor were we less amused to find that

148 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

that, after the reformation, numbers of persons, the juniors,
both men and women, of good families, were turned adrift
from religious houses, when the males went to work, and
the females, if they could, got married. In some cases, the
disclosures are of a delicate nature; but, professing no
intemperate rigida virtus, we will neither personally or allu-
sively wound the feelings of any one living; it being to us
more grateful to render a tribute of praise to honest
integrity, than to castigate folly or knavery; though the
latter be a task from which we would not flinch in matters
of necessity. We shall, therefore, dwell no longer upon
equivocal points than is absolutely necessary for the inquiry,
and follow our clue with a moderation which might have
placed us at the celebrated table of St. Augustine, whereon
was the anti-Grundy inscription,

' Quisquis amet dictis absentem rodere vitam,
Hanc mensam indignam noverit esse sibi."

We will now endeavour to trace the families of those
who issued tokens at a particular epoch in Bedford; and
by shewing their substantiality in the municipal offices which
they held, the fact which follows, of the removal or total
extinction of their families will be the more extraordi-
nary. We should also say, that besides title-deeds, court
records, corporate and parish registers, and other unques-
tionable muniments, we have had access, through the
liberality of the noble possessor, to a very curious and
valuable manuscript belonging to the Marquess of Bute,
which throws great light on the families who resided in
Bedfordshire between 1475 and the "dispersion" in 1550.

the present holder of the honours of that house maintains its
dignity so far, that he was annoyed by being asked, a few months
ago, to a dinner in commemoration of Shakspeare, for the com-
mittee "ought to recollect how ill his ancestor had been treated
by that person." Shade of Shallow, how thou must have chuckled !

ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS. 149

It is intituled " Registerium sive Liber Fundatorum,
Magistrorum, Custodium, Fratrum et Sororum Fraterni-
tatis sive Gylde, sancte et individue Trinitatis ac beatissime
Virginis Marie, Ecclesie Parochii de Luyton, in comitate
de Bedford." Jt is accompanied by the accounts of the
Gylde, from the nineteenth year of King Henry the Eighth
to the festival of St. Michael, next after the accession of
Edward the Sixth, among which are many rare par-
ticulars concerning the value of lands and the prices of
provisions at the time; while the details of their anniversary
"ffeast" shew the great magnificence of our ancestors in
their entertainments. To these documents, we may have
to revert as often as of erst did Boniface to his ale.

Our own collection of Bedford Tokens comprises those
of fourteen individuals, under dates which, though varying
from 1654 to 1668, may be termed contemporaneous.
Now, when it is considered that in those days the town
consisted of little more than what is equivalent to its present
High-street, it will be seen that these fourteen issuers of
their own coins, must have included nearly all the most
substantial tradesmen who then constituted its citizens.
This is the more apparent, since, in order to maintain the
privileges of the burgesses, the corporate customs strictly
ordained that "no freeman of the borough, being either a
freeman born, or any other way a freeman, by service as an
apprentice, or by admittance, or allowance of redemption,
or otherwise, shall keep any shop, or use any trade, art, or
mystery within this town." And the disparity between a
burgess and a freeman was so strictly enforced, that we find
on the 21st of September, 1668, a minute of two persons
being reduced from the former to the latter rank. It is
couched in these terms, "Whereas Edward Veale and
Robert Paulin having, by colour of a levelling Act of

150 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Council, made in the time of the late anarchy, by which
the ancient distinction of burgess and freeman was abolished,
came to be sworn of the burgessdom; and the commis-
sioners for regulating of corporations, at their sitting for
the execution of the Act of Parliament, did, through want
of due information, or other accident, pretermit the dis-
burgessing of those two persons; it is ordained that they
be disburgessed."

In opposition to this view of the case, some black-letter
adepts might blazon the former prosperity of Bedford, and
advance that our fourteen worthies were but a tithe of the
mercantile standards of the place. They may tell us of
castles and sieges; that besides the abbeys of Newnham
and Cauldwell, the priory of Grey Friars, the nunnery of
Elstow, and the monastic hospital of St. Leonard's, all
situate in the immediate vicinity, the town contained no
fewer than six churches and several chapels. Nor will they
forget to remind us, it was from this ecclesiastical pros-
perity that the potent king, Offa, was buried on the banks of
the Ouse, a river "more mseandrous than Mseander;" and
that from the chapel on the bridge came the name of Bede,
or prayer, ford, as it was then spelt. All this and much
more may be told; but we should reply, that the palmy
days of Bedford had passed away long before the period of
our inquiry, at which time its population was considerably
under 1500; and that even then it was in a transition state
towards recovery from the extreme depression which it had
undergone since the destruction of its castle. So low
indeed, had the capital of the county fallen, that we find
a dismal Jeremiad in the charter, about the year 1447.
Among the lamentations there poured forth, it is stated
that the Burgesses arid Commonalty could not bear the
burthen imposed on them, nor pay yearly more of the 42/.

ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS. 151

of the fee farm of the town than 207. only, "without their
final destruction, and the desolation of the town for ever."
Various reasons are then given for this incapacity; and it
was urged, that, in consequence of the excessive decay and
ruin which the place had fallen into, and the paucity of
inhabitants, one hundred and eighty messuages were left
desolate, " and the greater part of the men were disposed
to remove from thence very shortly." The mitigation of
taxes which followed the hearing of their prayer, may have
contributed to the restoration of prosperity.

On the grounds above stated, it may be concluded that
we have a fair numismatic representation of the town for
the time we treat of: it is, therefore, natural to infer that
the descendants of the persons about to be named, still
occupy a place therein, even if not inhabiting the same
houses. This, however, is not at all the case, according to
the inquiries which we have instituted, and in which we have
been kindly and diligently assisted by several intelligent re-
sidents of the neighbourhood.

These premises being made, we will proceed with the
details of the Tokens and their issuers, in chronological
order: observing that, from the absence of portraits, we
shall call the side bearing the name the obverse, and its
opposite the reverse.

Obv. 1OHN PAVL1N, with a mullet mark, around an engrailed
circle of dots. In the centre is an escutcheon charged with
nine cloves, six in chief, and three in base, divided by a
chevronel. These arms denote that the issuer was a grocer;
under which term, in country places, was then comprehended
a most extensive dealer in hardware, gingerbread, bobbins,
laces, haberdashery, mousetraps, curling-tongs, candles, soap,
bacon, pickles, and every variety of grocery ; besides which,
they sold small coins for money-changing. But tea, the

152 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

staple by which grocers now make gross fortunes 4 , had not
then obtained its footing; for this lymph must have been
beyond the means of most sippers, seeing that in 1666 a
pound of tea cost sixty shillings ; and money was then at a
far higher value than in the present century.

The multifarious ramifications of these traders, justified the
application of the term, Grocers, as well to those " engrossing"
merchandize, as because they sold by the gross. Their more
ancient name was Pepperers, from the drugs and spices which
they sold ; a branch which was mostly abstracted from them,
not long before the epoch of this token, by a seceding party,
who were incorporated by King James the First, under the
designation of Apothecaries.

.IN BEDFORD, 1654, encircling a field which bears
I'P*D with a cinquefoil between the letters. A small
blanched farthing token.

The Paulin family were residents in Bedford for a con-
siderable period ; and the name occurs very frequently during
the reigns of the second Charles and James. There are none
now either in the town or county, and they seem to have
hauled their wind to other berths, or died off", about the year
1710. John was of great respectability, as is evident from
the registry of his family, though we find little more than the
marriage of his sister " Rebecka" with Walther Faldo, the
baptism of his son and three daughters, and the death of
Elizabeth, one of the daughters, and his wife "Douglasse."
His brother Robert, as we have shewn, was reduced from
the burgess-ship in 1668. He himself served in the responsi-
ble charge of bailiff of the corporation in the years 1669,
1673, 1677 and 1686; and was mayor in 1693.

As the word bailiff will appear frequently, we caution the
reader against supposing that we mean the " bound" shoulder-
tapper of Doe and Roe notoriety; our subject being a muni-
cipal officer of trust and consideration. Two bailiffs were
elected annually, who were jointly considered as the sheriff
of the borough. In a court of aldermen their united votes

4 The attention of the public has lately been drawn towards a
fortune of this sort, by the rumour that a faded gentleman, who is
a peer and a cabinet Proteus, is about to marry the widow of the
old Screw of Fenchurch-street, and her half million of money.
Did his Lordship address her in Italian or Latin " Senza di TE
non posso vivere;" or, wrapt in classic poesy, he may exclaim
"TEcum vivere amem, TEcum obeam libens."

153

were equivalent to that of one alderman; but in common
council they voted singly.

II.

Obv. ROBERT FITZHVGH, and a mullet. In the field
R F M with three pellets. A thin farthing token.

jRev.IN BEDFORD, closed by a mullet. A neat engrailment
round the verge, and 1654 in the centre of a circle.

The Fitzhughs were formerly in high consideration, both
in the town and its vicinity : but they appear to have been a
different family from the celebrated barons of the North.
Those of Bedfordshire bore three martlets Or on a chief
Gules, over a charge of ermine ; while the others had three
chevronels brazed in the base of an escutcheon, and a chief
Or. In an autograph note by Lady Mary Wortley Montague,
in a copy of Guillim's Heraldry belonging to the Marquess
of Bute, that Lady says, opposite to the northern Fitzhugh
arms,

"A great neglected name in a madman's hands."

Robert Fitzhugh was a man evidently in high esteem, since
his name is coupled with all the occurrences of the town for
many years. He was chamberlain in 1647, bailiff in 1653,
and mayor in 1656. Being senior alderman in 1679, he
was sworn provisional mayor, vice W. Fenn, who died in
office. From the minutes, this election appears to have been
as much in compliment to character, as in strict routine, Fitz-
hugh not lying under the poet's lash

"How fond must that man be of place,
Who courts it from the mean and base."

III.

Obv. HENRY FITZHVGH. In the field 1655, between two
stars. A little farthing token. A die mark preceding the
Henry, might be mistaken for an initial letter; but it is
curious that there is no instance of a double Christian name
on any of those Bedfordshire tokens which we have examined.

Rev- IN BEDFORD, terminated by a cross between two mullets,
and bearing in the centre a repetition of the date and stars of
the obverse.

Henry was a brother of Robert Fitzhugh, and was elected
mayor in 1649, without having served in any of the subordi-
nate corporate offices, except that of common councillor.
The family entirely disappeared about the commencement of
the 18th century; and though the name has recently been

154 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

revived, it is worn by a party from Northamptonshire, who
claim no lineal descent or affinity whatever with the Bedford
branch. That the Fitzhughs were considered most respect-
able, is evident from the distinctive " Mr." being prefixed to
them in the registers and records ; for that appellation was
then even more than equivalent to the now widely corrupted
"Esq.;" a style and title so abused, that every one, not
actually wearing an apron, assumes it.

This token is without the third letter appended to the ini-
tials upon nearly all the rest, and which Mr. Akerman suggests
may be the wife's, as in the following, where the letters T . P E
most probably stand for Thomas and Elizabeth Pare, as on a
tea-spoon, or any household article. If so, the tokens are as
uxorious as the money immortalized by Butler, where the
heads, in adverse, are

" Still amorous, and fond, and billing,
Like Philip and Mary on a shilling."

IV.

Obv. THOMAS PARE, with a mullet or star. In the centre
three cloves and three pellets, an " elegant" extract from the
arms of the ancient Society of Grocers.

Rev.O? BEDFORD, 1656. In the field T'P-E, with four
pellets. A small farthing token.

Of those that rejoiced in the name of Pare, little can now
be traced, there not having been a freeman, or even a resi-
dent of the name, for upwards of a century. The parish
registers record the baptism of some little Pares, that Susan
Pare paired off with Richard Owen, and that Thomas himself
was gathered unto his forefathers in 1671. The family had
however, been long resident in the town, though they had
originally migrated from Hitchin, where, in 1509, they were
in so good a station, that a Thomas Pare was one of the
" Baculari" of Luton Gylde. The apprentice rolls shew that
the issuer of our token was an "eminent" grocer; and it
further appears that he was " well to do" after the "father
before him" left the stage in 1642. He was many years one
of the common council, and served as chamberlain in 1653.
After the squalls which agitated the magnates of Bedford, at
the revolution of 1688, there were rulers who knew not Pare;
so Thomas, junior, Abigail his sister, and some smaller Pares,
repaired to the habitat of their kindred in Hertfordshire,
where they might have assumed as a motto

" Pares cum paribus facillime congregantur."

ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS. 155

Obv. WILLIAM FALDO, with a mullet. In the centre, W. F. A
with three pellets. A very thin farthing token.

Rev. IN BEDFORD 1659, with the initial letters of the
obverse repeated in the field.

Faldo is the name of a numerous and ancient family, whose
pedigree is entered in the visitation-book of Bedfordshire ;
and their names appear in the Luton Gylde. The first
person mentioned is Adam de Faldho, of Faldho, an old
house in the parish of Pulloxhill. They afterwards flourished
in Maulden, at Biddenham, and other parts of the county.
The name has been vernacularized to Faulder, and still exists,
though not of this kin, in Bedford. In Maulden church,
where Richard Faldo was interred in 1576, there are two
monuments bearing the family arms, which are three bucks,
heads caboshed, under a crest of three arrows passing through
a ducal coronet, one in pale, and two in saltier. This dis-
countenances the armorial rebus formerly seen in Biddenham
church, where FAL over a couchant doe presented the name ;
an unauthorized pun, which provoked the wrath of both Feme
and Guillim, names ever dear in heraldry.

The Bedford family, though exercising trade, were a highly
respectable and acknowledged branch of the Faldos ; and
there are abundant traces of them in the registers, deeds, and
records of the borough. William, the issuer of the token
before us, was of the then important business of a grocer ;
and there is direct evidence that he was a man of substance.
He became chamberlain of the corporation in 1648, bailiff in
1651, and mayor in 1652. He was exceedingly diligent in
the aldermanic courts, and was re-elected to the chair in 1664
but died before his period of office had expired, and was
buried in St. Mary's church, where also the mortal remains
of Ann, his "widdow," were carried in less than two months
after him. In 1687, the son and a nephew of William Faldo
were both dismissed from the station of aldermen, by the royal
mandate of James the Second, in the squabbles above alluded
to, as disturbing the Pares ; but they were shortly afterwards
restored by King William, and Faldo fils was mayor in 1697
and 1711.

The registers are so replete with the births and marriages
of the Faldos, as to shew that the family was a flourishing
one; and thus it continued till about 1759; but from being
"Misters," Magnates and "Maiors" of the town and
liberties, they dwindled and dwandled till the last represen-
tative was under the incarnation of a Kop<reve, the which, in

156 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

plain though paraphrastical English, signifieth a shaver!
This poor, but honest body was a burgess of 1746, and heir-
at-law to the manor farm at Harrowden, near Bedford, now
possessed by Mr. Whitbread. He plied hard in several
vocations, dropping to leeward on each tack, till he struck
to Necessity and bore up for a barber's shop, wherein the
lineal descendant of all the Faldos took chapmen by the nose,
till 1 800, when the race and himself became defunct. But
even in these reduced circumstances, he had to endure further
buffets from Fortune, for, waxing old, he was barber-ously
supplanted by one Symes, a man now well stricken in years
himself, which gave rise to a distich in the Parnassus Bed-
fordiensis :

" O how we are changed in these modern times,
We leave poor old Faldo, to lather with Symes 1"

VI.

Obv. THOMAS COX, with 1664, two stars, and four roundels
in an engrailed central circle. A small farthing token.

Rev. IN BEDFORD, with two mullets between the first and last
letters. In the field T C I, and three cinquefoils. This
little farthing token is covered with a thin patina.

The Coxes do not seem to have been of much consideration,
though the parish registers prove that between the years
1640 and 1690, they were sufficiently prolific to prolong the
race. Thomas did not serve in any corporate capacity, yet
he must have been a burgess, otherwise the municipal regu-
lations, which were then strictly enforced, would have pre-
vented him from exercising his calling. The heir of Thomas,
also Thomas, a bricklayer of repute, married in the very year
in which this token was smitten, and was elected a freeman
of the borough in the seventeenth year of Charles the Second.
About the commencement of the last century, a bit of an
accident happened to the representative of the family honours,
who was a mighty destroyer of game. Compelled to take in
a reef, he worked " Tom Cox's traverse," shifted his berth, and
sought smooth water in Oxford, where his descendants are
still traceable. The name is common in the county, both
among the yeomen and peasantry, but those who bear it in
the town are of comparatively recent arrival.

VII.

Obv. PAVLL BAMFORTH, with a mullet and cinquefoils ; in
the field P B E, with three cinquefoils.

ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS. 157

Rev. IN BEDFORD, 1665, with the initials and cinquefoils of
the obverse repeated. A little farthing token.

The Bamforths, or Bamfords, were regular standards of
the town and county. The name is enrolled in the Luton
Gylde ; and a "Sir" Thomas Bamfor, as beneficed clergy
were styled before the adopting of the self-assumed title of
" Reverend," was vicar of Cople (olim Cow-pool) in 152 1 . The
nephew of "Sir" Thomas was intimate with the celebrated Sir
Simon Luke, whose mansion, with a singularly contrived room
for concealment in those troublous days, still exists ; but, like
nearly all its contemporaneous mansions in this country, exists
as a farm-house. Here Butler found refuge, and wrote the
immortal Hudibras : but we can hardly imagine he would
make Sir Luke, his benefactor, the hero. Such, however, is
asserted to be the fact; and Dr. Johnson, alluding to the poet's
residence at Cople, says, that it is likely he there "saw the
the principles and practices of the rebels, audacious and un-
disguised in the confidence of success."

The Bamforths of Bedford were highly respectable ; and
on the registers " Mr." is always prefixed to their name.
They left several legacies to the poor of the borough, which
are still enjoyed ; but the family has disappeared since about
1725, one of the last dying rector of Little Barford, in 1720.
Paul, the son of alderman Robert Bamforth, seems to have
been an able citizen ; since we find that he was chamberlain of
the corporation in 1661 and 1666, bailiff in 1663 and 1669,
and mayor in 1681, two years after his brother William had
served in the same capacity.

The year in which this token was struck, was one of alarm,
not only in Bedford, but generally over England, on account
of the plague raging in London. Little precaution seems to
have been used in the borough to prevent its introduction,
and the toll of the bridge was even lowered. The infection
was communicated from the metropolis ; and about forty
persons, who died on the north side of the river, were buried
in the "Pest-house Close," in front of the present Crescent.

VIII.

Obv, WILLIAM ISAAC. In the field 1666, with two mullets
and five pellets, tolerably struck.

Rev. OF BEDFORD. In an engrailed circle, W I M, with
three stars. This farthing token is thinly patinated.

Of this family, which has long since disappeared, there are
so few recollections, that it was evidently of less consideration
than the Faldos, Fitzhughs, and Bamforths. William Isaac

158 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

was the hope and prop of his father Edward, who left him in
fairish circumstances. He was early enrolled among the
councillors of the corporation, and served the office of cham-
berlain in 1673 and 1675, and bailiff in 1674, 1676 and
1681. The mandate by which King James dismissed the
two Faldos, as beforementioned, directed that his Majesty's
trusty and well-beloved William Isaac be elected mayor of
Bedford. He, however, waited on William of Orange with
the warm congratulations of the corporation on his arrival ; and
14Z. 18*. 6d> were "the monies expended about the regula-
tion and delivery of the address." This act of homage was
duly appreciated, insomuch that in August , 1 68 8 , a mandatory
letter arrived from the new king for again electing William
Isaac to the chair ; and he was accordingly continued in office.
This certainly looks a little vicar-of-Bray-ish, and stamps
Isaac to have either been cunning or useful : at all events,
he afforded one of the extremely rare instances which
appear in the annals of the borough, of a person holding the
dignity of mayor for two consecutive years.

The family toddled along in business, but with aleewardly
course ; and the only corporate honour attained by the
descendants of William, was the bailiff's mace, in 1718.
One person only remained master of the name in 1729, and
he, being master of nothing else, bagpiped his mizen, put his
helm aweather, and went right before it, leaving " not a wreck
behind."

IX.

Obv. HVGH HOLTON, with a broad cinquefoil. In the field,
is a utensil of extensive utility, by which the trade of Hugh
was symbolized. Per Diis immortalibus ! it is too much for
the gravity of our discussion that its name should be exposed,
and yet candour insists that it be given. The symbol, then,
is a huge Tiiyavov, sartago,OT, if it must out, plebeian frying-
pan, with H H on the sides of the handle.

Rev. IN BEDFORD, 1666, with a pellet and cinquefoil. IN
the field HIS HALFPENY.

There is little mention of the Holtons ; and they have
long since entirely disappeared. From the registers, we find
that Hugh was the son of Edward and Fanny Holton ; that
he had children, of whom the heir-apparent was presented
and sworn a freeman in 1 678 ; and that the daughter Elizabeth,
baptized in 1670, was married in 1685. Neither Hugh nor
any of his family gained any corporate honours ; yet he must

ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS. 159

have been respectable, for it seems that he was able to be-
friend John Bunyan during his imprisonment on Bedford
bridge. There can be little doubt that the author of Pilgrim's
Progress had many warm friends in'the town, or it is unlikely
that such strong intercessions v/ould have been made in his
behalf, as were used by the worthy bishop of Lincoln.

Obv. ROBERT FARMAN BAKER. In the centre, an
escutcheon with a chief of bars wavy, from which an arm,
issuing out of a cloud, holds a pair of scales between three
garbes, or wheatsheaves, in base.

Rev. IN BEDFORD, 1667, with a cinquefoil; in the field HIS
HALFPENY, R F E. This token is of a good yellow brass,
which has become patinated.

The family of Farman or Fairman, for the registers use
both spellings, was of considerable respectability, and even
opulence ; but they have long been gathered to the vault of
the Capulets. The race is said to have been extinguished in
a silly love-cross, about the year 1732. 5

Robert was the son of William Farman, had a son and
daughter, and buried his wife Elizabeth in the year in
which this token was stamped. He was some years in the
common council, served as chamberlain in 1681, and as bai-
liff in 1 685. On the 2nd of September, 1 695, he was elected
mayor, but declined the chair under the plea of age, infirmi-
ties, incapacity, and non-residence. The representation was
attended to, and he was excused from serving, after "paying
all expences." He had previously resigned his business to a
son, and hauled his wind into a "villa."

XI.

062;. ANTHONY BOVLTON IN. The field bears an escut-
cheon with nine cloves divided by a chevron charged couple-
close.

Rev. BEDFORD GROCER 1667. In the centre, HIS
HALFEPENY A B - S, with two stars and three pel-
lets.

5 Slight indeed are the tenures by which descent hangs at times.
Witness the family of Sir George Sondes, of Leez, in Kent, which,
after flourishing several centuries, became extinct by a quarrel of
two brothers, boys, about a satin waistcoat.

160 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

The Boultons have utterly vanished, those now in Bed-
ford being unconnected with the token-issuer. Anthony,
as both the coin and the apprentice-roll unite in informing
us, was a grocer by trade ; and the registers shew that he bap-
tized his son by the same Christian name in 1662, which is
about the sum of what we gather as to his private life. His
public career must be considered useful, since he was long on
the common council, served as chamberlain in 1673, bailiff in
1675, and was twice mayor, namely, in the years 1680 and
1690. He seems to have clewed up for a full-due about 1698,
since all traces of him are then lost.

XII.

Obv. RALPH SMYTH LINNEN, in the field, R S S quar-
tered with a couple of flowers, the stalks of which are " fretted
and nowed," so as to run between the letters, and from a
flourish uuder them.

Rev. DRAPER IN BEDFORD, with two mullets and a cinque-
foil. In the centre, HIS HALFEPENY 1668. This is
a well- struck token, and entirely coated with a fine yellow
patina.

The Smyths bear a proverbially popular name in all parts
of Europe ; and it is certain that they mustered in great force
in Bedfordshire. The branch which we have been able to
trace, was one of no small respectability, having furnished
several abbots to the "brethren and systren" of the Luton
Gylde ; where they carried on the war, and made as good a
spread as any that the boasted " march- of-mind" men can
undertake. In proof of this, we may state that the expenses
of the "/easte" of Robert Smyth, in the thirty-fourth year of
Henry the Eighth, as recorded in Lord Bute's manuscript,
would startle the stewards of a dinner got up in these degene-
rate days. We need hardly say that plenty was a distinguishing
feature at those entertainments, because abundance was then
considered a type of hospitality ; but we can assure our readers,
that quantity was not the only virtue of the board, for it is
sufficient to make an anchoret's mouth water, to read the items
of expense, wherein are enumerated wheat, wine, malt, bacon,
geese, pigs, capons, chickens, rabbits, beef, venison, mutton,
lamb, eggs, vinegar, verjuice, spice, butter, milk, honey, salt
fish, salmon, sturgeon, and other good things, besides a gang
of minstrels to keep the game alive.

Ralph Smyth, who was evidently one of the out-liers of the
county family, did not, perhaps, feast upon sturgeons ; but he
must have undersood something of gastronomy in detail, since

ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS. 161

he was long a worthy member of the Corporation of Bedford,
a body which had not quite lost its epulary renown, when
Oliver Goldsmith publicly complimented its manducatory ener-
gies. Our ancestors ordered these matters wisely. They were
well aware of the kindly feelings promoted by drawing people to
a common board, many of whom otherwise were not likely to
meet each other. The Immaculates of these clamorous and
mutable times, however, in contempt of experience, "ont
change tout cela;" and the fruits may be, that before five
hundred years shall have passed away, most corporate bodies
will present, instead of a fraternity rowing together, a knot of
cold-blooded blustering balatrones bearding one another so
that each succeeding meeting will exhibit such increasing
hardness of heart, as may vitiate the morals ; and if there be
a good Samaritan among them, he will reluctantly attend,
crawling towards the scene of confusion, like a dog to his &c.

But we must not forget our friend Ralph. He was long
upon the common council, served as chamberlain in 1671, as
bailiff in 1672 and 1674, and as mayor during the years
1676 and 1692. There is little more to be learnt of him
than that he was well-connected, and left children ; but though
the town is never without lots of Smyths, no lineal de-
scendants of Ralph are known to exist.

xm.

Obv. IOHN WALLER AT THE BLEW. In the field a
hedgehog-looking creature, intended for the "Blew Bore,"
the sign of an inn formerly of note, but of which periere
ruince may truly be said, for even the " oldest inhabitant "
recollects nothing of its locality.

Rev. BORE IN BEDFORD 1668, with a broad cinquefoil ;
in the field, HIS HALFEPENY I - W M.

This was a man of much respectability in Bedford ; for
Thomas his father, who was a grocer, served the office of
mayor in 1630, and his uncle William was one of the justices
of Bedford in 1 632. As the Wallers came originally from
Hertfordshire, there is reason to suppose that mine host of
the "Blew Bore" was a connection of the poetical and poli-
tical Edmund Waller ; but though cotemporaries, as the one
was in the enjoyment of a princely fortune, and the other
vending beer in Bedford, it is likely they never met or knew
of each other.

John Waller boasted of no corporate honours ; but his
family contrived to be respectable for several generations.
The last of the lineage died an apothecary, about 50 years

162 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

ago. He is still remembered as a wag, who, by a stroke of
humour, broke an alarming quinsey which threatened the
valuable life of a gentleman still living in Bedford, by ex-
citing that irresistible mirth which Professor Wilson calls the
unsophisticated cholic of laughter.

Victuallers struck great quantities of small coin for the
convenience of change, whence the term Tavern - Token : thus
in the old play with an unmentionable title ; >" I have a device
will sting him if he have but a thimbleful of blood, or a
spleen not so big as a tavern-token.'"

XIV.

Obv. IOHN CLARKE, with a pellet and mullet, and two keys
crossed in saltier in the centre. The house to which these
keys sufficed as a bush still exists, though under a doom of
demolition.

Rev. OF BEDFORD, no date. In the centre J C S, with two
stars. A neat little darkly patinated farthing token, of fair
fabric.

The Clarkes appear in great numbers on the registers and
other muniments ; but the branch to which the keeper of the
Cross- Keys pertained came into Bedford from the respectable
stock at Sandy, in the same county, several of whose names
appear among the "baculari et puelli" of the Luton ffrater-
nite, which was recruited from all the towns in Bedfordshire.

Some little scandal has been whispered against the integrity
of John Clarke, going far to shew that a man can place both
the publican and the sinner under one hat. The honour of
the Cross-Keys was said to be tain ted with the vicious cacoethes
aleatorium which " filleth the hungry with good things, and
sendeth the rich empty away." The circumstances happen to
be unimportant to our object, or they should have been sub-
mitted, on the axiom ;

" Amicus Socrates, amicus Plato, sed magis amicus Veritas."
John had a son, baptized Robert in 1662, whose descendants
disappeared from the town about 1733. But another rami-
fication of the same " house " is to be traced from old John
Clarke, a cordwainer, in 1617, which, for several gene-
rations, carried on the mystery of tawers and tanners, and
having thas lived till they could no longer live thus in Bed-
ford, removed elsewhere, after the death of Robert Clarke,
freeman and currier, in 1780, whose father served as bailiff
in 1712. The Clarkes supplied several common councilmen,
and other corporate officers, but none of them ever sat in the
municipal chair.

ON TRADESMEN'S TOKENS. 163

We have now examined all our tokens in detail : and
from the researches thus carried on, it follows, that in no
instance has any one of the fourteen individuals who formed
the elite, or substantial residents, in 1670, now a represen-
tative in the town of Bedford; besides which, in tracing
their career, the disappearance of the Abbis, Elton, Fenn,
Easton, Paradine, and other co-citizen families, is also
abundantly proved. As to the descendants of the benevo-
lent SIR WILLIAM HARPUR, a name which should live in
the borough till organized Nature forget her motions, or
Tradition her powers of utterance, they were swept away
long before the epoch of which we treat. The whole
population of the place may, therefore, be called a new one,
since it clearly appears that none of the present claimants
to " Bedford-born " exclusiveness, are in any way sprung
from, or connected with, the pious and liberal bene'factors,
whose names adorn the local records, nor even of the towns-
men who co-operated with them. Yet this unexpected
result need not make the features of any parvenu relax to
the inverted curve (~), since he is only the sport of circum-
stances over which he had no controul: but he should
beware of crude boasting, and recollect that snarlers must
keep their teeth to themselves, unless, like Mrs. Matador,
they glory in having them drawn :

" Learn, sons of wind, and all your kin,
To bluster 's not the way to win. "

In conclusion. Not having the fear of the redoubtable
Pinkerton before our eyes, we think that the time spent in
this investigation has not been altogether useless; and we
are certain that so remarkable a change in the tide of
population, in so circumscribed a period and space, has
yielded a point for the gravest meditation. We, therefore,
of this experience, entreat such readers as may be desirous

164 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

of investigating the local story of their neighbourhood,
neither to cast, their Tradesmen's Tokens overboard, nor
despise the lowliest means which may conduce to establish
Truth. s.

XX.

ON CERTAIN COINS HITHERTO ATTRIBUTED TO
HERACLEUM IN THE CHERSONESUS TA'URICA.

BY M. STEINBUCHEL.

OF the small island of Lesina (the ancient Pharos),
situated between the continent of Austrian Dalmatia and
the island of Lissa, there is perhaps little to be recorded of
recent interest 1 , the ancient history, however, of this little
island opens a field of inquiry, perhaps, not altogether un-
interesting or unproductive.

I would preface a few remarks on the subject by re-
minding you, that commerce, with its wonderful results, is
independent of place, attaching equally to the most re-
markable and the most insignificant localities, and that
an intimate relation subsists between the ancient prosperity
of a country, and the quantity of coins yet to be found there.
Impressed with these preliminary data, I have been acci-
dentally led to the interesting conclusion, that the little
island of Pharos was enriched and rendered important by
the active trade which was anciently carried on within it.

1 A trait of the archbishop residing there deserves honourable
notice. That excellent man had so impoverished himself by re-
lieving the poor of his diocese, that, when the Emperor of Austria, -
a few years ago, conferred upon him the honour of a decoration,
it was discovered that he was absolutely unable to pay the moderate
fees customary on such occasions.

COINS OF HERACLEUM. 165

You are, of course, acquainted with the coins of Herac-
leum, Chers. Taur. of which the type is as follows:

Cap. Herculis leonis exuviis tectnm}(HPA.K. Arcus et clava.
^.3.

The attribution of these coins has never been called in
question ; and in writing to my friend M. Niseteo, of Citta
Vecchia, in the island of Lesina, I spoke of them as be-
longing to Heracleum. In reply, I received the following
communication: "Si trovano in numero fra noi delle mo-
nete di Eraclea. lo ne tengo 49, di proprieta di un mie
contadino che la rinvenne sotterate, unite a 58 di Pharos,
e 55 altre dell' istessa isola, coll' iscrizione di lonio. Tra
queste di Eraclea sono 3 con leggenda da d. a s. sotto 1'arco;
2 con leggenda da s. a d. sotto 1'arco ; 35 colla leggenda
HPAKA o HPAKAE sotto la glava; 6 colla leggenda HPA;
1 senza leggenda ; 2 di piccolo conioV

Is it not remarkable, that such a quantity of common
brass coins of Heracleum, a city on the shores of the Black
Sea, should be discovered in a little island in the Adriatic?
Gold and silver coins might have been transported in abund-
ance for commercial purposes ; but this could hardly have
been the case with brass, since large payments are never
made in that metal.

In comparing the coins in question with the known coins
of Pharos, having noticed a great similarity of fabric, I was
led to inquire whether there had ever been a city named

2 Coins of Heracleum are found in this island in abundance.
I possess 49, which one of my labourers found under ground,
together with 58 of Pharos, and 55 others of the same island, in-
scribed lonio. Of the coins of Heracleum, 3 have the legend from
right to left, under the bow ; on 2, the legend runs from left to
right ; 35 have the legend HPAKA or HPAKAE under the club ;
6 are inscribed HPA ; 1 has no inscription, and the other 2 are of
very small size.

z 2

166 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Heracleum in that island ; and though I was unsuccessful
in this part of my inquiry, I accidentally met with a memo-
randum of the late M. Sestirii, which strongly confirmed
my suspicion, that these supposed coins of Heracleum, on
the Black Sea, were in reality to be attributed to the coast
of Dalmatia, if not to the little island of Pharos itself.

The memorandum to which 1 allude, occurs in the au-
tograph of M. Sestini, in a precious MS. now in my pos-
session, and which formerly belonged to the late Count
Wiczay, who formed the celebrated collection of ancient
coins at Hedervar, in Hungary. It exhibits the result
of M. Sestini's numismatic experience, comprehending, in
twelve large folio volumes, to which he has given the title
of Sy sterna Geographicum Numarium, a description of all the
Greek coins seen by him in his various travels in Europe
and the East, whether in public or private collections ; and
it is interspersed and enriched throughout with the notes
and original memoranda of the learned writer. In the
present instance I find as follows :

" Chersonesus Taur.
Heracleum.

Cap. Herculis leonis exuviis tectum. )( HPAK vel HPAKA arcus
et clava, J& 3. (Eckh. Cat. M 2 Mus. Gall. Mus. Allier.)
Metall. crass, et fabrica rudis."

And then he adds: "Numi fabricoe barbarae et non
hujus sedis. Monente d. Kohlero non dantur, neque inveniuntur
in hoc tractu"

This, you will observe, is consistent with the real fact,
that these coins are found in abundance in the island of
Lesina, the ancient Pharos.

More decisive still, however, is the following quotation,
supplied by my friend M. Niseteo, whom it would be unjust
to deprive of the honour of having pointed out so apposite

COINS OF HERACLEUM. 167

a passage. He writes me as follows: "La notizia com
municatami colla pregma sua 17 Maggio, riguardo le
monete di Eraclea, e per la nostra razione un prezio-
sissimo dono, 1'autorita di Sestini e di grande valore.
Nessuno storico, e vero, parla di un' Eraclea in Dalmazia,
ma abbiarno 1'antichissimo geografo Scylace Caryandeno
che ne fa menzione, la nomina la dove dice, (Geogr. Vet.
Scriptt. Grcec. Oxoniae. vol. i. p. 7.) ' Liburnos sequitur Iltyri-

corum gens estqve ibi urbs Grceca, cui nomen Heraclea,

cumportu.' Nella posizione di Eraclea successe il Pretoria
dell' epoca dei Romani. Questa posizione continentale e
distante circa 13 miglie maritimi dell' Isola di Lesina. Queste
sorte di monete si trovano e suR isola nostra, ed in parecchi
punti della costa 3 ."

From these considerations, there can, I think, be no
reasonable doubt entertained, that certain coins of Heraclea
in Dalmatia have been erroneously attributed to Herac-
leum in the Chersonesus Taurica.

Now, as ancient coins are so intimately connected with
the history and commercial importance of ancient cities,
allow me, in conclusion, to inquire what is to be learnt from
the coins of Pharos?

1st. It is known that a very distinct inscription,
OMHPOS, round the bearded head on the brass coins of
Pharos, in the Museum Hedervarianum of the late Count
Wiczay, shows evidently what was intended by that repre-

3 Your communication of the 17th May, concerning the coins of
Heracleum, I value extremely ; the authority of Sestini is of the
highest importance. Although no ancient author mentions a He-
racleum in Dalmatia, the old geographer Scylax, in the following
passage, makes mention of a town of that name, " Liburnos, " &c.
The site of Heraclea was occupied subsequently by the Roman
Pretorium, which was situated on the main land about 13 nautical
miles from the island of Lesina. The coins in question are found
not only on this island, but all along the coast of Dalmatia.

168 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

sentation. Among many other possible motives for this
type which might be adduced, I suppose the circumstance
of a party of the original colonists of the island of Pharos
having migrated thither, from one of the cities which
claimed the honour of having given birth to the great
Greek poet, might be admitted as not the least probable .
A passage in Aulus Gellius, where he speaks of the island of
los, supplies an interesting hint on this subject, though the
evidence does not amount to historical proof.

2dly. It is known that, of late years, some ancient silver
coins of Pharos have been discovered, from which it may
be inferred, that this island enjoyed a greater degree of
commercial importance than has been hitherto supposed.
The circumstance of a gold coin of Agrigentum, which is of
rare occurrence, having been found there among a number
of coins of Pharos itself, may perhaps indicate the direction
of the trade which proved so beneficial to the inhabitants of
that little island. I am well aware, however, that as the
ancients said, One swallow is not a proof of Spring ^ and that
other instances would be necessary to establish the fact here
glanced at,

3dly. A very particular circumstance, are the known

brass coins of Pharos with the letters IONIO , all of

which are re-struck ; but it has been impossible hitherto to
discover, satisfactorily, what was the original type. So
many similar re-struck coins of other ancient cities have
been found connected with some interesting historical fact,
(which would furnish materials for a separate dissertation),
that it seemed worth while to notice that circumstance oc-
curring on the coins of the little island of Pharos.

*' Since forwarding my brief numismatic notice, I have met with
some more copper coins of Pharos, mingled with a large hoard of

THE MONEY CALLED LUCULLEA. 169

coins of Heraclea. I suppose no doubt can be entertained that
the Chers. Taur. must cede to Dalmatia the honour of a numis-
matic city." (Extract from a letter of M. Steinbuchel, dated
Vienna, 16 November, received since the preceding pages were in
print. ED.)

XXI.
ON THE MONEY CALLED "LUCULLEA."

PLUTARCH, in his life of Lucullus, acquaints us with the
following facts :

" Sylla frequently employed him (Lucullus) in important
affairs, and also in the management of the mint ; so that
most of the money provided for the Mithradatic war, was
struck in the Peloponnesus by Lucullus, from whom it was
called Lucullea ; and it continued long in use for the occa-
sions of the army, from the ease with which it passed."
And in another account : " When peace was agreed
upon, Mithradates sailed into the Euxine, and Sylla im-
posed a fine upon Asia of 20,000 talents : Lucullus was
commissioned to collect the tax and to coin money."

The historical interest thus given to a particular class of
coins is a sufficient excuse, if any be deemed necessary,
for the full indulgence of inquisitiveness on the subject. It
is evident that Lucullus acted under Sylla as Qucestor Pro-
vintiaUs, or Militaris, an office that corresponded, in a great
measure, to those jointly of Qucestor Urbanus and Triumvir
Monetalis in Rome itself. It might, therefore, at first be
supposed, not unreasonably, that the money bore his

170 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

as Quaestor, as well as that of Sylla as Imperator ; indeed,
that the soldiers in the designation they gave it, out of
compliment to the mint-master for its superior weight,
referred in some measure to its inscription or legend. It
might also be expected, from the large quantity that must
have been struck, and the general and continued currency
it obtained on account of its goodness, that much would be
found remaining among other coins of the same era. The
fact, however, is, that the name of Luculhis does not occur
on a single Roman coin known at present to exist. Goltzius
has given two in his "Fasti," which Morell places among
those " incertce fidei ;" but these, if still to be found, and
perfectly genuine, can have nothing to do with the money
in question, as they bear the evidence of having been
minted at Rome, and relate to circumstances in the life of
Lucullus that occurred long after his connexion with Sylla,
especially the one commemorating his own triumph, in a
subsequent war, over Mithradates and Tigranes 1 . It is.cer-
tainly very unlikely that the whole of the money specified
by Plutarch should be lost; and, though our first ideas
respecting it are probably, in most respects, erroneous, it
is clear that whatever may remain of it must be sought for
among the coins of Sylla struck during his life. Those
extant of this class appear to be confined to the following
types :

L. SVLLA. Head of Venus; in front of which Cupid stands

holding in his right hand a long palm-branch.
R. IMP ITERVM. The prsefericulum and lituus between two

trophies. Weight of the aureus 202 grains, R R R. (Pembroke

Collection.) Silver, moderately rare.

1 Goltzius gives also a third, not known to subsequent numis-
matists which reads, TERENTI VARRO LVCVLLVS, and
ROMA.

THE MONEY CALLED LUCULLEA. 171

II.

A MAN or A MANLI A F Q. Head of Pallas.

$. L SVLL IMP. or L SVLLA FELIX DIC. The

Imperator on horseback in the character of pacificator.

N. RRR. Weight 204 grains. (Pembroke Collection.)

III.

L MANLI PRO a. Helmed and winged head of Pallas.

1^. L SVLLA IMP. Sylla in a triumphal quadriga; a cadu-
ceus in his right hand, and Victory flying to meet him with a
crown. Weight of the aureus about 202 grains. RRR. (Pem-
broke Collection.) One of this type, in admirable preservation,
belongs to the cabinet of T. Thomas, Esq. and is, as nearly as
possible, of the same weight. Silver R.

IV.

Bust of Pallas galeated, crowned from behind by Victory standing,
. SVLLA IMP. Sylla in the paludamentum standing ; his left
hand placed on the parazonium at his side, his right joined with
that of a soldier meeting him and carrying a reversed spear ;
behind Sylla the prow of a vessel, from which he seems to have
just disembarked ; a raised anchor and laid up arms appearing
above the deck. m. and RRR.

The weight of the aurei here cited is very remarkable.
It exceeds that of others of the same era by a quarter part.
The standard weight of the aureus from the year 650 to 717
U. C. was about 153 grains, or 40 to the pound. Those of
Sylla, in the midst of this very period, weigh from 202 to
204 grs, making only 30 to the pound 2 . There can be
little doubt, therefore, that they were the class of money
called, generally, Lucullea, from the earliest having been
struck by Lucullus by Sylla's direction, in order that the

2 The only one which our Museum possesses, No. I, weighs 165
grains ; and from an instance or two of this kind, Pinkerton must
have made his statement (Essay, vol. i. p. 181), that the aurei of
Sylla weighed from 154 to 168 grains, a sufficient excess over the
standard weight, 163 grains, to account for the credit which the
money enjoyed, but still remarkably different from the well -authen-
ticated weights of several others. The beautiful one mentioned
under No. Ill, has, I know, been carefully ascertained to amount
to 202 grains within a fraction.

A A

172 NUMISMATIC JOURNAD.

latter might ing i atiate himself with the troops, who found their
pay actually much increased, though nominally the same.
No wonder such money passed with ease, and obtained
celebrity for its original fabricator. Indeed, the chief nu-
mismatic writers seem more or less agreed respecting it;
but the opinion of Eckhel, justly called the prince of
numismatists, who omits no point of importance, and is
admirably sagacious upon all (and whose venerable portrait
we place upon our covers, in the fond hope of making him
the tutelary genius of our pages), appears to me by far the
most satisfactory that has yet been advanced. He is dis-
posed to limit the money actually struck by Lucullus (that
is, as far as can be conjectured from existing coins), to the
type described No. I. He notices a peculiarity that has
escaped the observation of other commentators. Describing
the denarii, he says, " Omnes, quot viderim, sunt operis
rudis, et videntur fusi ;" and that on this account they are
" easily attributable to camp manufacture." There are
certainly good reasons for assigning the others to later mint-
ages than the military one in the Peloponnesus. I will
therefore dispose of these Nos. before I say more of No. I.

The reverse of No. II., representing Sylla on horseback
in the character of pacificator, Eckhel considers to be illus-
trated by an allusion to Cicero 3 to an equestrian statue in
gold that had been erected to him at Rome ; the most
probable occasion of which was the peace concluded with
Mithradates, after a war carried on with glory, and pro-
ductive of great treasure to the state ; so that this type
must have been struck after his return, which is sufficiently
proved also by the titles that occur in the legend, of Felix
and Dictator, both having been assumed by him towards
the termination of his career.

3 Phil ix. c. 6.

THE MONEY CALLED LUCULLEA. 173

No. III. plainly enough celebrates the triumph he led
up in consequence of his victories in the East, and is in the
same chronological predicament as the former. The name
too which both bear, of Manlius, as Quaestor or Pro-
quaestor, precludes them from having been under the super-
intendence of Lucullus.

The signification of No. IV. has been regarded as doubt-
ful. We know, however, fully from Appian, that on Sylla's
landing in Italy, the senate, in some apprehension of the
measures he might intend to adopt, sent a conciliatory
deputation to welcome him ; which circumstance seems
clearly to form the subject of the reverse.

Having disposed of these, perhaps satisfactorily, I revert
to No. I., as most probably the only type of the money
actually struck by Lucullus that has come down to our
times, if not the only one issued from the camp-mint in the
Peloponnesus. And as Eckhel appears to have identified
it from the nature of its fabric, so, I humbly conceive, an
additional argument may be drawn from the character of
its type. We will first attend to the obverse. To be
fanciful in the interpretation of coins is, I am aware, to
amuse oneself impertinently at the expense of the time and
patience of others ; but in this instance, I believe I have
only to point out the ingenuity of Lucullus in the device he
selected for flattering his patron Sylla. Venus was the
deity in whose good offices Sylla professed chiefly to confide.
He seems to have availed himself of the enchantment of
her name much in the way that his successor Caesar did,
whose signal word at Pharsalia was " Venus the Victorious,"
and on whose coins she frequently appears ; and probably
he wished to be considered as a kind of adopted son of this
renowned goddess 4 , a hint afterwards improved upon by

4 " In writing to the Grecians, he took the additional name of
A A 2

174 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Caesar, who declared his actual descent from her. It was
the policy of Lucullus to touch pretty strongly, yet taste-
fully, upon this point, which he appears to have done in
placing the figure of Cupid, gracefully holding a prodigious
palm-branch, before the delighted eyes of his mother, as
though she were regarding with complacency, in her own
offspring, an emblematic image of the victories and felicity
of her favourite Sylla. If any be disposed to condemn this
interpretation, and to dismiss the author of it to a low station
in the class headed by Hardouin and Stukely, I beg they
will first reflect for a moment on the known elegant inven-
tions of this same Lucullus at subsequent periods of his life ;
let his taste in villas, porticoes and fish-ponds, be remem-
bered, his suppers in the " Saloon of Apollo," and especially
that famous one in which, to flatter his two guests, Cicero
and Pompey, and of course also to gratify his own vanity,
he expended fifty thousand drachmas. He was, in fact, the
very man whom we should expect to hit upon a device of ex-
aggerated compliment for the gratification of such a person
as Sylla, to whom also he was under great obligations. Why,
with all his vanity, he refrained from associating his own
name with that of Sylla in the legend of the coin, according
to the usual privilege of the quaestor or triumvir monetalis,
may be accounted for from the shrewd prudence that
directed his conduct on certain occasions. Had his name
been so inscribed, the money, in all likelihood, would never
have received its peculiar designation. Sylla's jealousy
would have been excited, had the term Lucullea been ap-
plied to it otherwise than in evident reference to the mere
fabricator. In short, Lucullus made a show of modesty in the

Epaphroditus (the favourite of Venus) ; and the inscription upon
the trophies left among us is, Lucius Cornelius Sylla Epaphro-

THE MONEY CALLED LUCULLEA. 175

affair which we may presume was pleasing to his patron,
and had the good fortune, no doubt unexpected, of giving
his own appellative, without the actual impress of a letter
of it to a large portion of the Roman currency.

Should doubts, however, remain as to the soundness of
the explanation given of the obverse, the reverse type is
sufficiently in correspondence with historical circum-
stances to establish its identity with the original Moneta
Lucullea. That usefully gossipping historian, our friend
Plutarch, who beguiled us into this investigation, does not
leave us in any difficulty as to the two trophies which are
here represented. From the minute account he gives,
they are clearly those that were erected by Sylla, after the
great victory gained at Chseronea over the forces of Mithra-
dates, commanded by his general Archelaus. He ex-
pressly tells us, " one trophy was erected on the plain
where the troops of Archelaus began to give way, the other
trophy upon the top of Thurium." This craggy mountain
had been the enemy's strong-hold, from which it had re-
quired extraordinary efforts of valour to dislodge them, and
the scene of contest being detached from the main battle
on the plains below, an additional victory was considered to
be achieved, and just cause to exist for the erection of a
second trophy. Sylla was, on this occasion, saluted by his
army, for the second time, Imperator, the completeness of
the victory rendering it a well-merited honour. He entered
upon the war with Mithradates, of course, as IMP., and
the first affair that followed of great military glory being
that of Chaeronea, he was then saluted "IMP-ITERVM."
Plutarch adds, " He inscribed his trophies to Mars, to
Victory, and to Venus." The Venus Victrix of the obverse
is thus connected with the trophies of the reverse. And it
may be proper to remark, that the number of trophies on

176 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

an ancient coin invariably signified that so many distinct
victories had been won, and, in commemoration of the
same, so many trophies had been set up and dedicated to the
deities whom the victors wished to honour. They were never
engraved vaguely as mere decorative symbols, or in fulsome
compliment to a prince, or general, whose success in war
was equivocal. They were objects of real existence, and in
a degree as sacred as the temples of the gods themselves.
Consequently, their appearance on a coin will frequently
chronologize it as accurately as the most intelligible in-
scription, by pointing to certain well-known historical events.
Hence we assign to this coin a date derivable from Sylla's
victory at Chaeronea, at which period, there is every reasou
to believe, Lucullus had the immediate direction of his mint
in Greece 5 .

With respect to the money he was commissioned to coin
in the Asiatic provinces, when left there to conduct affairs,
after the peace concluded with Mithradates and the return
of Sylla to Italy (as stated in the second passage quoted
from Plutarch at the commencement of this paper), I am
unable to discover any trace of it whatever in the Roman
coinage, and conceive it must have been struck upon the
model of the Greek currency in that region.

It has been remarked that all the coins given in
the numbered list may be considered to belong to the

5 We learn incidently from Dion Cassius, that Sylla was very
particular about the number of his trophies. On his victory at
Orchomenus, some time subsequent to that at ChaBronea, he
erected a third, and afterwards adopted " three trophies " as the
device of his signet-ring. The same device is met with on a coin
apparently struck by his son, Faustus, after his death, in honour
of his memory ; but as it did not relate to new or recent circum-
stances, it bears no other inscription than the word " Faustus,"
which is expressed in a difficult monogram,

THE MONEY CALLED LUCULLEA. 177

Lucullian money. Sylla having experienced the advantage
of subsidizing his forces with good heavy metal, wisely con-
tinued the plan in other mintages when he got back to Rome,
and the money having once acquired a particular name,
retained it naturally enough through a variety of types.
To the influence of this talisman, 1 doubt not, he owed his
success with the troops of the consul Scipio, who joined him
to a man, leaving to their general an empty camp ; nor is it
improbable that this very Lucullian cash paved the way to
the seat of the Dictator; so that though I have prosed
about it at some length, and perhaps, in the opinion of the
reader, to little purpose, it may, in former days, have been
of vast importance, and one of the most efficient instru-
ments in the hand of an ambitious and crafty tyrant for the
destruction of his country's liberty and happiness.

I do not, however, wish to put my brother coin-collectors
out of conceit with it, especially after the trouble I have
taken to bring it under their notice ; but if it will be at all
Satisfactory, they may be reminded that they need not be
particularly apprehensive of meeting with the most dan-
gerous portion of it, the gold, since two out of the three
types existing in this metal are almost unique, and the
remaining one in so safe a state of rarity that it is not likely
to be offensive. This rarity, fortunate or otherwise, may
be explained by the simple fact of their extraordinary
weight, which probably led to their being re-melted from
time to time into aurei of the usual standard, with con-
siderable profit from the difference of intrinsic values.

Indeed, it is most likely that the fame spoken of was
attached, originally, to the gold only, for the denarii of the
same types offer nothing remarkable as to weight ; and if
they shared in the reputation of the aurei, it must have been
from their corresponding devices. I do not attempt to

178 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

account for the apparent disproportionate values of aurei
and denarii of the same mintages, and must leave this point,
if considered worth investigation, to more competent numis-
matists.

In silver, Nos. I. and II. are not very uncommon, though
the former, which appears to be the most interesting, may
be a degree rarer than the latter. Few of us can ever ex-
pect to possess more than this scanty remnant of the cele-
brated Lucullea." E. C. B.

XXII.

MEDALLION OF ANTONINUS.

THE medallion, of which an engraving is here presented,
was obligingly forwarded by C. W. Loscombe, Esq. who has
the good fortune to number it among the treasures of his
cabinet. It is of the finest fabric, in admirable preservation,
and richly coated with that noble green cerugo, so grateful to
the eye of a numismatist of good taste. The portrait of
Antoninus Pius, always uniting dignity and benevolence,
appears on this little "monumentum ceris" to more than
usual advantage, and thoroughly satisfies the mind in the
contemplation of the most faultless character of heathen
antiquity.

The reverse type, which seems to have been hitherto
unpublished is the winged figure of Victory slaying a bull,
it is to be presumed, for a sacrifice in celebration of some
great military achievement. The only victory, however, of
any note, during the generally peaceful reign of Antoninus,
was that gained by his lieutenant, Lollius Urbicus, in the
north of Britain over the Brigantes, a tribe (as Pausanius

MEDALLION OF ANTONINUS. 179

states) that had revolted and made attacks upon a neigh-
bouring tribe in subjection to the Romans. This medal-
lion, therefore, in all probability relates to British history;
and to the same event positively recorded on several coins of
this emperor.

Mr. L., in a note which accompanied it, remarks that
"the reverse derives interest from its close resemblance to
a group in the Townley collection of marbles, and which was
found among the ruins of his (Antonius's) villa; and that
by drawing a little on that faculty in which antiquaries, the
gravest of all students, are said sometimes particularly to
indulge imagination, we may fancy this to be the faithful
record of the work of Myron."

From the remarkable coincidence between the marble
and the medallion, our correspondent draws the following
inference, " The representations of ancient statues are
no doubt often to be met with on coins. The Venus on a
coin of Ambracia (Mionnet, Sup. III. p. 13) is in point. I
will mention another probable instance. On the tetra-
drachms, of Alexander the Great, struck at Corinth, the
small Pegasus is placed on a plinth ; and as it differs, in this
respect, from the Pegasus on all the common coins of
Corinth and her colonies, it may be conjectured that this
small Pegasus was copied from some statue then existing
in that city."

Observations of a similar kind might easily be multiplied.
We fully believe that a large portion of the noblest and
most celebrated statues of antiquity are faithfully repre-
sented to us on surviving medals. Jupiter, Minerva,
Apollo, &c. are portrayed on the coins of cities where they
were particularly worshipped, w r ith evidently so scrupulous
an attention to exactness, as to leave no doubt on the mind
of their being as perfect copies of dedicated statues, the

B u

180 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

work of the finest Greek artists, as the smallness of the field
in each instance would allow. From the wonderfully
accurate correspondence which exists between the busts of
the ancients that have been handed down to us, and the
features of the same individuals stamped upon coins, we may
be sure of the fidelity of medallic representations where no
memorials of remarkable characters are extant in marble or
bronze. Who that is familiar with Roman coins needs a
Cicerone, or guide-book, in walking through the Vatican,
Florentine, and other galleries, or among the marbles of our
own Museum, for information as to the names belonging to
particular physiognomies? He recognizes at a glance, be-
yond the possibility of mistake, the identical faces, only
enlarged in their proportions, that he left at home in a
cabinet drawer. On a comparison, too, of the temples and
public edifices that appear on coins, with the ruins of the
few that remain, we are satisfied with the general truth of
such representations, and prize, as we ought in other cases,
the only actual memorials that exist of scenes and circum-
stances of the highest historical interest. Numberless mag-
nificent structures have utterly vanished, multitudes of
splendid and exquisite statues that were worshipped, almost
equally, from motives of superstition and the love of the
beautiful, are lost in the rubbish and dust of ages; but
their miniatures are, in many instances, still preserved on
medals, which have proved faithful to the trust committed
to them. E. C. B.

P. S. In a future paper an attempt may be made by the light
afforded by authentic historical notices, to indentify more particu-
larly some remarkable figures on Greek and Roman coins, as
accurate representations of distinguished statues of the gods and
demi-gods of antiquity.

181

XXIII.

ROMAN COINS DISCOVERED AT EXETER.

SIR,

Having lately perused your first two numbers of the
Numismatic Journal, I found, in that of June last, a
notice thanking me for the offer I had made you respecting
the numerous coins, &c. found at Exeter in the last ex-
cavations, during the city improvements. You, at the same
time, expressed a doubt as to the genuineness of many such
coins, at least as respects their authenticity. I am very
happy to be able to state that I will throw down the gauntlet
on this subject with the greatest pleasure, having it in my
power to swear to the authenticity of most of those found
here, particularly in our Upper arid Lower Markets, having
been PERSONALLY on the spot when most of them were
exhumed, as well as of the greatest part of the SAMIAN
POTTERY, and other relics of the Roman times, at the
period when Exeter was the flourishing station of ISC A, and
the capital of Dumnonium, and of which they are the debris.
I have been almost constantly with the workmen, and have
seen such coins and medals repeatedly dug up; among
others, I could particularize the beautiful medal of Nero,
last April 7th, with the Macellum on it, which I HAD the
moment it was found, not to enumerate many others, at a,
great depth.

I have also seen most of the pottery taken up, and
have had Roman PATERA and other vessels, with the
potter's marks, taken out of the made earth, with my own

B B 2

182 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

hands I might almost say, in our Lower Market, as well as
lacrymatories and lamps. If any doubts could arise on the
trite subject of coins found here, which have been certainly
met with to a prodigious degree, let it be considered that
a man could, at one time, hardly dig a cellar under his own
house, in some parts of this city, without half a dozen
Caesars staring him full in the face ; that he could not lay
a new floor without trampling on the bones of some dead
Roman, or, to speak figuratively, breaking his shins over a
Samian testa, a chequered pavement, or sepulchral vase.
This was really the case in South Street, where most of our
Roman antiquities seem first to have appeared; and in the
Lower Market, the traces of that ancient people make it
indisputable that a Roman city existed at the depth of
twenty feet below the present streets and houses.

Such men as Stukeley and Horsely would have been
gratified to see the mighty, though mutilated, remains of
the Cohorts which "fleshed their maiden steel" in our
southern hemispheres; the latter (proh pudorf) placed
ISC A the most important station in the West (and mother
of Voliba^ Uxela, and Tamare) at Chiselboro 1 ! misled by
the erroneous transcribing in the twelfth, or, at least the
fifteenth, Iter of Antoninus.

This I have endeavoured to correct, and the lovca Xeyiw*/
Afvrcpa St&xoTTj of Ptolemy was twenty-five miles, evidently
fromMoridunum (Seaton), which last was thirty-six miles from
Dorchester, and not fifteen as the Iter gives it, on the
ancient Foss-way, which, coming from Somersetshire, pro-
ceeded to Hembury Ford, along the old Taunton road to
Exeter, till it met the Ikenild street at Streetway Head,
nine miles from Exeter; which Stratum or street meets the
London road at Axminster.

I shall be happy to refer you to many persons here

ROMAN COINS DISCOVERED AT EXETER. 183

who have seen the numismatical affairs continually dug up,
in particular to Mr. Henry Hooper, junior, (the Messrs.
Hoopers are architects of the markets, and builders), who
was, at one time, always among the workmen, and has
found a coin occasionally himself. Other authorities here
are Mr. Davenum, the clerk of the works in the Lower
Market, Mr. Abraham, Mr. Flood, senior, and a host of
others ready and willing to give their testimony, to say
nothing of the poor labourers, Orchard, Calcott, Browning,
Moore, Escott, and others, who have been most successful
in these researches, and had no means, nor even opportunity
of "proceeding to their work with a good supply of speci-
mens," as you have termed it (June Notice to Corres-
pondents) ; I, therefore, trust you will, in your next
Journal, notice us more kindly.

It is certainly surprising so much Roman money should
be found here, particularly of Claudius, Vespasian, and
Nero; but it proves that Exeter was an important station,
and, in fact, the great number of lamps and military posts
near, and pointing to, Exeter, evidently prove the thing.

While the Romans had military possession of this part of
the country, Exeter was then the Hibernaculnm of their
troops, or a winter station, also a stipendiary city, paying
its taxes in money, the Aestiva, or summer stations,
being on Stokehill and Durgard, communicating with it,
and thence with Woodbury camp, the vale of the Otter,
and also a chain of posts across the Jugum Ovinum (Dart-
moor) to Hartland, and through Crediton to Molland
Botreaux; all excellent specimens of castrametation, and
many of them, to guard the country against the Saxon
piratical incursions.

184 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

OTHER EVIDENCES.

Mr. Arthur of Northernhay shewed me, lately, five coins,
found some years since (1818) under one of his houses in
North street. They were of Adrian (large brass), Anton.
Pius, ditto; Vespasian, 2 ditto; Aurelius, (Carus or
Marius,) sacrificial emblems; and Constantine II., with
VOX -XX. in a wreath.

Mr. Carter, silversmith, has one hundred arid twenty
coins, found in taking down Broad-gate some years ago,
near the spot where the Roman penates were found in July,
1778, described by Dean Milles, Archaeologia, vol. vi. p.
1. But I refer you for more particulars, if needful, to Mr.
H. Hooper's (junior) collections of the last two years,
which are very rare and curious. We have also two gold
pieces of NERO, aurei or didrachms.

I began to look after these matters first in October 1832,
and intend to give a small pamphlet, which will fully
elucidate where every one was found, and the finders'
names, in most instances.

Mere notices of coins which illustrate no subject, are
extremely unsatisfactory. Mine, as connected with the
antiquity of a noble Roman station, cannot be so. Most
of the London and provincial papers have transcribed them
from Exeter prints, and I sent a particular account of my
discoveries to the Gentleman's Magazine of last August and
September.

You will, perhaps, say of many of our Exeter coins, that
they are trite, and some of them common ; they, however,
are, in your own words, the gazettes of the Roman times,
and, therefore, invaluable to us, as respecting the station
here. Le bon grain est mele avec la paille, as our Gallic
neighbours would phrase it; and we must take it as we

ROMAN COINS DISCOVERED AT EXETER. 185

find it: and hoping you will have a better opinion of us
and them, I remain, yours, truly, W. W. SHORTT.

Heavitree, near Exeter,
November 2, 1836.

P. S. It is indisputable that among many curiosities dug up iii
our ancient city, a number of coins of the Roman colonial posses-
sions have come to light, from the GREEK cities in Syria and Asia
Minor. I was at first sceptical on this point ; but my doubts were
entirely removed by the repeated appearance of such coins. How
they came here is matter of conjecture. We know that many of
the Roman auxiliary corps were composed of Greek levies, as the
Thracian and Dalmatian Horse sufficiently prove; and the
EQUITES SYRI of the Notitia (sect. 4). garrisoned the interior
of the province, under the Hon. the Count of Britain. A Syrian
Legion introduced the worship of the goddess Astarte here. I
traced Greek letters on some of the red pottery found here, as in
the instance of DIAIXVMI in the western market. These relics
prove either the resort of Mediterranean merchants from Phoenicia
or Syria, or the cantonments of auxiliary troops from thence at
ISCA in later times.

My attention was at first awakened by the medal of Julia
Mammaea, found where the present catacombs are excavating, last
January, and a coin of Maconia in the Upper Market ; since which
time, another medal of Trajan, and a coin of Alexander Severus,
both of Greek cities and with Greek legends, came to light ; also
another (Bithynian) of Macrinus, from Nicaea, with the goddess
CYBELE on a rock, and Euphrates who gave name to that river
beneath a frequent type of Samosata in Syria also. These were
found in South street, along its upper part, between the Conduit
and Stacey's house, with many others, some of which were
Byzantine, relating to the lower Greek empire, and its epochs.
Of these I record only one, a Justinian, with ANNO XXIV.
The Trajan was of Laodicea, a maritime city of note, with the

186 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

river Nile on it, as Osiris or Canopus reclining on a crocodile,

LACOAEK.

The others I have met with since are as follow :

1. A coarse massy coin, with an eagle bearing a thunderbolt,
supposed an Antoninus or Commodus. ANT'NO'BACIAEOC, of
what city is unknown, perhaps Nicomedia in Bithynia.

2. Philip (about 253 A. D.) AK'M'IOYAr^IA, Reverse, a
Victory. L. S. Ludi S&culares, celebrated by him.

3. A coin of Philip, defaced. The reverse is entire, presenting
Dis or Pluto crowned, and the letters L. S., or Ludi SaBculares,
performed by Philip and his son with great magnificence to Dis
(Pluto) and Proserpine, 43 years after Severus, 1000 A.U.C.

Our correspondent will accept our best thanks for his commu-
nication. He is, however, mistaken in supposing that wejbr one
moment doubted the correctness of his former statement, as to the
discovery of coins in the ancient city of Exeter. With all due
respect for the zeal, learning, and ability of our correspondent, we
are, nevertheless, compelled to say, that he occasionally gives his
imagination the rein, as is shown in the letter with which we have
been favoured. He may rest assured that the letters D1AIXVMI
are not Greek characters, and that they have nothing whatever
to do with the trading of the Phoenicians to this island. Such
a theory, however rational, cannot be supported by the produc-
tion of a rude potter's stamp. The coin attributed to Maconia
we suspect to be badly read, and we are led to this conclusion from
the circumstance of our correspondent having been guilty of a
singular error in reading the coin of Trajan LAWAEK. A more
minute inspection of this piece will satisfy our correspondent that
the second letter should be a delta, and that the legend should be
L'ACOAEKars (year 12). It is, in, fact, one of the numerous
coins of Trajan, struck at Alexandria. (See Vaillant, Num.
Gr&ca, p. 360. Mionnet, Descrip. de Medailles Antiques, torn,
vi. p. 105. to 552, inclusive ; and EcJchel, Doct. Num. Vet.} The

ON THE SKEATTA OF WILDFRID. 187

fabric of all Egyptian coins of this period is peculiar, and ought in
a moment to be recognised by the numismatist. The " coarse
massy coin " is, doubtless, a Probus, struck in the same city.
That of Philip is also an Alexandrian coin, the A signifying
Avxa^roc- The 2 we think is misread for E. (See Mionnet
Descrip. torn, vi., and Rasche's Lexicon, torn. ii. part 2.) No. 4
is also a coin of Alexandria ; and the figure is that of a female?
with a turreted crown, symbolical of the city. (Mionnet. Descrip.
torn. vi. 427.)

We have been led into these remarks by a conviction that Mr.
Shortt, who deserves well of our English antiquaries, will profit by
them, and avoid rushing to hasty conclusions on a subject which,
of all others, requires the most minute and deliberate investiga-
tion. Mr. Shortt promises us a small work on the antiquities
recently discovered at Exeter, which we shall be glad to see ; but
he must carefully revise what he has already written, and be less
fanciful in his description of the interesting relics which have been
lately brought to light in that city. He imagines the joy which
would have possessed Stukeley had he witnessed these discoveries,
and appears to consider that writer an authority. Stukeley was a
madman, and has done more to bring antiquarian studies into
contempt than any author that ever wrote. The late Mr. Douce
never neglected an opportunity of ridiculing him. [Eo. N. J.]

XXIV.

ON THE SKEATTA ATTRIBUTED TO WILDFRID,

ARCHBISHOP OF YORK, IN ARTICLE III.
SIR,

CHANCE having thrown in my way the first and
second numbers of your very interesting Numismatic
Journal, I noticed the appropriation of a Saxon skeatta to
Wildfrid, archbishop of York, and a letter upon the same
article, giving another opinion, by J. Lindsay, dated from

c c

188 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Cork. Having a considerable number of stycas in my pos-
session, I have been led much to the study of the early Saxon
coinage : and, thinking I might possibly cast more light on
the subject, I beg leave to offer a few remarks on the coin
in question. That letters of the Saxon mint are often
united, I have abundant proof in rny Collection. Reversed
and redundant letters are as common ; and the W is in-
variably two W, or the peculiar Saxon p; but another
skeatta is given in the last number of the Journal, bearing
the name of Aldfridht, which, to me, raises a doubt on that
of Wildfrid, the two coins so nearly resembling each other,
that to reconcile the M in the place of A appears the only
difficulty.

The letter (f) mostly, or altogether, on Saxon coins, is
broader at the top, inclining inwards at the bottom, and
the connecting transverse line begins at the very top of the
sides. The M in question is different; its two perpendicular
lines running full up to the margin of the coin, stand quite
above the connecting horizontal line, wanting only another
on the top to make out the Saxon 7C. Should this be too
imaginative, there is sufficient excuse for the intruding
letter in the careless orthography of the Northumbrian
mint.

My collection of stycas, which I believe is the best
known, amounts to above one thousand, including six hun-
dred and twenty distinct varieties. I have above seventy
unpublished drawings of varieties, one of them a coin of
Eanred, Rex, begins EAENRED ERX ; one of Vigmund,
EIGMVND, and many others, which strongly lead me to
presume that the coin in dispute is clearly another Aldfrith.

On further examination of the skeatta of Wildfrid, I
perceive the concluding letter is not perfect; the top is
evidently wanting. If the drawing of the coin is faithful,

ON THE SKEATTA OF WILDFRID. 189

we may fairly suppose the first letter also imperfect. Had
the skeatta of Aldfrith not appeared, the claim of Mr.
Lindsay for Egfridus is plausible ; the unlucky M might
have been disposed of in the character of the Runic M,
common too on the coins of Offa, the next letter, the
square-formed E, and the following letter is fairly con-
vertible into D or G. Should these remarks assist in
leading to any further conclusion, I should feel much
gratified. I am, Sir, your obedient and humble servant,

J. FAIRLESS.

Hexham, Northumberland,
November 25.

SIR,

IN the first number of the Numismatic Journal
there is a representation of a Saxon skeatta, upon which
your learned correspondent has given a very ingenious
dissertation, and which, according to him, affords the name
WILDFRIDHT or WILDFRID. And not finding any
king of that name in the Saxon annals, he assigns the coin
to Wilfrid, archbishop of York. Your second number con-
tains an account of another skeatta, attributed to Aldfrith,
king of Northumberland. This last, which is a styca,
appears to throw some light on the first. It reads distinctly,
ALDFRIDVS, and every letter appears to be formed the
same as those on the skeatta attributed to Wildfrid. The
animals represented on the coins referred to, closely re-
semble each other. A careful examination of the letters
on these pieces has led me to the conclusion that that
which stands first on the coin of Wildfrid, though like an
M, is, upon closer inspection, an 7T, the cross-bar being
formed by a sharp angle, and the top line omitted, probably
from want of space. The first letter on the styca is also

c c 2

190 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

decidedly an A^ but the cross bar is formed by a curve
instead of an angular line, with the completing line on the
top. This will appear when the two letters are placed
together thus, A R. By supposing a line placed on, and
completing, the first of these two letters, it will be most
clearly an A like the second. The eighth letter is the same
as V on the coins of Offa ; and the ninth is more like an S
than a T. I am, Sir, &c. J. D. CUFF.

We think this sets the question at rest. Both the coins are
clearly of Aldfriht. [Ec. N. J.]

XXV.
MEDALLION OF COMMODUS.

THE relic, of which a faithful representation is given
in the accompanying plate, is a medallion of Commodus, of
a type already published, but mounted in an ornamented
rim or circle. The medallion and its mounting are of
bronze : the obverse bears the head of Commodus covered
with the lion's skin, and the legend Lucius - AEL1VS
AVRELIVS COMMODVS AVGustus PIVS FELIX.
The reverse has a bow, a club, and a quiver full of arrows,
with the legend HERCVLI ROMANO AVGVrfo. In the
rim of the mounting a hole has been pierced, which the
present possessor imagines, and we think correctly, to have
been for the purpose of connecting it with a Roman stan-
dard. In this case, probably, the medallion was so placed
that the Imperial eagle, or the legionary hand, was fixed into
its rim, and formed, with this appropriate addition, the top of

MEDALLION OF COMMODUS.

the standard. Or, as we frequently see in the represent-
ations of standards on coins, a number of circular ornaments
along the staves, it may have formed one in an arrangement
of this kind. We prefer, however, the former idea, as most
consistent with the imperial dignity that would, no doubt,
be attached to such a medallion by the army.

That medals thus mounted were used as personal orna-
ments there can be no doubt, since several bas reliefs exist,
upon which military figures are represented decorated with
them. The most remarkable collection of these mounted
medals is that of the Imperial Cabinet of Vienna, an
account of which has been published by M. Steinbiichel,
who observes that it is not unlikely that many of the pieces
distributed by the emperors at congiaries 1 were thus orna-
mented. In the " Historisch-Antiquarische Mittheilungen"
published at Copenhagen in 1835, is an account with
engravings of several rude imitations of the mounted
medallions of the time of Valens, evidently the work of a
barbarous people, who were ambitious of imitating the dress
and ornaments of their civilized enemies.

Although the piece here engraved may have formed part
of the trappings of a war horse, it is still more probable that
it was inserted in a standard, The standards of the Romans
were objects of especial care and veneration; and, as their
emperors were often invested with divine attributes, the
placing their portraits on these ensigns was in character with
that description of adulation. J. Y. A.

1 Suetonius in Aug. c. 75. et Vespasian, c. 19.

192 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

XXVI.
REMARKS ON ARTICLE XVIII.

I WILL commence my observations by expressing my con-
currence with the learned author of the above in the opinion,
"That coins are the most correct and valuable commen-
tators on coins."

My intention is to refer to the types of the coins of the
middle ages, to inquire into the motive which led to their
adoption, and to compare them with those of antiquity.

From the darkest period of the middle ages to the revival
of the arts, the symbols of the Christian religion are almost
always observed to have influenced the types of the coins of
emperors, kings, princes, pontiffs and prelates. The re-
verses of those of the Merovingians, the Franks, the Lom-
bards, &c. &c. have generally a cross, similar to that on the
Roman coins after Theodosius II. (408 450) and Valen-
tinianus III. (424 455); so that the Christian money,
in the fifth century of the two empires, was marked with
the elevated cross, either placed on a globe, or on several
steps. Among the early Venetian coins, one of Orso Jus-
tiniani, first tribune of the Isle of Grado (460), bearing the
cross with equal branches is already observed 1 . On the coins
of Orso Ipato, third tribune of Heraclea (726), appears an
ecclesiastical building (Roman design), and later a similar

1 Delle Monete de 1 Venezlani dal Principio al Fino della loro
Republica. Venezia, 1818.

REMARKS ON ARTICLE xvui. 193

temple on the coins of the Carlovingians, with "XPISTIANA
RELIGIO." With respect to saints represented on coins, I
observe the bust of St. Mark, as early as 827, on a coin of
the duke of Venice, Justiniani Partecipazio. Religious
legends, such as, Christus vincet Dextra Dom. exaltavitme
or Roger, strong by the help of God, are first observed on the
Norman coins of Sicily (1098 1200), and are apparently
derived from similar inscriptions on Cufic coins. On the
coins of Trevers and Cologne, from the eleventh century the
bust of the archbishop begins to be observed; but about 1206
the figures of prelates appear in pontifical costume and with
the Cross and Gospel. 1 possess some Bracteates from the
abbey of Kempten (lately found in the environs of Schaf-
hausen) of Rudolph Wolfgang of Koenigseck, abbot 1208
1220, which represent the abbot in a chair, with pontifical
ornaments, and are inscribed PRINCEPS CAMPIDONH.
Above the right arm is a cross, and to the left over the gos-
pel a star, symbolizing his loyalty to the pope, as well as to
the emperor Otho IV. 2

1 will come, however, to the result of article XVIII. in
the Numismatic Journal, p. 117, "That religion was the
sole motive of the types of coins, and that it should be the
invariable principle which is to guide our search in endea-
vouring to explain them."

It seems to me not quite evident that religion was the
sole motive which dictated the types of ancient coins. For
instance, on coins of cities independent at times of church
or state, and on a multitude of those of the powerful and
haughty feudal nobility of the middle ages, who considered
themselves at one period quite independent of the emperor,

2 Vide Dr. D. E. Beyschlag's MunzyescUchte Augsburgs,}>- 111.
Tab. 5. No. 2627. *

194 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

and regarded their authority as immediately derived from
God: even knights used the "Dei gratia" Nos D. G. viri
nobiles de Hackeborn (12701306). Albero D. G. Burg-
grav de Lyznic (1198). Burchard D. G. vir nobilis, dictus
Burggravius de Magdeburg (1290). Nos Bruno D. G. nobi-
lis in Sman, dictus in Quernvorde (1317). Nos Burchard
D. G. Comes in Mansfeld (1329 1339). Even if now and
then the cross occupies the reverses of some of these coins,
it may be more properly attributed to a habit to imita-
tion rather than a religious motive.

Why should not the rose on the coins of Rhodes be re-
garded as indicative of the name of the island, and be con-
sidered as the symbol of Venus? Compare with this the
early coins of Florence, the silver JZoreni, vulgo florini,
about the eleventh century, on which a lily is stamped,
surely indicating the name of the city, Florentia 3 .

To the observation, "that the rose of Rhodes occurs on
the coins of other places of ancient Greece," I would reply,
Has not the fine gold florin which appeared in 1252 been
imitated exactly in design by other states of Italy, France,
England, and great part of Germany, mostly by ecclesiastic
princes and free towns ? May not a similar occurrence have
caused the Rhodians to inscribe POAIQN at full length on
their more recent coins ? If Eckhel refers to the pome-
granate on the coins of Side as alluding to the name of the
place, the city of Granada in Spain has also a pomegranate
for her emblem from remote times to the present day. On
the early coins of Genoa, inscribed Janua, in the field is a

3 Vid. Gori. II Fiorino d'oro, p. 2. "Tali monete die qua-
lunque metallo, e qualita si fossero, per lunghissimo tempo indiff-
rentemente furono dette Fiorini, dal? insegna del fiore del giglio,
che in essa i Fiorentini fecero scolpire, e del nome della loro

REMARKS ON ARTICLE XVIII. 195

portico, or gate, indicative of the name of the city. The same
type was imitated by Parma and other places. Aquila, the
capital of the province of Abruzzo, has on her coins an
eagle. Lyons, on a fine medallion of Louis XIL, has a lion.
The coins of Luneburg have a half-moon, Munich the bust
of a monk, Magdeburg a female figure on the battlement
of a castle, &c. &c.

The country, now the canton of Berne, chiefly belonged
to Duke Berthold IV. of Ztehringen ; the duke's residence
was at the town of Zofingen. One day, the pursuit of an
immense bear brought the duke to the peninsula where the
city of Berne now stands ; and after the animal had been
killed, the duke surveyed the spot, which was remarkable for
its natural fortification surrounded by the river Aar, and
appeared to him very suitable for building a city upon, par-
ticularly, too, as it might enable him to controul an obstinate
nobility; and to commemorate the event of the day, he
named it Bern, in the year 1191.

)u fyolj lafj bid) umfywen gern/

2)enn biefe @tabt foil fyeifen SSern

was the wood-cutters' ditty in clearing away the forest, as
the Swiss chronicle has it. The citizens received, amongst
other liberal grants, the privilege of a mint, and, naturally
enough, adopted on their coins the speaking type of a bear,
as strong an instance of the kind as any that can be men-
tioned. I possess some of the earliest specimens of their
which are Bracteates, and here present the designs*

Nos. 1 and 2 have, I believe, been hitherto unpublished.
D D

196 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Nos. 1 and 2 have, above the bear, the head of the duke
of Za3hringen. Nos. 3 and 4 have the imperial eagle.
These two last must have been struck after the duke's
death, which happened in 1218. He had left all his domi-
nions to his sisters, except his newly built town, which he
consigned to the emperor's protection ; and in the same year
(1218) Frederic II. confirmed the right of coinage 5 .

The well-known small money current throughout Switzer-
land, the Batz, derives its name from those early little
coins, the Bracteates, which were called diminutively Baezle,
from the old German word 33e& for bear 6 .

It is observed, p. 115, "the types of coins are not on any
occasion original compositions, but always copied from the
earliest to the latest times."

I am sure these coins of Berne are original enough ; and
similar occasions may have occurred in ancient Greece to
produce all sorts of types. And it is interesting to observe
that the Bracteates of Sweden, Denmark, Germany and
Switzerland, are stamped only on one side, like the earliest
coins of ancient Greece.

Eckhel's opinion, that the goat represented on the coins
of Issa signifies an abundance of these animals in that island,
seems to be justified by the earliest coins of Schafhausen,
also Bracteates, which have for their type a sheep ; on some
later ones the sheep issuing from a house, Schaf-haus
(Sheep house), Schafhausen, plainly signifies that the scite
of the town of Schafhausen was formerly a sheep-walk,
whereon a house, or hut, was erected to shelter them in
stormy weather, as is still the practice in the Helvetian high-

5 Halle^s Schweitzermtinzen, vol. i. p. 288.

6 Vide Hoffman, Muntzschlussel, p. 255. Et qaum Bernenses
primi cudere monetam nomine Bazones, cepit sibi nomen ab urso,
parvus Germanis ursus nam Betz vocatur.

REMARKS ON ARTICLE XVIII. 197

lands. Some derive the name from Scapha, a boat (ship
house), a ferry over the Rhine ; the types of her earliest
coins, however, seem to contradict it.

" The parsley leaf on the coins of Selinus is supposed to
indicate the name of the town." (p. 104.)

With this may be compared the type of the coins of
Miinzenberg from the twelfth century, which is a mint-
plant referring to the quantity of mint growing on the
mountain on which the castle of the town was built, Munzen-
lerg (Mint Mountain). Dr. H. Grote of Hanover has
published a large bracteate of this town and five solidos of
different lords of Miinzenberg 7 , bearing their effigies, and
on the reverses the castle and the mint-plant above it. The
city of Thann (Pinecum Villas Tanne, Moneta Tanensis)
presents on her coins the type of a kind of fir-tree, in Ger-
man called Tanne, referring to a great forest ( Tannen- Wold)
of fir and larch-trees 8 , some of which were remarkably lofty.
Tiberius ordered a beam of a larch-tree, 120 feet long and
2 in diameter, to be sent to Rome for the rebuilding of a
bridge, and which occasioned universal astonishment.

It is known that the subdued countries and colonies of
the Romans had generally on their coins a type or sym-
bol, indicating the most striking object, or property, which t
the country possessed. Thus, the fertility of Spain was

7 Numismatic Papers, No. 12, tab. 8, October 15th, 1834.

8 Kohler, vol. xvi. p. 18.

D D 2

198 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

symbolised by an ear of wheat, India and Tyre were repre-
sented by a palm-tree, or branch, seaport towns by different
kinds of fishes, Arabia by a camel, Africa by an elephant, and
Egypt by a crocodile ; and even colonies in Germany seem
to have been represented by such like symbols; for instance,
Thann, then the city of Augsburg (Colonia Augusta Vinde-
licorum), has on her coins a fir-nut, again referring to the
extensive forests by which she was formerly surrounded.
WelserS attributes three coins of Augustus, on which a fir-
nut is represented, to Augsburg. Sometimes on the coins
of the middle ages, where no suitable type identifying the
name of a town could be given, the field of the coin is occupied
with the first letter of her name, as on early coins of Perugia,
Pisa, Siena, &c. &c. But, strange enough, some have the
final letter, for example, those terminating in a, as Bologna,
Cremona, Cammerina, and others, which may be explained
probably on the principle of the Alpha and Omega.

" But it is not only to some of the coins of cities that the
notion of a speaking type has been attached: examples are
to be found of the same notion having been extended to
coins of kings." (p. 112.)

In reply to this, I beg to ask, has not Pope Sixtus IV.
an oak-tree represented on his coins, indicating his family
name, Rovere ? The Hungarian king, Corvinus, stamped
his ducats with a raven. The Carrarese have a car on their
coins and medals, surely not alluding to the celestial con-
stellation. The lords of Verona, the mighty house of the
Scaligei, have on their coins a ladder, indicative of their
name Scala. On the coins of the counts of Rethel is repre-
sented a rake. A hen is the type of the coins of Henne-
berg, &c. &c.

9 Lib. VI. Augustanar, p. 284. These coins are, however,
dubious.

REMARKS ON ARTICLE XVIII. 199

May not the name of Posidonia be as well attributed to
Neptune, as that of the town of St. Gallen is certainly de-
rived from the Irish Benedictine monk, Gallus, A. D. 612?

" Some coins have been supposed to be commemorative
of historical events."

It is interesting to observe that, even on coins of the
middle ages, historical events may be clearly traced. In the
year 827, Justiniani Partecipazio, duke of Venice, ordered
that the effigy of St. Mark should be represented on the
coinage, to commemorate the event of the relics of that saint
having been brought from Alexandria to Venice in the same
year. 10 It may be observed that the year was marked on
the Venetian coins as early as 460, 1J see one of Orso Justi-
niani, in the field, XXXXLX, and around, VRSUS JUST
inianus TRIE unus, on the reverse, a cross having in its
angles the four letters, GRAB (Grado). There are
coins of Aix-la-Chapelle referring to coronations of the em-
perors Rudolph, Adolph of Nassau, and Albert. The
noble of Edward III. was struck on his great naval victory;
and he appears appropriately in a ship, asserting the British
dominion of the ocean.

In Orsini's History of the Florentine coins, is given one
called Grosso Guelfo, of the year 1363, which, besides two
different marks of the officers of the mint, has a fox lying
on its back under the feet of their patron saint, which ex-
plains why in the same year the Florentines, returning from
some successful skirmishes with the Pisans, impressed on

Delle Monete de Veneziani, p.55. " Si e questa la moneta
che Justiniano Partecipazio fece battere per perpetuare la memoria
della traslazione del Santo corpo dell' Evangelista. La moneta
porta da una parte la croce in campo, e nel contorno Justinianus
Dux, dell' altra nel contorno Adventus Corpus, e nel mezzo Sancti
Marci."

11 Ibid. Nos. 2, 3.

200 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

their coins the figure of a fox under the feet of John the Bap-
tist, which was to stigmatize the vanquished Pisans, whom
they nick-named foxes, and not because, as another writer
supposed, the fox was the badge of the Florentine captain,
Messer Piero Farnese. 12 Zanetti gives a coin of Ferdinand I.
king of Naples (1458), who was a natural son of Alfonso V.
of Aragon, with " Coronatus, quia legitime certavit" Ober-
mayer, in his account of Bavarian coins, alludes to many
historical facts represented on coins from the eleventh cen-
turyc

In the year 1529, Cardinal Wolsey was disgraced; and one
of the articles of impeachment against him was that of
having placed his hat on the coins.

" There is the strongest possible ground for concluding
that no mortal ever appears upon an ancient coin, but in
the character of a deity." (p. 124.)

It is a great question whether the words Divinus, Divus,
Diva, on coins and medals, can have any other meaning
than that of most excellent; because it was not only given
to most virtuous persons, but also to those of extraordinary
qualities or talents ; and it seems that the Greeks and Ro-
mans were rather liberal with the word Divine, for we find
Homer gives it to an excellent herdsman, and Juvenal to
a savoury dish. Referring to more recent times, I possess
a medallion of Alphonso, king of Naples (1449), by Pisani,
with Divus Alphonsm Rex, which may be understood in the
sense of Corn.Nepos, in the life.of Pomponius Atticus, cap. ix.
"Secutum est bellum gestum apud Mutinam; in quo si

12 Orsini, Introduction, p.xxx. "Adi 30 di Maggio, 1363, vi
fece battere la moneta del Comune di Firenze d'oro e d' Argento
con una volpe a rovescio sotto il S. Giovanni, non perche questa
fosse 1'arme e impresa di piero, ma per dinotare per la volpe i
Pisani, come e Fiorentini costimavan di chiamarli, disegnati per
cosi fatto animali fin dagli Scritti de' lor piu sommi poeti."

REMARKS ON ARTICLE XVIII. 201

tantum cum prudentem dicam minus quam debeam, prse-
dicem, cum ille potius Divinusfuent, sidivinatio appellanda
est perpetua naturalis bonitas, qua? nullis casibus neque
agitur neque minuitur 13 ." However, singular enough, there
are several fine medals of Pietro Aretino inscribed " Divus
PetrusAretinus. "

I have only to add, that the motive which urged me to
venture these remarks was, that I was sorry such veterans
as Eckhel, Frblich and Sestini, should lose any of those laurels
which the numismatists of Europe have so justly awarded
to them. For my own part, deprived as I am of many
sources of reference, I hope the reader will pardon any
remarks which may not appear so scientific and satisfactory
as I could wish them to be. J. G. PFISTER.

13 K6'hler, vol. xvii. p. 130.

MISCELLANIES.

COINS AT CAMBRIDGE. In a late visit to this University, an
opportunity was taken of inspecting the collection of Greek and
Roman coins in the public library ; the only collection, we under-
stand, of any extent, which Alma Mater possesses. It was
originally bequeathed by Mr. Roger Gale to the Woodwardian
Professor, but is at present deposited in the University library
under the custody of the chief librarian, by whom it was obligingly
shown on the occasion referred to. The best portions consist of
Consular and Imperial denarii ; but coins of rarity, or in fine pre-
servation, are in these, as well as the other compartments, un-
fortunately "few and far between." The library contains, as may
be supposed, a fine collection of numismatic works; but in the
genuine materials of numismatic study, coins themselves, it is
lamentably deficient. This is the more to be regretted, since, for
some years past, classical learning has wisely been attended to at
Cambridge far more than formerly ; indeed, by university enact-
ment, classical competency, to a certain degree, in conjunction with
mathematics, has become indispensable ; and surely an acquaintance
with the coins of the ancients would be found most usefully and
also agreeably subservient to the end in view. The classical
lecturers in the several colleges may render mythology, history, and
ancient manners, peculiarly interesting to their pupils by occasional
references to positive numismatic documents known to exist con-
veniently within their reach. Most minds are so constituted that
palpable evidences of persons and events in ancient times, such as
are presented in a judiciously selected and well-filled cabinet of
medals, make a far better impression upon them than the most
erudite remarks, and quotations from the best authors. Lecturers
in the sciences generally are aware of the advantage of matter-
of-fact illustrations. The professor of mineralogy exhibits his
minerals, which are handed through the class for examination ; the
professor of chemistry draws attention to a series of experiments,
without which a mere statement of combinations and their results,
would soon be forgotten, if at the time comprehended ; and if a
similar plan were pursued in the elucidation of the classics by the
production of medals (or good casts, with the power of easy
reference to the originals) much important information would be
fixed in the memory. There are few points in relation to classical

MISCELLANIES. 203

antiquity that may not be "proved" by medals, an argument that
ought to find favour with mathematicians; and the mode of proof,
so likely to gain attention by the charm of curiosity, commends it
strongly for adoption. Many also of our young men educated at
the Universities proceed immediately afterwards to the continent,
for the avowed purpose of enlarging their knowledge and culti-
vating their taste. It is hardly necessary to say that a previous
acquaintance, in a good measure, with Greek and Roman coins is
essential to the profitable enjoyment of classic relics and localities.
The coins in the Bodleian Library at Oxford are numerous and
valuable, and form a noble collection, especially since the acqui-
sition of the cabinets of the late Mr. Douce. At Cambridge, there
is ample room for a handsome bequest, or a liberal purchase.

E.C.B.

SILVER COIN OF CARAUSIUS. A few weeks since, a denarius
of this Britanno-Roman emperor was discovered, according to the
statement of the finders, in the course of ballast-heaving in the
river Thames. It "turned up" (to use a phrase of the practical
numismatist) in better condition than is usual with coins of the
same class, but, like all its brethren that we have hitherto seen, is
more notable for rarity than beauty.

Obv. IMP- CARAVSIVS P- F'AVG. Bust of Carausius, looking to the right,
with the coarse bluff countenance and enormous neck, which invariably
distinguish his portrait, independently of the declaration of the legend.
Rev. VBERTA AVG. A figure (most probably a female) milking a cow.

There may be some difficulty as to the precise signification of
this reverse. We know, however, that milk formed the principal
part of the food of our pastoral ancestors (if ancestors they can
be considered, after the Saxon, Danish, Norman, and other inter-
mixtures in the race) ; and there may be an allusion to the fruit-
fulness and internal prosperity of the country under Carausius,
who, whether originally a Menapian of Wales or Batavia, became
a naturalized and domesticated ruler in this island, as in a little
empire of his own.

The device in question may remind the reader of two first brass
coins given in Pinkerton's plate of those relating to Britain.
Unfortunately for the exercise of fancy, but the contrary, perhaps,
for the sake of truth, the former of these, purporting to be of
Claudius, is not satisfactorily authenticated*, and therefore no
argument can be drawn from it; otherwise, from the figure of
Britannia holding forth a capacious vase, supposed by sdme to be
an offering of native pearls, by others of milk, as more fully cha-
racteristic of the country, an analogy might be inferred to the type
of the denarius. The latter of them, however, (that of Antoninus

* It is professedly adduced from Havercamp ; but it is nowhere to be found
in his work.

E E

204 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Pius) is correctly cited from Pedrusi Mus. Fames, and represents
Britannia seated in the usual manner, with her left arm resting on
the edge of a shield which displays the embossed head of a bull,
alluding probably to the abundance and excellence of her herds.

It may be observed that the coins of the Upper Empire relating
to this country, refer to its conquest and colonization ; and when
the personification occurs, the importance of Britain as an addi-
tional province appears to be attributed to her natural strength and
advantageous situation she sits upon rocks, in one hand holds
her own spear, in the other the standard of a Roman colonial
cohort; but during the usurpation of that rather extraordinary
person, Carausius, and the temporary separation of Britain from
the central authority at Rome, her domestic coinage, however rude
in fabric, imitates the style of the general Roman currency, in
attributing prosperity and good of every kind to the emperor's
god-like superintendence of affairs. Hence the very fertility of
her soil and fruitfulness of her herds is made, at least by a very
strong hint, to result from the " liberty" of the august Carausius
himself. If by " Ubertas" he meant a goddess supposed to bless
with fruitfulness, she is thus noticed only for the purpose of show-
ing the " august" alliance between herself and the personage on
the front of the medal. The deified virtues that occur on coins
are almost always intended to intimate the transcendent qualities
of the emperor.

This rare and valuable coin, shortly after its discovery, came
into the possession of Mr. Young, of Tavistock Street, Covent
Garden, and has since passed into the cabinet of a distinguished
collector. E. C. B.

SKEATTA ATTRIBUTED TO WILDFRID. The half suspicion
of your correspondent, Mr. Lindsay, that the representation of the
Skeatta attributed to Wildfrid might be incorrectly given, is fully
borne out by the fact that the first two letters of the legend are
deficient in resemblance to those on the coin in question.

I take blame to myself for omitting to examine the engraving
or procure a proof of it before the publication ; but hope that pre-
vious to the appearance of your next number, I may be enabled
to furnish a correct plate of this little piece, as an assistant to its
just appropriation. I am, &c. B.

RUSSIAN MEDALS. The Prussian State Gazette, of July 29,
says that the minister of public instruction has sent an engraver,
M. Menzoff, to London, where he is to learn of Mr. Bate, the
engraver, his new mode of engraving coins. With the aid of this
method, the minister intends, in the sequel, to publish a repre-
sentation of ancient Russian coined medals.

MISCELLANIES. 205

GROATS OF EDWARD IV. AND HENRY VII. A correspondent
of the Gentleman's Magazine observes : " I have a London groat
of Edward IV. mint-mark, a cross voided in the centre. In the
inscription on the reverse, of ' POSUI, &c.' there is a rose at
DEUM, and a star at ADJUTORE, as stops. The inscrip-
tion on Henry the Seventh's groats is considered to be uniformly
' HENRIC DI GR A REX A'GL & FR. I have observed
there is a considerable variety, which I presume was progressive,
until it reached and settled as above ; and I find also a variety in
the crowns, which Henry VII. changed from being flat to arched.
On a London groat, which has one arch only, and probably was
the first innovation, the inscription is HENRIC DI -GRA- REX
ANGLIE ET FR. The next has two arches, but plain,
HENRIC DI GRA REX -ANGL-ET- FRAN; and the
bust is large like Edward the Fourth's, with a cross on each side
the neck. This is followed by a groat, with similar arches and
inscription, but the bust smaller. Then the smaller bust, with
ornamented arches, HENRIC DI GRA REX ANGL ET
FRAN. Similar crown and bust, REX ANGL ET FRA,
and REX A'GLI ET FR."

NUMISMATIC SOCIETY. The first meeting of the Numismatic
Society was held in the apartments of the Royal Astronomical
Society, on Thursday evening, the 22nd December.

Dr. J. Lee, of Hartwell, being called to the chair, observed,
that gratifying as it was to see so many of the friends of Numis-
matic Science around him, he yet felt some embarrassment, being
assured that several of those who had assembled that evening were
much better qualified to state the views and intentions of the pro-
moters of the Society than himself. He was anxious, no one could
be more so, to see such a Society established, at which opportunities
would be afforded to amateurs in medals of exhibiting and in-
specting rare and curious specimens in numismatic art of all ages
and countries, as well as for the reading of papers in illustration of
Numismatic subjects. Having thus briefly stated the objects which
the friends of the Society had in view, he moved the following
resolutions, which were carried unanimously.

That a Numismatic Society be formed, and that the annual sub-
scription be one guinea, and that it be considered to be due
on the 1 st of January in each year.

That any gentleman who may be desirous of becoming a member,
shall signify his wish by a letter addressed to one of the
Secretaries before the 26th January next, and that after that
time the admission fee be one guinea, and the election be
by ballot.

206 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

That the following gentlemen be requested to accept the office of
Council for conducting the affairs of the Society ; namely
Edward Hawkins, Esq. F.R.S, F.S.A.
C. F. Barnwell, Esq. F.R.S, F.S.A.
Capt. W. H. Smyth, R.N. F.R.S, F.S.A. &c.
Sir Henry Ellis, K.H. F.R.S, F.S.A.
Thomas Burgon, Esq.
William Wyon, Esq. A.R.A.
W. D. Haggard, Esq. F.S.A, F.R.A.S.
That John Yonge Akerman, Esq. F.S.A. and Isaac Cullimore, Esq.

M.R.S.L. be requested to accept the office of Secretaries.
Edward Hawkins, Esq. then moved, that Dr. Lee be requested
to accept the office of President for the year, and also the
office of Treasurer to the Society, which was carried
unanimously.

Among the gentlemen present, were Messrs. Hawkins and
Barnwell, Sir Henry Ellis, Messrs. Burgon, Haggard, Cuff, Brice,
Wansey, H. W. Diamond, Cullimore, Akerman, Bergne, and
several others of numismatic note.

Mr. Hawkins exhibited a bronze medal of Dr. Wiseman by
Mr. Scipio Clint, accompanied by a letter from that gentleman,
after which the meeting adjourned to the 26th January.

SCOTTISH COINS. A short time since, as several young men
were engaged herding cattle at Borrera, North Uist, they dis-
covered a considerable number of silver coins and a few gold ones
which had been hidden in the earth, a few inches below the surface.
There were about 400 of the silver coins all of the reign of
James VI. dated 1592, and in size a little less than half crowns,
but much thinner. They were in excellent preservation. It is
possible that this money was concealed in the reign of James VI.
at that stormy period, when the monarch sent a colony of Low-
landers to the Isles to subdue and civilize the people, and when
the whole army of Scotland was called out " to raise the King's
dues in the Hebrides," which consisted of a tax of five per cent,
upon all rents in lieu of personal service. Scotch Paper*

COINS OF SCOTLAND. At a sale by auction last month in
London, the following Scotch coins brought the prices affixed :
SILVER. s. d.

Mary's Half-testoon, 1561, her bust in profile, well pre-
served, . . . . . 10
James VI., Thistle Dollar, 1578, fine, . .200
James VI., Thirty-shilling piece, the King's profile
crowned, three-quarter bodied in armour, hold-
ing a sword, well preserved, . . 1 10

MISCELLANIES. t207

s. d.

Another, same as last, . . .170

James VI. Twenty-shilling-piece, 1582,well preserved. 180
James VI., Ten-shilling piece, 1582, fine, . .340

GOLD.

Robert II., St. Andrew, fine, , . .170

Robert III., St. Andrew, . . . .180

James I., St. Andrew, two fleur-de-lis in the field, on

both obverse and reverse sides, fine . .2100

Ditto, Half St. Andrew . . . .110

James II., Lion . . . . . 14

James 1 1 1., Half-unicorn . . . .100

Ditto Unicorn . . . . .130

James IV., Rider, fine, . . .280

James V., Bonnet piece, 1540, well preserved, .330

James V., Ecu . . '; . .130

Mary and Francis, Lion, 1553 . . . 3 10

Ditto, ditto, 1553 . . ,460

Ditto, Half-lion, 1553 . . .440

James V., Noble . . . . . 2 14

James VI., Lion, well preserved, . . 2 10

James VI., Bonnet piece, 1592, fine, . . .260

James VI., Half-rider, 1593 . . .330

James VI., ditto, 1594 . . . .300

At the same sale, a Half-crown of Charles I., in fair preservation,
of the Oxford type, 1644, attracted considerable attention from its
singularity, the obverse being very similar to that of the Chester
half-crown in Snelling's plate, 14, No. 15. It brought 3 10s.

CABINET OF. MEDALS AT MADRID. This cabinet is said to
contain 90,227 pieces, of which 2,672 are gold, 30,692 in silver,
and 51,186 in copper, besides imitations in wood, wax, and
gypsum.

CORRESPONDENCE.

The brass coins of Carausius v though varying much both in size
and weight, are only ranged with those of the same size of
that period.

We shall be obliged to any of our correspondents who may favour
us with well-authenticated accounts of discoveries of coins of
Cunobeline, or, indeed, of any other supposed British coins
in England. A numismatic friend is of opinion that sufficient
evidence may in time be collected to warrant the appropriation
of these coins to particular counties.

A. will be obliged for the communication (through the Editor) of
any tradesman's token of the town of Cricklade in Wiltshire.

ERRATA.

Page 95, line 26, for red gredread red gold.

97, In some of the copies, for MOTIVES read MOTIVE in the title of
ART. XVIII.

^ /

/V l\

209

XXVII.
THE COINAGE OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS.

A RECENT perusal of the opinions of several writers on the
early British coinage, has induced me to renew my inquiries
on that very interesting theme. Referring to Eckhel 1 , I
find him thus dismissing the coins assumed to be British :
" Hujus regionis numos veteres certos non tenemus,
" si eos demas, qui inclinante imperio R. ab iis, qui se
" Augustos in hac regione ferebant, signati sunt, sed qui ad
" hanc classem non pertinent." Sestini-, holding the same
opinion, assigns even the coins which bear the word
CVNOBELINVS, or a portion of the letters forming
that name, to the Gaulish chiefs, and Mionnet 3 , following in
their train, places the coins of that prince under those of
the " chefs Gaulois." The Marquis Roger de Lagoy has,
however, in a very interesting and sensible brochure 4 estab-
lished the claim of Britain to these coins. " Serait-ce,"
observes he, " 1'identite de leur fabrique avec les medailles
des Gaules, qui pourrait faire presumer qu'elles appartien-
nent a ce pays ? Mais pour porter un pareil jugement, il
faudrait avoir sous les yeux les pieces originales, afin de
pouvoir les comparer ; et c'est ce qu'on n'a pu faire jusqu'a
present, ces medailles rfetant connues sur le continent que par

1 Doct. Num. Vet. tom.i. p. 80.

2 Classes Generales, in loco.

3 Supplement, tom.i. p. 154-5.

4 Essai sur les Medailles Antiques de Cunobelinus, etc. Aix.
4to. 1826.

F F

210 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

des descriptions et les gravures de Pembrock." The very
scarcity of the coins attributed to Britain, as compared with
those by universal consent assigned to Gaul, coupled with
the fact that the cabinet of the French king contains at
this time but one British coin, ought to have awakened the
attention of the numismatists of the continent. It is
mortifying to an Englishman to find the venerable Eckhel,
dismissing the coins of the ancient Britons with a doubt as
to their having been minted in ftris country. For myself,
I feel persuaded that had Eckhel devoted but a small
portion of that ability and labour which he has exercised
with such effect on other numismatic doubts and ob-
scurities, he would have arrived at a different conclusion,
and ceded to Britain many coins which have been so often
classed with the Gaulish series.

The chief ground of Eckhel's doubts is the passage in
Caesar, " Utuntur (Britanni) aut cere, aut taleis ferreis, ad
cerium pondus examinatis pro nummo 5 " Pinkerton says
this passage has been incorrectly transcribed, and quotes the
folio edition of the Commentaries printed at Rome in 1469,
in which Caesar's words are thus given : " utuntur tamen cere,
ut nummo aureo, aut annulisferreis ad certvm pondus examinatis,
pro nummis" After a snarl at Scaliger for interpolating
subsequent editions, the Cynic says, " Caesar's meaning
clearly is, that our ancestors used brass apparently coined as
a superior metal, in like manner as more advanced nations
used gold. And that (pro nummis) instead of the brass coin-
age of Rome (nummus being a peculiar name for the brass
sestertius) they used iron rings examined and reduced to a
stated weight 6 ." This extract, for the most part, is unworthy

5 Bell. Gall. lib. v. c. 12.

6 Essay on Medals, vol.i. p.295, edit. 1789.

THE COINAGE OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 211

of notice, but the idea that the iron rings were used for
inferior money (supposing that such things were in actual
use among the Britons), appears to be entitled to some con-
sideration. Of these rings, I shall have occasion to speak
hereafter. Pinkerton had little practical knowledge of
medals ; and it is very probable that he never attentively
examined an ancient British or Gaulish coin. M. Mionnet
doubtless never gave himself the trouble to compare the
numerous coins found in France with those which are at
intervals discovered in England, and has therefore concluded
that there are no coins of the ancient Britons. Our English
antiquaries have, however, good evidence to the contrary.
In the first place, the coins which are usually supposed to
be British, are of a very different fabric to those so often
discovered in France. This will be apparent even to an
unpractised eye. Secondly, no coins bearing the words,
VERVLAMIO, or CVNOBELINVS, or their contractions?
are ever found in France 8 . " If," says the Marquis La-
goy, " these coins [of Cunobeline] are found in France, and
were struck by the Gauls, how has it happened that they
have escaped the researches of our French antiquaries ?
And by what chance have they all been secured for the
cabinets of English collectors ?" It should be borne in
mind that coins of Cunobeline are cited by Speed, who
wrote more than two centuries ago, and that the specimens
of which he gives representations were in the collection of
Sir Robert Cotton, who obtained them in England. In
fact, the opinion even of the learned and accurate Eckhel is

7 See Ruding's "Annals of the Coinage," plates 4 and 5.

5 The marquis observes, that he looked in vain for represent-
ations of these coins in Bouteroue, Pellerin, and D'Ennery,
and that M. Mionnet, in his catalogue, cites " Pembrock and
Combe."

F F 2

212 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

of no value, unsupported as it is by any concurrent testi-
mony, while, as I have before observed, implicit credit can-
not be attached to the narration of Caesar, who possibly, in
this instance, may have written on the report of others,
and not from personal observation.

Assuming, therefore, that the coins bearing CVNOBE-
LINVS, are undoubtedly British, and that they were
minted in this country during the life-time of the Prince
of that name mentioned by Dion Cassius 9 , and Suetonius 10 ,
our next inquiry has reference to those which have as strong
claims to British origin as the pieces bearing CVNOBELINVS.
Of these, we have many varieties, all differing in type and
workmanship from those of the Gauls, and oil found in Eng-
land only. On examination, it will be seen that they are of
an earlier date than the coins assigned to the British prince.
There is little doubt but that the ancient British coins, like
those of Gaul, may be divided into two or three classes, each
belonging to different periods 11 . If this supposition be
admitted, are we not warranted in the belief that the rudest
coins discovered in England, are the most ancient ? Such is
that given by Ruding 12 upon which the attempt to delineate
a human head is so uncouth, that it is impossible to examine
it without a smile. It may be asked on what grounds are
these rude coins appropriated to England, to which I reply,
that besides being much thinner, they are of a different
weight to those of a very rude description found in France.
Several coins of the type referred to in Ruding, were found
below the bed of the canal in Saint James's Park about

} Lib. 60. 10 In Calig. c. 44.

11 See a very interesting and ingenious dissertation on Gaulish
Coins by M. de la Saussaye in the 2nd number of the " Revue
de la Numismatique Francoise"

18 Plate 3, No. 65.

THE COINAGE OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 213

twelve years since. I have one of them before me from the
cabinet of Mr. Edward Spencer. It closely resembles that
given by Ruding, is thin, weighs 19J grains, and is covered
with a dense black and shining patina. It has evidently
been cast. I possess some cast Gaulish coins which were
obligingly presented to me by M. Charles De Rheims of
Calais some years since. They had been obtained by that
gentleman at a town in Picardy in the neighbourhood of
which they had doubtless been discovered. These pieces
are extremely rude, but the head on what must be termed
the obverse side is of much better execution than that on
the coins discovered in Saint James's Park. They weigh
60 grains, and are of a mixed metal.

There is good reason for supposing that many of the
coins of mixed metal given by Ruding are Gaulish 13 , while
some are of the type of those of the large hoard discovered
in the Island of Guernsey. The opinion of a gentleman
who has made these pieces his study, has led me to attempt
a classification of the coins described in the plates in
Ruding's " Annals of the Coinage," some of which are cer-
tainly not British. This classification shall follow at the
end of these remarks, with a notice of the hitherto unpub-
lished specimens given in the accompanying plate.

With regard to the supposed ring- money of the ancient
Britons, the passage in Caesar would seem to forbid a doubt
that our ancestors had such a description of metallic cur-
rency; but although metal rings adjusted to a certain
weight, and used as personal ornaments, might occasionally
be adopted as a substitute for money, particularly in large
payments, there is no evidence that stamped coins were not

13 See Plate 3, Nos. 55 to 64, inclusive, and Nos. 66 to 73, also
inclusive.

214 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

used by the Britons, at the time Caesar wrote 14 . It is ex-
ceedingly probable that few, very few, persons at that period,
in Britain, were equal to the execution of even the rude
coins which have come down to us. In the absence, there-
fore, of a sufficient number of stamped coins, valuable per-
sonal ornaments would naturally be used as their substitute.
We have records of this practice in the remotest times ; but
one reference to the Old Testament will be sufficient :
" And it came to pass as the camels had done drinking,
that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel weight,
and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of
gold 15 ."

This brings me to the consideration of Sir William
Beetham's observations "On the Ring-money of the Celtae 16 ."
On examination of the engravings in illustration of that

14 A writer in the 5th volume of the " Journal des Travaux de
la Societe Francaise de Statistique Uiiiverselle," (1835) observes
" Long temps avant le passage des Gaulois en Italic sous Brennus,
les rois, dont 1'un, Ambigatus, regnait 588 ans avant J. C. a
Bourges, sur la Gaule Celtique, et les magistrats qui gouvernait
d'autres contrees de la Gaule faisaient battre de la monnaie d'or,
d'argent, et de cuivre." It is strange, then, that antiquaries should
doubt the antiquity of the British coins, when it is an established
fact that the Gauls traded with the inhabitants of this country.
Cassiodorus speaks of the leather money of the Gauls; and we per-
ceive that one of the questions proposed by the scientific congress
of France is, whether there ever existed money of that material.
Cassiodorus also says that the Gauls gave the name of pecus to
their money because it was formed of leather. I leave the reader
to reconcile this with the rude, and evidently very early, coins men-
tioned at page 213, all of which bear on the reverse the figure of
some animal.

16 Gen. xxiv. 22. There are numerous other passages in holy
writ, which show that among the Jews, personal ornaments were
often used as money. See Job. xlii. 11. Exod. xxxv. 22, xxxii. 2.
Numb. xxxi. 50. Judges xviii. 24, 25, 26, &c. &c. &c.

16 ** Papers read before the Royal Irish Academy" Dublin,
1836, by Sir William Beetham, Ulster king of Arms.

THE COINAGE OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 215

gentleman's paper, it must be apparent that the various
objects therein delineated, could not have been fabricated
merely for the purpose to which coins are applied. I am well
aware that it is much easier to dispute this point, than to
show the purposes for which these rings were originally in-
tended; but the very fact that there are several varieties in
their shape, is against the supposition that they were used
for one purpose only, namely, as a substitute for coined
money. Sir William Beetham gives many representations
of these rings which occur in gold, silver, and brass. One
of them he tells us is of two inches and a half diameter. It
is of brass, and is one of a large cart-load "found in a
kind of tumulus in the county of Monaghan a few years
since 17 ." That the reader may be enabled to form his own
judgment on these curious relics, engravings of three
varieties are here given.

Great numbers of rings of coral, ebony, or jet, are often
discovered in the bogs of Ireland, affording additional proof
that such objects were originally intended for personal orna-
ments.

I have next to notice the observations of M. de Saulcy in

19 Page 12.

216 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

the Revue de la Numismatique Francaise, on certain metal
wheels discovered in France 18 . ' M. de Saulcy remarks,
that at one time he entertained some doubt respecting the
origin of these metal wheels.' When on a visit to Ville-
Franche-sur-Saone, he saw, in the cabinet of M. Faure,
a wheel formed of the metal known to Numismatists by the
name of Potin, in every respect similar to one which he
already possessed, and which was found in the neighbour-
hood of Chalons-sur-Marne. The wheel in the possession
of M. Faure was discovered with seven or eight others in
the neighbourhood of Lyons. They bear evident traces
of having been cast. Another specimen in the cabinet
of M. Lienard of Chalons-sur-Marne was found on the spot
known as ie the Camp of Attila," and is much worn, as M. de
Saulcy supposesj by circulation. A third wheel in silver, in
the possession of M. de Fienne of Bar-le-Duc, was dug up
at Fains, a village near Bar, in which are many traces of
ancient foundations. This wheel is of more simple form
than the others (see fig. 2.) ; and M. de Saulcy observes that
the cross has been inserted after the circle was formed.
From a careful inspection of these interesting relics, that
gentleman has arrived at the conclusion that they were the
primitive money of the Gauls, and that they are the objects
represented on most of the Gaulish coins of a later period 19 .
A fourth piece, (fig. 4) is also described by M. de Saulcy
from the cabinet of Dr. Richat of Chalons, which he sup-
poses to mark the gradual change from the wheel to a more
perfect coin.

8 " Origine probable du Type de la Roue, place frequemment
sur les monnaies Celtiques ou Gauloises" p. 162.

17 This idea is not altogether novel. Borlase was of opinion
that the annulets on the British coins were representations of the
ring-money mentioned by Caesar. Hist, of Cornwall, p. 261.

THE COINAGE OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 217

With all possible respect for the opinion entertained by the
author of the foregoing observations, I yet venture to differ
from him. The evident scarcity of these wheels would
seem to shew that they could not have been in use as money,
but rather as charms or amulets. M. de Saulcy observes,
that the wheel occurs on great numbers of Gaulish coins.
The same might also be observed of the cross- , which is
found on all those gold pieces recently discovered at
Quimper. At the risk of being censured for the exercise of
that fancy which 1 have condemned in others, I venture to
suggest that some mystic meaning might have been attached
to the cross which forms the spokes of the wheel, and that,
associated with the famed druidical circle, the whole formed
an appropriate amulet or charm against evil 21 . The fond-
ness of savage nations of all countries and ages for such

20 It is scarcely necessary to remind the reader, that the cross is
a mystical symbol of remote antiquity, and that it occurs on monu-
ments many ages anterior to the appearance of the Messiah. Speed
absurdly supposes a coin which has a cross upon it, and is of
evident Gaulish fabric, to commemorate the baptism of. a British
king.

1 The reader will bear in mind the beautiful little silver coins
of Massilia, which have a wheel on the reverse. Was this type
adopted by the Massilienses out of compliment to the people in
whose country they had settled ? If so, the origin of the wheels
produced by M. de Saulcy, is not so questionable ; but it should
be remembered that the wheel (or cross within a circle) is a
symbol found even on Egyptian monuments. I have a scarabaeus
before me, upon which it appears with other symbols. It was
also used by many cities which struck coins. See Hunter, Lu-
ceria, tab. xxxiv ; Tarentum, tab. Ivi ; Velia, tab. Ixii ; Segesta,
tab. xlviii; Eckhel) Mesambria, Num. Vet. tab. v. Also the parts
of the Roman and Etruscan As. On some of these coins, the wheel
is that of a chariot, but on others, it is clearly of a symbolical cha-
racter. It is not probable that the wheel on the fine As in the
British Museum, on the ancient pieces bearing the word TVTERE,
in the same collection, or that on the Roman Semis, has allusion
to the making or repairing of highways, or the manufacture of
fictile vases ; their meaning is obviously symbolical.

G G

218

NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

supposed preservatives against harm is well known. A re-
presentation of these very curious objects is here given:

The circumstance of the cross being inserted in the silver
wheel, after the circle was formed, is certainly not in favour
of M.de Saulcy's hypothesis.

The most common error of our English antiquaries, is
that of supposing that the British coins of the third class 22
bear the representations of objects peculiar to this country.
Even the Marquis Lagoy, who has treated the subject more
sensibly than any other writer, concludes his essay with the
description of a coin which he supposes to have allusion to
some British warrior :

CVNO. Sphinx aile, couche a dr.

^. CAM. Figure nue, debout a gauche, revetue d'une
espece de chlamyde, finissant en pointe par devant, tenant
un sceptre sur 1'epaule gauche, et de la main droite une tete
humaine (a ce qu'il parait) derriere un autel allume.

Now this type is clearly the same as that published in
Ruding 23 , and it is singular that both that writer and the
learned marquis have, in their belief that the figure on the
reverse was a British chieftain, described him as holding a
human head ! In describing the object held in the right
hand of the figure, the marquis, with that caution which
should be the characteristic of a sound antiquary, says,
" une tete humaine (ace qu'il parait)" The marquis' engraver-
has exercised the same caution, and merely given the outline

22 By third class is meant those of Cunobeline, or of the time of
that prince. 23 Plate 5, No. 9.

THE COINAGE OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 219

of the object held by the figure; but Ruding's draughtsman
has actually delineated the features, and made a human
head of that which is evidently a bunch of grapes 24 ! If any
doubt can be entertained of this, I would refer the reader to
the coins of Maronea, upon which Bacchus is represented
in a similar posture, and with the same attributes. In fact,
as I have before advanced, it is clear that the moneyers of
Cunobeline never designed the subjects for his coins, but
copied, or, to use a better term, endeavoured to imitate, any
coin which struck their fancy. An inspection of the plates
in Ruding will convince the reader that this opinion is well
grounded. The Gaulish artists did the same 25 , as will be
seen by a remarkable coin in the cabinet of the Rev. E. C.
Brice, which differs materially from any of the barbarous
imitations of the money of Philip I have yet inspected.

I am aware that some antiquaries contend that the ob-
jects represented on the coins which are clearly of a period
anterior to the time of Cunobeline, have relation to the
manners or customs of the ancient Britons; but, as I have
before observed, there is nothing to warrant such a conclu-
sion. The only object which may reasonably be supposed

24 Since writing this, I have examined the coin in the British
Museum ; and it is clear that the artist was not warranted in deli-
neating the features of the supposed head. The coin itself is much
worn and corroded.

25 The Gauls took great liberties with the subjects they copied,
or rather travestied, and some of their delineations vie with the
extravagancies of Callot. To this may, perhaps, be attributed the
origin of the androcephalous horse, an object never found on coins
considered British.

220 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

to have been designed by the British moneyers is the
crescent ; but even this may have been imitated from the
coins of a more civilized people. Numerous Greek cities,
which it would be tedious to recite, made use of the
crescent, either as a principal or subordinate symbol ; and
unless the commonly received opinion of the trading of
the Phoenicians with this country be altogether abandoned,
it would not be difficult to account for its adoption by a
rude people who were taught to revere and worship the two
great luminaries. It is admitted on all sides, that the
moneyers of Cunobeline copied or endeavoured to imitate
Greek and Roman coins. Why, then, should we doubt that
the earlier coins of the Britons were copies of the money
of those civilized states ?

Before venturing on a description of the coins in the
plates which accompany this paper, it may be well to notice
in detail those given by Ruding, who unfortunately in one in-
stance only has given any account of the places of their
discovery.

Plate 1. Contains representations of twenty-one coins, most of
which are clearly of British origin. I am well aware,
however, that Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, are sometimes dis-
covered on the coast of France. Nos. 9 to 14, closely
resemble in style and fabric those which are often
discovered on the southern coast of England from Ports-
mouth to Land's end.

Plate 2. Nos. 22 to 32, inclusive, are without doubt Gaulish
coins, while the remainder in this plate are clearly Bri-
tish, no similar coins having been discovered in France.
The resemblance of Nos. 22 to 32, to those of the
large quantity discovered a short time since at Quimper
in Britanny is evident ; and, though the specimens from
which Ruding made his drawings may have been dis-
covered even in England, it is all but certain that they
are not of British origin.

Plate 3. No. 43, doubtful, but in all probability, British.
No. 44 and 45, British. 46 and 47, resemble those
found in the Isle of Wight. 48, Gaulish. 49, 50, 51,
Isle of Wight 52, British. 53, Gaulish. 54, British ?

THE COINAGE OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 221

55 to 66, and 67 to 73, resemble those found so often in
Picardy, and are doubtless Gaulish.

From the manner in which Ruding has classed these
coins, particularly in his third plate, it is quite clear that he
took but little pains to ascertain their origin, or the places
of their discovery, which in all probability he might at that
time have ascertained without much difficulty. 26 It is very
seldom that we obtain correct information as to the localities
in which these coins are discovered, unless the quantity
renders concealment impossible. The very fact of the
finding renders secresy necessary, lest some legal claimant
should rob the finder of his right of possession; it is not,
therefore, surprising that we have but little information on
this head. It is a remarkable fact, that coins closely resem-
bling PL I. No. 9, in the accompanying plates, are often 27
discovered on the southern coast of England, while those
resembling Nos. 11 & 12, are found in the inland counties.

Ruding observes that he did not find, on any British coins,
letters like some of those given in the alphabet of Boute-
roue. The like observation applies to the specimens ac-
companying this paper, with the exception of one coin upon
which a 6 appears ; but even this may have been an un-
finished wheel, though occurring in what may be called the
legend; for those ornaments are very fantastically arranged
on some British coins. I obtained about five years since, a
gold coin of Cunobeline which was discovered in Cam-

26 A few years since a parcel amounting to nearly one hundred
coins, in silver and mixed metal, were found near Portsmouth.
They, for the most part, resembled those given by Ruding, Plate 3,
Nos. 46, 47, 49, 50, 51, 52, and, Plate 2, Nos. 32, 33 and 34.
Mr. Cuff, who communicates this, observes, it is worthy of remark,
that not one of them has the androcephalous horse.

<2T I had written invariably, but on looking over Borlase's his-
tory of Cornwall, I find that two coins of the same character were
dug up in the Parish of Swacliffe, near Madmarston castle, Oxford-
shire, in the year 1746.

222 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

bridgeshire, and upon which I at first supposed I had found
the Greek character H, but, as a slip of the graver may have
produced the longitudinal stroke, we cannot be certain that
an H is in tended. An engraving of this coin is here given.
It differs slightly from that in Ruding. 28

I have now to notice the coins, given in the plate which
accompanies these remarks. It is difficult to describe mi-
nutely pieces which have so many objects of doubtful mean-
ing; but as the engravings maybe relied on for correctness,
a more minute account wilf not be necessary.

PLATE I.

No. 1. This is the most barbarous specimen in the series of Bri-
tish coins ; its execution is even ruder than that given by
Ruding. It was found on Lenham Heath in 1781.
AR. (British Museum.}

No. 2. A coin of the same character, and evidently of the same
period as the preceding. It is one of a parcel discovered
under the bed of the canal in St. James' Park about ten
years since. AE. (Cab. of Mr. Edmund Spencer.)

No. 3. This coin is placed next to the foregoing, on account of
the simplicity of the objects represented on it. On one side
are six globules or pellets in very high relief, on the other
some figures or characters, the name and meaning of which
it would be hopeless to attempt to describe. The piece is
convex and concave, and is of an oval shape. AV. (British
Museum.)

No. 4. It is difficult to describe this coin accurately. On one side
is represented an animal, which, if intended for a horse,
is of a very different shape to that usually found on Bri-
tish coins. In the field are pellets and other objects. The
other side, placed as the reverse in the plate, has some

Plate 4, No. 1.

THE COINAGE OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 223

object alike inexplicable, but the rude representation of a
wreath is evident, extending across the field of the coin.
AV. (British Museum.}

No. 5. Bears on one side an uncouth figure of a horse between the
legs of which appears the wheel. The reverse bears what
may be supposed by some to represent a full-blown rose,
but which may possibly have been imitated from some Jew-
ish or Macedonian coin with the shield. AV. (British
Museum.}

No. 6. The obverse of this coin bears the rude representation of a
human head, but in other respects is not remarkable. I
possessed several coins of a similar description, which I
have reason to believe were found in one of the midland
counties. AR. (Cabinet of Mr. J. D. Cuff.)

No. 7. Obverse. The disjointed figure of a horse; above, several
globules or pellets, probably intended collectively to re-
present some object; below, a wheel with six spokes.
Reverse. A rudely drawn figure resembling a fern-leaf.
This coin was found at Mount Batten, near Plymouth,
in 1832. Electrum. (British Museum.)

No. 8. This coin resembles the former, but its execution is less
rude and the letters CATTI appear above the horse. It
was discovered at Frome. Electrum. (Cabinet of Mr. J.
D. Cuff.)

No. 9. This coin is one of a considerable number found in the
neighbourhood of Plymouth, near to which town many
pieces of a similar character have frequently been disco-
vered. It resembles those given by Borlase, in his history
of Cornwall, and stated by that writer to have been dug
up at Karn-Bre in the year 1749. The style of work-
*> manship of the coins of this class is very different to all
others discovered in this country, and certainly bears no
resemblance to any of the Gaulish series. AR. (British
Museum.)

No. 10. A very remarkable coin found with several others of the
same type in Yorkshire. On one side is the uncouth and
disjointed figure of a horse with a legend which appears
to stand thus NOW V POSDVM, but which I will not
attempt to explain. It is difficult to describe the objects
on the other side ; but the two rows of squares placed
longitudinally appear to have been designed for a wreath, a
favourite object on British coins. There are also the remains
of a legend in two lines | ^O K j Ay ^ British Museum ^

224 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

No. 11. A neat little coin, having on one side a horse rudely drawn,
though not without spirit. Above the horse is the head
of a spear, and between the legs is a wheel or star. The
reverse has a wreath crossing the field between two annu-
lets. AV. (British Museum.)

No. 12. This piece closely resembles in type and workmanship those
engraved by Ruding, Plate 3, Nos. 49 & 50. It is one of a
large number, discovered a few years since at Mount Bat-
ten. It is a fact well worthy of remark, that these pieces
differ both from the Gaulish and British coins. The
reverse bears a strange and uncouth representation of a
horse above which appears a curious figure, which it would
be difficult to describe, but which strongly reminds me of
a gold Gaulish coin I formerly possessed (now in the
cabinet of the Rev. E. C. Brice), upon which an eagle is
represented holding the reins of a horse. I possess two
coins of the same description found at Guernsey. This
type appears to have been peculiar to the Channel Islands.
Potin. (Cab. of Mr. J. D. Cuff. )

No. 13. A small coin of barbarous execution and of base metal
(Potin), discovered with the preceding. (Cab. of Mr. Cuff.)

PLATE II.

No. 1. This very remarkable coin was found at Oxnead, Norfolk,
in 1831. Though the obverse partakes of the character
of some of the preceding specimens, the reverse is widely
different ; indeed it is altogether unlike any British coins I
have hitherto seen ; and this, added to the circumstance of
its having been found far from the southern coast of Eng-
land where so many British coins have " turned up," is cer-
tainly in favour of an opinion entertained by some of our
best numismatists, that the ancient British coins may some
day not only be shewn to belong to England, but also to
particular districts. AV. (British Museum.)

No. 2. The reverse of this coin is remarkable ; besides other ob-
jects, it bears on a kind of tablet two crescents placed
back to back. The obverse has the figure of an animal
probably intended for a horse, and in the field a wreath,
several pellets and some letters, among which appear TA.
AR. ( Cabinet of Mr. Cuff.)

No. 3. This coin resembles those given by Ruding, plate 2, Nos.
35 and 36, but it has letters which are apparently Greek,
and which stand thus : A9OII. The place of its discovery
is not known; but there is no reason for supposing it,
Gaulish, although Greek characters do not appear on any

THE COINAGE OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 2 4 25

other British coin I have examined. 29 AV. (British
Museum.}

No. 4. Resembles the preceding, with the characters OAA.
AV. (Cabinet of J. D. Cuff.)

No. 5. This coin, though plain on one side, has the letters SONII . .
over the horse. AV. (British Museum.}

No. 6. Resembles the preceding, but has the letters ONA ; and the
scull of a horned animal appears in the field. A V. (British

Museum-)

No. 7. Portions of several letters appear on one side of this coin,
which, besides the horse, has a branch in the field and three
rings or annulets. The reverse has a curious ornament by
no means unlike the feather surmounting the head of the
Egyptian Deities. AV. (British Museum.)

No. 8. The scull appears on this coin, and the ring is surrounded
by a circle of dots or pellets. AV. (British Museum)

No. 9. Resembles No. 8, but the reverse is of better execution.
Above the horse are several letters or characters. This
coin, which was found near High-Wycombe in 1827, is of
a very distinct character from those found near Plymouth.
AV. (British Museum.)

No. 10. Was also found near High-Wycombe. The obverse bears
an equestrian figure with the arms raised aloft, and the letter
V, without any ornament. The reverse, the same as that
of the preceding coin. AV. (British Museum.)

No. II. Resembles No. 8, but is of better workmanship.

No. 12. On this coin, the Equestrian figure flourishes a long club
or pedum : two wheels, each with four spokes, appear in
the field, and the Letters TASC doubtless intended for
TASCIO, a word which, it should be remembered, never
occurs on Gaulish coins 30 . AV. (British Museum-)

29 Gaulish coins often bear Greek characters. Caesar, in speak-
ing of the Gauls (Bell. Gall.l. vi. c. 14), says, " In rebus publicis,
Graecis litteris utuntur."

30 Many of the coins of Cunobeline bear this word on a kind of
tablet across the field, which the Marquis Lagoy says, is never found
on Gaulish coins.

H H

226 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

All the coins given in the foregoing list differ from those
published by Ruding ; and the types of some of them are al-
together new. Should the reader's cabinet contain any spe-
cimens of the Gaulish series, he may at once compare and
decide for himself. He will not require to be told that there
is a vast difference in the style of the coins of Gaul and
Britain ; that in many instances they are of a widely different
type, and that those found in the Channel Islands resemble
neither. I contend that we cannot, and indeed ought not, to
rely on the authority of Caesar, who, minute as he is in some
particulars relating to the Gauls, cannot be accredited when
he says, that the Britons at the period of his invasion, did not
use stamped money. In looking over these remarks, an expe-
rienced numismatist observed, that "he had always thought
it passing strange that the Britons should have used iron
for money, and brass or mixed metal for swords and spear
heads;" for the weapons often discovered in England are
neither Roman nor Saxon. There is little doubt that Caesar
was induced to visit Britain by a thirst of conquest : he came
to destroy, not to observe; and his own words shew that he
had no leisure for observation during his short stay in this
island.

I have to notice the observations of my friend, Mr.
Haggard, in reference to the doubts I have expressed
respecting the Ring-money described in Sir William
Beetham's paper. Mr. Haggard observes : " I had recently
" the pleasure of a conversation with Sir William Beetham ;
" and from his remarks I was led to believe that he was well
" acquainted with the use of these interesting rings, and
" that he is fully justified in supposing them to have been
" used as money. For my own part, I see no reason why
" they should not have been so used. In this country, not
" many years ago, there was a much ruder piece of money,

THE COINAGE OF THE ANCIENT BRITONS. 227

" namely, Mr. Ricardo's Gold Ingot, but with this difference
" certainly, that it would be impossible to mistake it for an
" ornament. I have seen large quantities of Sisee money
"from China, the exact shape of a horse's hoof, arid some
" of them smaller, resembling the hoof of an ass. In Persia,
" they had money in the form of a pair of lemon squeezers,
" or nut-crackers ; and in Morocco, rings of gold and silver
" are the currency of the country, their exportation being
" prohibited. The merchants who travel, string these money
" rings, and hide them under their dresses. These rings are
" found to be, in weight, the multiples of twelve grains. I
"have occasionally seen consignments of bullion to this
" country, comprising gold and silver ornaments mixed
" with these rings."

I have merely to add, that these facts do not prove that
the rings of gold so often discovered in Ireland were origi-
nally designed for the purposes of money only. That they
were occasionally used as such, there can be little doubt ;
and there is good reason for believing that other personal
ornaments were, in time of need, applied to the same pur-
poses by different nations. Probably to this circumstance
may be attributed the purity of the gold used in the fabri-
cation of all very ancient ornaments.

In conclusion, I have to express a hope, that the intelli-
gent Numismatists of the continent, will institute a com-
parison between the early coins of the two countries ; and
that the result will be a conviction that the Britons were
acquainted with the use of stamped money, and had a coin-
age of their own long previous to the arrival of Caesar.

J. Y. A.

Peckham, March 1st, 1837.

(Read before the Numismatic Society, March 16th, 1837.)

228 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

XXVIII.

ON AN UNEDITED SILVER FIORINO," WITH AN
INQUIRY INTO THE ORIGIN OF THE FLO-
RENTINE COINAGE DURING THE TIME OF
THE REPUBLIC.

" Quante volte del tempo, che rimembre ;
Legge, monete, e uficio, e costume,
Ha tu mutato, e renovato membre." DANTE.

" How oft within the time we can retrace,
Hast thou thy customs changed and changed again ;
Thy laws, thy coin, and even thy very race." J. C. WRIGHT.

THE coinage of Florence surpassed that of most of the
cities of Italy in dignity and in fine types, which is con-
firmed by the statement of many numismatic writers who
treated on the coins of the middle ages; but neither
Villani, Orsini, nor Gorri, who wrote principally on the
Florentine coins, point out a certain epoch as the com-
mencement of the Florentine mint. In that truly classic
work of Zanetti, " Delle Monete e Zecche d' Italia," much is
said of the Florentine coinage; but still there is no fixed
period given for its origin. " Incerta e 1'epoca di questa
Zecca, che altri dicono fu portato fino ai tempi di Arrigo I
(the emperor Henry I). II conte Carli, pero, la credo nato
nel XII secolo, benche le piu antiche monete siono del
secolo XIII." 1 M. Lelewel, in his newly-published work on
coins of the middle ages 2 , has merely devoted a few lines to
those of Florence, and they begin with that terrible word
obscurity "Pobscurite couvre 1'origin de la monnaie de
Florence." However, in the preface to M. LelewePs
laborious and useful work, the reader will find an ample

and satisfactory explanation of such omissions.

1 Zanetti t vol.ii.p. 91.

3 Numismatique du Moyen Age, considere sous le Rapport du
Type. Par Joachim Lelewel. Paris, 1835.

UNEDITED SILVER FIORINO. 229

Florence was founded by the soldiers of Sylla, and em-
bellished and enlarged by the Triumvirs. The Florentines
renounced paganism about the year 326, under the pon-
tificate of St. Silvester I. and under the imperial sway of
Constantine the Great, when they consecrated the temple
of Mars, whom they worshipped, as a Christian church,
and dedicated it to St. John the Baptist (Duomo di San
Giovanni).

" I' fui della citta che nel Battista

Cangio '1 primo padrono ; onde per questo,

Sempre coll' arte sua la fara trista."

" Mine was that city which exchanged of yore,
For John the Baptist, her first guardian, he
Will always use his means to make her sad."

J.C.WRIGHT.

Dante is here alluding to the everlasting broils of the
Guelphs and Ghibelines.

In the frequent irruptions of the northern nations that
subverted the Roman Italia, Florence followed the fate of
the rest of Italy : it was destroyed by Totila, and rebuilt in
in the time of Charlemagne (801).

For several centuries Florence evidently had no mint,
either imperial or of its own ; and even after the Florentines
had freed themselves from the emperors, and had acquired
some degree of strength and independence, and enriched
themselves by demolishing the place from which they
sprung, Fiesole 3 (1010), their old maternal town (loro anti-
ca madre), and had enriched themselves still more by taking
many castles and lands from such families as derived
their origin from officers of the armies of the Lombards and
the Franks, the silver money then current at Florence and
within its territory was only the imperial denar of Lucca,
called the Enerici (Henerici), a small and badly executed

3 " See that ungrateful and malignant race,
Who erst came down from lofty Fiesole,
And of their mountain flint still bear the trace."

230 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

coin, and probably not always of the best silver. In many
instances mention is made of " Denarios Lucenses bonos et
spendibiles et non amplius." All transactions were made
at that time in the Lucchese money. " Anno 1044,
D. Gherardus Episc. Flor. concessit Presbitero Gironi
Rectori S. Laurentii foras Muro (S. Lorenzo antichis-
sima ed ora Regia Basilica, fuori del primo et antico cerchio
di Firenze), in perpetuum unam sortem terrae, ad modios
80, positam in loco qui dicitur Cecina, pro annuo fictu soli-
dorum 30 Luccensium 4 . The gold coins in circulation in
Florence previous to the gold florin (1252), were the
bizants of Constantinople (Byzantium). There is also
mention made of Mancosos Aureos, or Mancusi d'Oro,
which signifies Mark, and is derived from the Anglo Saxon
Mancas, Mancus, Mancusa, Mearc, reckoned both in gold
and silver.

In 680, Ina, king of the Saxons, obliged the men of
Kent to purchase their peace at the price of 30,000 Man-
cusi auri. In the notes to King Canute's laws, is this dis-
tinction found, that Mancusa was of the same value as a
mark of silver; and Manca, a square piece of gold, was
valued at thirty pence. In France, they were called
Mangon.

"Bist la Bame or abc? faucon,
Deux foc?ans balcnt un J^langon,
e fu foten ttit Iteux mot a un,
du'il tn auroit fceux pour un."

(Le Roman de Guillaume au Faucon, MSS.)

The bizants seem, by many documents, to have been at
one time the principal current gold coin in France ; they
are mentioned even as late as the end of the thirteenth
century. The author of the Romance of the Rose, who

4 Zanetti, vol.i. p. 312.

UNEDITED SILVER FIORINO. 231

wrote in the time of Philippe le Bel, makes Cupid speak
of Venus.

" Jtfla J^lere cst to moult grantt process,

1EHc a pries mantle fortresse,

d^ut coutait plus tie _plille fce?ans,

<$u |e fusse pas ja presens."

Bizants current in Germany are mentioned in the docu-
ments of Salzburg, from the time of the Emperor Henry
IV. (1074.) In England, mention of the bizants is made
as late as the reign of Edward III. the value of that coin
was, however, so entirely forgotten, that when the bishop of
Norwich was fined a bizantine of gold to be paid to the
abbot of St. Edmundsbury for infringing his liberty, (as it
had been enacted by parliament in the time of the Con-
queror), no man, then living, could tell how much it was ;
so that it was referred to the king to decide how much
he should pay 5 .

" Anno 1072, la contessa Matilde pone per pena duo
millia bisantios auri, a chi contravverra ad un suo Placito,
a favore di Berta, priora del Monasteo di S. Felicita, ora
incluso in Firenze 6 ." " Bizantios Auri " are also mentioned
in a parchment of the date 1 187, in the Archives of Val-
ombrosa.

In 1158, for the first time, mention is made of the coins
of Pisa in Florentine documents. "Anno 1158, le mona-
che di S. Felicita comprano un pezzo di terra per lira 24
Lucchesi e Pisane." (" Ecco che principia ad aver corso e
credito in Firenze la moneta Pisana," says Signer Zanetti 7 .)
Every transaction or contract, as stated before, was made
out either in the coins of Lucca or Pisa, so that the Flo-
rentine merchants, in order not to be too great losers in
the exchange, were obliged to take their silver bars to

5 Chambers Encyclopedia (Money). 6 Zanetti) vol.i. p. 280.
7 Zanetti, vol.i. p. 314.

232 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Lucca, and have them coined into Lucchese money 8 .
However, in the year 1181, the Pisans (then masters of
the seas) began a reform in their coinage, and struck their
fine JFrederici, coins by far superior in dignity, size, and
design, to those of Lucca; then the Lucchese money fell
into discredit at Florence, and from that time every trans-
action made there, was made in the Pisan money. " Anno
1186, Raynaldinus et alii vendunt Abbati Rodulfo Mo-
nasterii de Pacciana petiam Terrse a Pacciana pro solidis
40, bonorum denariorum Pisanorum." "Anno 1203, Rug-
geroctus vendit domum positam Florentiae pro libris 27,
Pisaae monetse 9 ."

When the Pisans had begun to strike those fine imperial
coins, the Frederici (the Pisans being Ghibelines), the
Florentines at length thought it time to do the same, and
have proper coins of the Republic, when the fine silver
Fiorini appeared. Gori, in addition to my argument, gives
a confirmatory passage of Villani, who for the first time
mentions, in 1182, the silver fiorino. " Nel 1182, correva
in Firenze una moneta d'argento che si chiamava fiorini 10 .

Orsini published two engravings of small coins, one of
silver, and one of copper, which he thinks much older than
the Fiorino d'argento ; but the designs plainly prove, that
the one is only a subdivision of the Fiorino, and the other a
subdivision of the grosso of 20 denari from the year 1316.

Summing up these evidences, the result of my inquiries,
I am enabled to fix a positive period for the beginning of
the Florentine mint ; to state that the first coin ever struck
at Florence was in the year 1181, and that the name of
that coin was the Fiorino d'argento.

Ibid. p. 250. Ibid. p. 3 15.

10 Gori, // Fiorino d'oro, p. 209.

UNEDITED SILVER FIORINO. 233

I hope these evidences may be sufficient to prove the
correctness of my statement.

3u ttiefoeutig fyullet bie Prefer nut ein.

THE FIORINO D*ARGENTO, 1181.

Obv. Observe the half length, full-faced, and bearded figure of St.
John the Baptist, with the circle of glory around his head ;
the long hair floating down his shoulders, over which is a
cloak fastened on the chest by a button. He is represented
in the attitude of preaching, having the right hand raised to
give the benediction, in the Greek manner ; which is by hold-
ing out at full length the fore-finger and little finger, and
having the two middle fingers closed against the thumb. In
the left hand he is holding a staff surmounted by a cross ; and
in the field, to the left of the saint is the blossom of the lily
(Dettibi florere XPS Florentia vere], referring to his protec-
tion of Florence. Inscribed (after a croslet) IOHANNES
Batista. (The Italian Giovanni is derived from the Lom-
bard Jovannes.)

Rev. In the field, a large lily, the arms of Florence (red in silver
field), and inscribed (after a croslet) FLORENTIA.

This unedited silver florin differs from those already
published in many numismatic works, as the following
remarks will show.

The design of St. John is finer and rather larger ; then
there is the blossom of a lily to the left of the saint, which
the others have not. In the inscription there is no S. for
Sanctus, (in the remotest times the form was, Dominus
Johannem Baptistam,) which the others have. The name
has all its letters IOHANNES, while the others have only

i i

234 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

IOHANNE. On the reverse is the design of the lily, a
little different ; and at the end of the inscription FLOREN-
TIA, is a point where the others have a star.

This fine coin must be very rare, I have not observed it
in any private collection I have seen on the Continent, nor
lately at the Bibliotheque Royale at Paris. There is a
silver Fiorino at the British Museum (also unpublished)
which comes near to mine, having in the legend no S. for
Sanctus ; but the small lily, or blossom of the lily in the
field, on the left side of St. John, is wanted ; and that Saint
is also represented much older than on mine. I consider
this coin as the earliest pattern of the silver Fiorino, and as
a very fine specimen of the revival of the art of engraving
in Italy. The head of St. John represented on it, might
have been a model even for Michael Angelo in the execu-
tion of his Moses.

The Greeks are supposed to be the authors of these fine
coins ; and they introduced painting and architecture at
Florence, according to Vasari, who also observes, that they
were soon surpassed by Cimabue.

" In painting, Cimabue thought the field
Was all his own, now Giotto has the cry,
A.nd bids his predecessor's glory yield." DANTE.

I give also several different designs of the whole length
figure of St. John the Baptist, represented on the early
coins of the republic, down to the time of Alexander de
Medicis, the first duke ; and I refer to an article on the
revival of the art of painting in Italy, by Count A. de Rac-
zynski 11 . '? It was dry and inanimate. The draperies were
stiff, angular, and heaped without plan and without reserve.
The extremities were not well drawn, and were frequently

II GeschicTtle der neuern Deutscheti Kunst. Berlin, 1836. His-

luire de I' Art modern en Allemagne. Paris, 1836.

UNEDITED SILVER FIORINO.

235

too large, the limbs harsh, without muscular substance, the
groups in straight lines ; but in the head we begin already to
discover truth, often correctness, sometimes even expres-
sion." The reader will soon observe how accurately this
paragraph alludes also to the coins of that time.

No. 1. On the gold Florin, 1252. No. 2, On the Popo-
lino, 1305. No. 3. On the Guelfo, 1314. NQ. 4. On the
Grosso, 1483. No. 5. On the Battezzoni. 1505, so named

236 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

from the figure of St. John, baptizing our Saviour. No. 6.
On a coin of Alexander dei Medici, first duke of Florence :
the two figures represent St. Cosmus, and St. Damian.
This fine and rare coin I saw in the British Museum, and
at the Bibliotheque Royal, in Paris, It was struck by the
famous Benvenuto Cellini, and is published by Gori 12 , in
1738, who terms it, even at that time, a rare coin.

" II Duca Alessandro dei Medici, fece battere monete
d'oro e d'argento, e in quella d'oro da una banda fece in-
tagliare 1'arme della sua famiglia, e dalP altra una croce
arabescata, in questa d'argento la sua effigie, e nel rovescio
i santi Cosimo, e Damiano ; la qual moneta e assai bella
e rara, fatta dal famoso artefice, Benvenuto Cellini." In the
history of his eventful life, Cellini gives the description of
the designs on several coins he made for the duke ; but I do
not recollect any mention of that fine one ; and it is my
opinion, Cellini's reason for not noticing it was, that being
an old republican, he was ashamed to own, that he was em-
ployed for the paltry sum of fifty crowns, to alter, on the coins
of the republic, the beloved saint in whose church he was
baptized.

It may be easily supposed, that, at the time of the com-
mencement of the Florentine mint, not enough specie could
be delivered, to supply all the demands of the Florentine
merchants, nor the surrounding country, which carried on
already a considerable commerce, particularly with the
maritime republic of Pisa; so that I am not surprised,
(from a scarcity of the proper Florentine money, as well as
from the long-standing custom of settling all accounts in
foreign coins), to find, on the evidence of many documents,
that dealings in the Pisan money continued at Florence

12 11 Fiorino d'oro, p. 240.

UNEDITED SILVER FIORINO. 237

until the year 1279. "Anno 1255. La parte Guelfa di
Firenze prest6 alia parte Guelfa d'Arezzo, c libras 12,000
Denariorum Pisanorum Veterum.' Monsignor Vine Bor-
ghini, spogli d'un libro di contratti appartenenti al Pubblico
di Firenze 13 . Anno 1279. Severinus quond. Jacobi Pop. S.
Pauli di Florentia civis in suo Testamento reliquit fratribus
minoribus S. Crucis ad Templum de Florentia libras 200
Denariorum Pisanorum minutorum 14 ."

The silver Fiorino may yet be compared to the silver
Denar or penny of the middle ages, then almost the only
species of money in Europe (primitively of fine silver), with
its subdivisions, until the 13th century, when, after the
discovery of some productive silver mines in Bohemia, a
larger kind of coins appeared at Prague, the " Grossi Pra-
genses ;" and in France, the " Gross Tournois." The
former were soon imitated by the Dukes of Saxony, and
other neighbouring states of Bohemia. But the Tournois,
a coin of much more dignity, and finer in design than the
Grossi Pragenses, was still more adopted ; and the Tournois
of Frankfort became very renowned. A somewhat larger
coin than the Fiorino d'argento made its appearance at
Florence with the Popolini in 1305; and the Grosso Guelfo
about the size of the Gross Tournois, appeared in 1314.
With the Popolini, the sign or arms of the mint-masters,
who were chosen from the first families of Florence,
appears, for the first time, on silver coins : I Maestri
Zecchieri che erano delle principale Famiglie de la Citta 15 .

" Anno 1305. Lapus de lo Strozza [and others], fuerunt
pro communis Florentise, Domini et Officiates Monete
Aureae, &c. &c." The Medici appear, for the first time, in
1377. "Verio cambii de Medici pro arte campsorum,

13 Zanetti, vol. i. p. 316. 14 Ibid. I5 Orsini, p. 46.

238 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Civibus honorabilibus Florentinis cominis, et Officialibus
Zecchse Communis Florentiae et cujuslibet Monetae Auri,
et Argenti quae fit, et cuditur in dicta Zecca pro tempore sex
mensium, inceptorum die primo mensis Maii dicti anni 16 ."
"Anno 1430. In Christi nomine, Amen. Extentibus pro
Magnifico Popolo, et Communi Florentiae nobilibus viris
Andrea Guglielmi de Pazzis, pro arte kallismale, [cloth
merchant 17 ]," &c. And so by those signs or family arms
of the mint-masters, the date of the coins can be well
ascertained.

The Florentines, as early as the year 1282, had classed
themselves into distinct bodies, or municipal companies,
according to their professions ; and in order to place their
government on a truly popular foundation, had determined
that no person should be eligible to a public office, unless
he was either actually, or professedly a member of one or
other of these companies. By this regulation, the nobility
were either excluded from the offices of the state, or in
order to obtain them, were obliged to degrade the honours
of their rank by the appellation of artizans. From these as-
sociated bodies, a certain number of members were deputed
to exercise the supreme government, in conjunction with an
officer whom they named Gonfaloniere, from his carrying the
standard (Gonfalone) of the republic, whose authority was,
however, subordinate to that of the delegated mechanics,
or Priori delle arti (Magnifici, et Excelsi Domini, Domini
Priores Libertatis et Vexillifer Justitise Populi Florentini.)
They had increased at various intervals, to six, and eight,
" Due Priori furono eletti dal Quartiere Santo Spirito, due
dal Quartiere Santa Croce, due dal Quartiere Santa Maria
Novella, e altri due dal Quartiere San Giovanni. Questi

16 Orsini. p, 1 18. " Ibid. p. 185.

UNEDITED SILVER FIORINO. 239

otto Priori insieme col Gonfaloniere governarono la Re-
pubblica insino alia mutazione dello stato" (1532) 18 .

The small size of the coins in the middle ages must, of
course, be attributed to the scarcity of the precious metals.
Almost every town or monastery of any consequence, every
independent duke or count, had each their own money
struck ; so that by such a variety and division, it must be
supposed, that the quantity of coins struck by each party,
was, as compared to our times, very limited ; and I am of
opinion, that it could not have been worth while for many
artists to devote themselves entirely to the study of en-
graving, and it may be supposed that only the emperors
and the great mercantile republics had, in those early times,
regular mint engravers, until more recent periods, at the
general revival of the arts, the art of engraving became
again one of its brightest ornaments.

I believe, therefore, that the dies of many fine coins of
those days, have been engraved only by a goldsmith, a
painter, or a sculptor. The earliest mention of a regular
mint engraver at Florence, I find to be in 1375. Niccholao
Pazini, intagliatore " ferrorum et coniorum auri et argenti,
et monetse quae cuditur in dicta Zecca."

By such highly gifted men as Cimabue, Giundo, Pisano,
Guido of Siena, Giotto, Donatello, any such work of art
might have been executed. In 1300, Andreas di Pisa, son
of the architect Nicolas, cast the admirable bronze gates of
the baptistry at Florence. More general records state that
medals arid coins were executed by painters and sculptors ;
we have, however, only from the fifteenth and sixteenth cen-
tury, any like those of Victor Pisani.

Gratia Pisano debitur summa labori

Qui faciem Herois multos servavit in annos.

18 Gori, p. 366.

240 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Then we have Antonio Pollajuolo, a Florentine painter, of
whom I possess two rare medals of the Medici, one comme-
morating the conjuration of the Pazzi, (1478.) "A.Pollajuolo
fece alcune medaglie bellissime, e fra 1'altra in una la con-
giura de' Pazzi, nella quale sono le teste di Lorenzo e
Giuliano de' Medici, e nel riverso il choro di S. Maria del
Fiore, e tutto il caso come passo appunto 19 .

The figures on that medal are all represented naked, as
Pollajuolo excelled all his contemporaries in the knowledge
of the human figure. Then we have Boldu, Marescoto, de
Fastis, Albrecht Durer, Benvenuto Cellini, &c. &c. May
not the fine silver medallion of Henry VIII. have been exe-
cuted by Holbein ? It is supposed that the author of two
very fine coins ( Testone) of Ludovico Sforza, duke of Milan,
surnamed the Moor, is no other than Leonardo da Vinci ;
they are inscribed M SF ANGLUS -DUX-MLI, which word,
" Anglus," Pinkerton was at a loss to understand 20 . The
word Anglus is derived from Angleria, (Italian Anghiera),
a considerable county on the Lago Maggiore, to the north of
the duchy of Milan, the possessor of which had formerly
the honor of being first master of the ceremonies at the
coronation of the German emperors as kings of Italy.

The Visconti were descended from the illustrious house
of the counts of Anghiera, and gave themselves (with the
permission of the Emperor Wenceslaus), also the name of
Anglus, abbreviated from Anglerius, in fact, counts of An-
ghiera (Anglerseque Comes). Otto, upon his obtaining
Milan, took the name Visconti, or Bisconti, as being twice
a count, by possessing two principalities, which had that
title.

It was to this Ludovico Sforza, that Milan owed the lofty

19 Vasari, Vita di Ant. Pollajuoli.

20 Essay on Medals, vol. ii. p. 16.

UNEDITED SILVER FIORINO. 241

situation it once held among the cities celebrated as nur-
series of the arts: and it was he who first patronized, with
just and princely generosity, the great masters who carried
Italian art to a degree of perfection hitherto unconceived
in the minds of its professors. Leonardo da Vinci was a
Florentine, and exercised his genius there for some time.
Milan, at that period, beginning to experience the effect of
II Moro's magnificence, offered the greatest attraction to
the ambitious artist, and he accordingly wrote to the pro-
tector, expressing a desire to enter into his service. The
fame of Leonardo was already spread over Italy ; and Ludo-
vico availed himself of the opportunity of adding a man of
such distinguished genius to the number of his favourites.
And it is said, that Leonardo not only exercised his genius
as a painter, engineer, and architect, but also as an en-
graver of the mint. I have no doubt, that, through the
medium of Numismatic Periodicals, that branch of Nu-
mismatics hitherto so much neglected, the study of the coins
of the middle ages of Europe, will, in a short time, take a
firmer footing. A successful beginning has been made of
late again in Germany and in France. Muratori gave to
the Italians many a broad hint of the utility of the study of
the coins of the middle ages ; and they cultivated it for some
time ; all the rage, however, at present is again for the Greek
and Roman coins. In Germany, the Romans begin to
get out of fashion : this seems to be proved by the high
prices given for interesting and rare coins of the middle
ages, and by several new works published recently on
them : and so it is in France. In travelling through that
country, very few of the kind of coins I am alluding to
can be obtained. Every town has one or more amateurs
(not collectors for the market of Paris).

Far be it from me to pretend to say, that the illustration
K K

242 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

of the very beautiful Greek, and fine Roman coins, is not
very useful, and most interesting ; but I do not see the
reason why the illustration of the coins of the middle ages
should not be quite as interesting. Surely they are more
useful to the history of our own times ; and I think Numis-
matic writers may as well allude now and then to the lives
of some of the early promoters of Christianity, represented
on those apparently insignificant coins, as to write pages
concerning a heathen deity. Referring to medals,
may not the fine silver medal of Martin Luther from the
year 1526, struck by Albrecht Durer, deserve a better
illustration, than the finest one of the destroyers of Jeru-
salem. Is Charlemagne less than Alexander ? Do antique
medals represent greater patriots than Andrea Doria (Di
Auria) ? or more virtuous men than Carlo Borromeo ? Is
Hippolita Gonzaga represented on fine medals less lovely
than Julia Mammaea or Anna Comnena? Can ancient
coins be more interesting than those coins of the Visconti
which have on one side the figure of the great archbishop,
Ambrose of Milan, who was so distinguished by his energy
and uprightness, (375-397), in the reign of the Emperor
Theodosius the Great. What can be more pathetic than
the recollection of the words of Petrarch, when speaking of
the statue in the church of that saint, said to resemble him
perfectly, and which appeared alive ? Petrarch was never
weary of beholding it. " It was a most agreeable object,"
says he, " this great archbishop appeared to give me his
blessing. What majesty in his countenance, what sweetness
and expression in his eyes. This sight spread over my heart
a lively and inexpressible tranquillity; I rejoiced that I came
to Milan." In this quotation, is not only recognised the piety
and amiability for which Petrarch was so deservedly emi-
nent, but a keen perception and love of the fine arts can be

COINS DENOMINATED "RESTORED." 243

traced, which made him also one of the earliest collectors of
Roman coins on record, and must endear his name to every
Numismatist. J. G. PFISTER.

XXIX.

ON THE CLASS OF COINS DENOMINATED
"RESTORED."

THE term " restored" belongs only to coins of the Ro-
man mint, nothing of the same kind occurring in the Greek
coinage, or that of any other nation ; and the period during
which they were issued, except in two or three instances, is
confined to the reigns of Titus, Domitian, Nerva, and
Trajan. 1 Many coins bearing the name of Alexander (the
Great), and similar in all respects to his own, were, from
policy, struck long after his death, in parts of his former
dominions (and hence probably the large number extant) ;
but this was not a restoration, it was merely a continuation
of the type. Nor certainly can some coins of the ancient
Gauls (struck evidently in rude imitation of those of the
Greeks, 2 with whom they traded, and perhaps especially

1 The Consecration types of former emperors commonly attri-
buted to Gallienus, and erroneously called " restored coins," will
be noticed hereafter.

It has been stated that Claudius and Nero restored some middle
brass types of Augustus, which is very possible ; such medals,
however, were unknown to Eckhel, who says, " Si qui restitutorem
alium memorant, quod nonnunquam fieri in catalogis videmus, in
suspectis habendi."

a For instance, the imitations of the tetradrachms of Philip of
Macedon, whose money obtained a most extensive circulation, and
also of those of the island of Thasus, on which the brawny figure
of Hercules seems to have been a favourite with the Gauls. The
latter coins, generally sufficiently coarse in the originals, are ren-
dered utterly barbarous in the Celtic copies.

KK2

b 244 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

after the colonization of Marseilles,) be considered in any
proper sense restored coins ; so that, not to enlarge on a
point that I apprehend will not be disputed, the true " numi
restituti" are the production of the Roman mint alone, and,
indeed, speak for themselves, by presenting, in addition to
the usual legend, the abbreviation REST, or, though rarely,
the word RESTITVIT at full length, following the name
of the emperor by whose authority they were repub-
lished.

Many coins, therefore, are to be excluded from this class,
though they bear portraits of former emperors, or of deceased
members of the imperial family. The portrait of J. Caesar
is given on coins of Augustus, that of Augustus on several
of Tiberius and Caligula ; the last of whom struck medals
in honour of his mother, Agrippina ; and the same was done
by Claudius in memory of his parents, Drusus senior and
Antonia ; but all such are clearly new types, the latter
being altogether original commemorations. Indeed, some
of these very coins were restored in the usual manner.

In preference to the term " numi restituti," Eckhel uses
that of " numi restitutionum" as referring more suitably to the
various kinds with which we are acquainted 3 . For in some
instances where REST, occurs, no archetypes are known
to exist, or the restored type appears in a different metal
from that of the original, or the correspondence between the
two is more general than exact. The conclusion from this
is, either that some original types are lost, or that probably
such never existed, and the professed restorations refer to
the subjects of the medals, instead of to the medals them-
selves. For instance, a type in gold of Augustus, with the
legionary eagle between two standards on the reverse, is

3 See Doctrina Numorum Veterum. Vol.5, cap. 17.

COINS DENOMINATED "RESTORED." 245

known only as restored by Trajan, and may have been
struck by this Imperial " Parthicus" of a later day, as a re-
newal, not of an old coin, but solely of the memory of an
event particularly gratifying to the Romans under Augus-
tus, the recovery of the eagles and standards lost by the
army of Crassus. Of another in gold, also of Augustus (re-
verse, a crocodile), there is no archetype but in silver ;' from
which it may be inferred that the intention was merely to
restore the memory of the conquest of Egypt, especially
as a restoration in silver is likewise extant. With re-
spect to certain differences occasionally observable between
type and archetype, it may be fairly considered, that when
they are of an unimportant character, such as ANTONIVS
AVGVR in a restored denarius for the abbreviation
ANT-AVG in the original, or even the omission of the word
PROVIDENT, on a restored second brass coin of " Divus
Augustus" ( the well-known altar of Providence), there
can be little doubt of the new coin having been designed to
represent the old one ; but when the variations are signifi-
cant, as in the case of the restored coin of an uncertain
family, (9, Rome seated on shields, leaning on her spear,
the wolf and twins at her feet, and in the field two beaks
of ships, instead of two birds flying, as in the common type),
we cannot but think, notwithstanding the general simila-
rity between them, that another, accurately corresponding
with the restoration, once existed, though long since un-
known.

These coins, in fact, appear to be of three distinct sorts.
First, those which are perfect and scrupulous imitations of
original types, and which alone deserve to be called " re-
stored coins." A remarkable example may be mentioned
in the restored heavy denarius of the most ancient times, on
which the indented, or incuse, letters of the word ROMA

246 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

are faithfully preserved. Secondly, those which renew the
portraits of preceding emperors. Many such having on the
reverse only the S C, it is difficult to conceive that any
other motive led to their repetition. Thirdly, those which
were struck, as far as we can judge, principally to recomme-
morate some glorious and interesting transactions, the dif-
ferences between them and certain original types being too
great to allow them to be considered as re-coinages of the
latter.

The restorations (to use, for the reasons stated, the
general term) are found in all the three metals ; in gold
about fifteen, in silver about forty, in brass between twenty
and thirty; but there are more in the last metal, if we
reckon the types repeated by different emperors. The gold
and silver, with two or three exceptions, were all struck by
Trajan ; his three predecessors having confined themselves
to restorations in brass 4 . A few of doubtful genuineness
need not be taken into the account.

No instance is known of a restored Medallion. This, it
appears to me, affords an additional argument, that pieces
of this description formed no part of the regular currency.

The whole of the gold, and also the brass, belong to the
imperial series ; the silver are almost entirely of republican
types ; and these last are generally regarded as by far the
most curious and interesting. They are of great rarity and
price, M. Mionnet valuing them at 100 to 300 francs each;
while the brass are in many instances of easy acquisition.
Very few of the gold have any existing archetypes ; and in
cases where similar coins are known, the variations are con-

4 A coin in second brass of Alexander Severus, styles him
REST1TVTOR MONeta?, but certainly in a different sense, and
most probably from his having ordered a discontinuance of the
large denarius struck first under Caracalla.

COINS DENOMINATED "RESTORED." 247

siderable; but the consular restorations by Trajan are in-
disputably " numi restituti," their agreement with the
original types being faithful and exact.

A notion has been entertained in consequence of the
number of restored consular coins, however rare the indivi-
dual types, that Trajan restored the whole series up to a
certain period ; and an argument has been attempted also
on the fact of his having restored the coins of some obscure
families, the types of which present nothing of remarkable
historical interest, as in the instance of those of the family
Rubria, of which we possess three varieties, and the same
all " restored." We are, however, at this time of day, no
very good judges of the motives which may have influenced
Trajan in such cases; and most certainly the great majority
of the coins, selected (as I imagine them to have been) for
the honour of renewal, refer plainly enough to persons,
events, or localities, connected in a striking manner with
the ancient glories and most valued institutions of the re-
public. It was a noble, as well as refined stroke of policy,
on the part of this deservedly illustrious prince, to refresh
and keep alive in the minds of the people the pride of an-
cestry, the renown of brave achievements, the memory of
the origin and growth of Roman power and independence,
the associations produced by revered traditions and distin-
guished names ; and by the simple process of replacing in
their hands the money of their forefathers, to tell its silent
but intelligible tale on these important points.

In truth, Trajan was a man after our own heart; he was
evidently an admirable numismatist, skilful and judicious in
the formation of his cabinet, and withal so magnanimously
liberal, as to spread forth its precious contents in the continual
view of the Roman people, that they might participate in
the charms of numismatic lore, and the stirring recollections

248 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

of the olden time. If a modern medal were to be struck to
his honour (and, notwithstanding the multitude already bear-
ing his name and portrait, he deserves one more), we should
take the liberty of suggesting to Mr. Wyon, who no doubt
would be requested to engrave the die, the decided propriety
of placing in the legend, in addition to the usual titles of
" Germanicus, Dacicus, Parthicus," the agnomen, scarcely
less honourable in our estimation, of Numismaticus.

In proof of a preceding remark, that his general plan
appears to have been to restore types of historical interest
and value, I may enumerate the following :

Incerta. Obv. Laureated head of Janus.

Rev. Jupiter in a quadriga, holding a sceptre and hurl-
ing thunder ; Victory managing the reins ; below, ROMA,
the letters broadly incused in the antique fashion.

Incerta. Obv. Helmed and winged head of Pallas, ROMA.

Rev. Rome seated on spoils, holding her spear, the
wolf and twins at her feet ; in the field, two prows of ships.
This type referred to the period of the Social War, Rome
asserting her claim by former conquest to the sovereignty
of Italy ; the prows of ships alluding to the type of the an-
cient As, and the age of Janus and Saturn. (Morell).

JEmilia.Rev. M LEPIDVS ^EMILIA REF S C. The
Basilica ^Emilia. The original was struck to commemo-
rate the reparation of this edifice by a decree of the Senate.
Pliny, who calls it mirabilis, states that among the inter-
columniations were displayed small shields bearing the effi-
gies of the illustrious men of this family ; that the columns
were of splendid marble from Phrygia and the Troad, from
which ancient seat the Romans were fond of deriving the
origin of their race and prowess.

Ctecilia. Rev. The elephant, emblematical of the conquest of
Africa.

Cassia. Head of Juno MONETA. Rev. Implements of Vul-
can. A fit type for a Restitutor Monetce.

Cassia. Head of Vesta. Rev. Her small rotunda, in the midst
a curule chair ; in the field, on one side, the ballot-urn, on
the other, a tablet inscribed A C. One of the Cassian
family had been appointed a kind of Grand Inquisitor with

COINS DENOMINATED " RESTORED." 249

respect to the morals of the Roman nunnery of those days ;
hence the curule chair so placed. The ballot-urn and tabel-
lary letters, signifying- Absolvo, Condemno, referred to an
important law brought in by the same Cassius, giving the
people the right of secret voting in criminal causes.

Claudia. Rev. Marcellus entering the portico of the temple of
Jupiter Feretrius to dedicate the spolia opima of Virido-
marus, king of the Gauls, whom he had slain in battle with
his own hand. Virgil exactly describes the type

" Aspice, ut insignis spoliis Marcellus opimis
Ingreditur." Mn. VI. v.869.

Cornelia. Rev. Head of Agrippa with a combined mural and

naval crown.
Horatia. COCLES. A name needing no comment.

Junia. Head of Liberty. Rev. The procession of the First
Consul attended by his proper officers. The establishment
of the Republic.

Mamilia. Rev. Ulysses and his dog. A type complimentary to
the Mamilian family, who traced their descent from
Ulysses ; one, moreover, always likely to be popular from
its pleasing character. There is a charming air of the
antique in the pedestrian accoutrements of Ulysses, his
Phrygian bonnet, short cloak, girt tunic, and long walking-
staff. His dog seems to be one of the progenitors of the
present Italian race of grey-hounds.

Memmia. Venerable head of Quirinus, his beard in thick pendu-
lous curls. Rev. The first celebration of the Cerealia by
one of this family.

Numonia. Rev. The famous exploit of Numonius Vaala, who
singly carried a trencli of the enemy's camp, which is
curiously represented.

Pompeia. Head of Pompey the Great.

Scribonia. The PVTEAL religiously built by one of this family.
It was a small, low, altar-shaped edifice, closed at the sides
for safety, but open at top to the supposed influence of
heaven, constructed over a celebrated pit, or fissure, which
was deemed sacred from having been caused by lightning.
In renewing this type, Trajan testified his reverence for the
ancient superstitions of his country.

(Others are passed over for the sake of brevity.)

Are not these types precisely such as we might expect to

find among the " restored" ? Do they not seem to have

L L

250 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

been particularly chosen for the lustre they reflect on past
ages ? It is true, we may consider that a few more had
equal claims to the same honour; but from the extreme
paucity (referring to the types individually) of the consular
"restituti" known to numismatists, it is probable that
others have failed to reach us, or possibly some may yet be
discovered, and added to the vast number of those minute
memorials, which from time to time have been safely re-
deemed from chinks and recesses, while the cumbrous
monuments of antiquity have nearly all perished, either by
their own weight, or from the very magnificence which was
designed to render them immortal.

The rarity alluded to appears to have occasioned some
surprise ; especially since many of the original types are at
present remarkably common, a point which, I think, admits
readily of explanation. It has been stated that the consular
denarii restored by Trajan amount to between thirty and
forty different types that is, we are positively acquainted
with so many this, too, in a reign during which incalcu-
lable numbers of the regular coins were issued from the
Roman mints, so that, to a proverb, " the reverses of the
coins of Trajan are infinite." Under these circumstances,
it can hardly be supposed that in any case the issue of a
restored type was a large one, or that it exceeded the
number sufficient for the purpose intended, whether it were
to preserve a singular medallic record, or to compliment a
particular family by recurring to the fame of their ancestors,
or to gratify the people of Rome generally by the repro-
duction of an authentic document relating to an ancient
institution. Restored coins, it is most likely, would be
meant chiefly for circulation in Rome itself, and be more
remarkable for their character than their quantity. To
have made them quite common, would have deprived them

COINS DENOMINATED "RESTORED." 251

of much of the interest they were calculated to excite. No
doubt the old silver of the republic had become scarce, es-
pecially perhaps in the metropolis, in consequence of the
prodigious drains occasioned by foreign wars, and the exe-
cution of expensive works in the provinces. Besides, a great
portion of it had been necessarily defaced, and much dete-
riorated in value from long-continued use ; and Xiphilinus,
quoting from the life of Trajan by Dion Cassius (a book
since unhappily lost) particularly says, that this emperor
caused all the money reduced to the state mentioned to be
melted up 5 , so that a reasonable apprehension may have
been entertained of the entire disappearance of the old
types. Most probably it was at this period, and out of the
old metal, that Trajan, adopting a politic expedient, renewed
to a certain extent the republican money; an additional
motive for which may have been the ambition of surpassing
his predecessors, who had renewed a portion of the imperial
series in brass. A vast quantity, however, of the old coins
still existed, though widely dispersed over the empire by a
succession of armies and colonists, where, in fact, since the
revival of science among modern European nations, they
have been continually brought to light. The coins which
Trajan missed are thus found by ourselves are restored by
the pickaxe, or the plough, and, naturally enough, in
numbers far exceeding the remains of his " restituti."
Many, from their injured condition, may be deemed fit
only for the crucible into which he threw a host of their
cotemporaries ; but a considerable portion are in a state of
perfect preservation, and must have lain snugly from a very
early period in the receptacles where they were left by the
accidents of war, or other circumstances leading to the de-

5 See Eckhel's remarks on this point. Vol. 5, p. 109.

252 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

posit of treasure. No one would be more surprised than
Trajan himself, could he inspect our chief cabinets, to see
complete sets of consular denarii, with almost the bloom of
the die yet upon them, reposing in merited honour, after all
the perils they have escaped, in carefully constructed cells,
upon materials of the most approved tint and fabric 6 , and
his own celebrated restorations of several of the types
belonging most frequently to the class known by the
name of desiderata. Their rarity, however, ought not to
detract from their interest. Whether or not we possess
them ourselves, or have no hope of ever obtaining them,
the knowledge of their existence, of their types and pecu-
liarities, is important to every one who would study satisfac-
torily by the aid of medals the history of the Roman re-
public.

Besides these restorations by Trajan, only two others are
known in silver 7 , one in honour of Trajan himself by his
adopted son and successor Hadrian, with the legend " Divus
Trajanus Pater Augustus" round the bust; a second by M.
Aurelius and L. Verus of the denarius of the 6th Legion of
M. Anthony. I can produce no certain reason for the
latter, not being sufficiently versed in the Praetorian secrets
of the period 8 .

Little need be added with regard to the restorations in

6 Cloth is generally used for this purpose, velvet being apt to
contract damp, and, especially the black, to discolour silver. I
have heard it remarked, by one v ho was not a currier, that " there 's
nothing like leather."

7 M. Mionnet refers to a very rare denarius of Augustus, re-
stored by Trajan.

8 It may be plausibly conjectured, that the said 6th Legion had
maintained, from the remote time of its enrolment under Anthony
to the reign of Aurelius and Verus, a high reputation for valour
and fidelity that it was, in fact, to use a modern military phrase,
a " crack regiment" at the Roman " Horse-Guards"

COINS DENOMINATED "RESTORED." 253

gold. It has been already stated, that no instance occurs
of a fac-simile correspondence with any known original type.
As the case is so remarkably different with respect to the
silver, the reasonable inference is, as before remarked, not
that all exact originals have perished, but that such never
existed, and that the restorations in question were meant
to be honorary renewals of portraits and subjects, rather than
studious repetitions of old pieces of money. Nor is the ex-
planation of this so difficult as may be imagined. These gold
are all of imperial types, commencing with "Divus Julius;"
not one occurs of the consular ; and it seems clear that
Trajan's motive for striking them was very different from that
which induced him to restore so carefully the republican
silver. The latter he justly regarded as the old, regular
money of the state, of great curiosity and importance, and
which, from dispersion and long wear, was in danger of being
altogether lost 9 : but the consular gold had been compara-
tively a modern coinage, had been struck only occasionally 10 ,
and, there are good reasons for believing, by no certain law
till about the time of J. Caesar. Trajan, therefore, pro-
perly omitted them, especially as the types offered nothing
in preference to those of the silver. But with the pride
and splendour of the empire, and the practice which thence-
forward obtained of stamping the heads of the Augustan
family on the coinage generally, the gold naturally took the
lead. Great attention was paid to the execution of the
money in all the metals, the most able and ingenious artists

9 That he restored none of the consular brass is readily ac-
counted for by the nature of the types. It was hardly worth while
to introduce again the parts of the as with its trite numeral knobs
(even if practicable with its many alterations in size and weight),
and whatever interesting devices they bore were to be met with on
the denarii of the respective families.

10 Hence the scarcity of this class of coins.

254 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

being employed at the mint; and for the first time, the brass
became remarkable for fineness of quality and beauty of
workmanship. From this circumstance, and on account
also of its immense circulation, Titus, Domitian and Nerva
repeated several of the large and middle-sized brass in com-
pliment to the memory of the deified Augustus and his im-
mediate successors, from whom the imperial power had
been deduced, and on the acknowledgment of whose titles
by the senate and people they claimed a right to the conti-
nued enjoyment of their own. Trajan, following out the
plan, gave repetitions of the portraits of all his predecessors
in the empire, excepting five, in gold. These exceptions
were Caligula, Nero, Otho, Vitellius and Domitian, of the
predecessorship of each of whom a good emperor might well
feel so ashamed, as to determine that the noblest of the
metals should not, through him, again be disgraced by
being compelled to give brilliancy to their names and fea-
tures. ' That Tiberius obtained the honour, may have been
owing to his close relationship to Augustus, most of his coins
reading, " Divi Augusti Filius." The gold, as may be ex-
pected, are very rare ; the brass in several instances
common, having been struck by three emperors, and
no doubt in considerable quantities.

A circumstance, both amusing and worthy of remark, as
corroborating the idea that the portrait was the chief object
in these recoinages, is, that frequently the restored head
has been made to bear a strong resemblance to that of the
restorer. I have before me in a row several which excite a
smile on this account. A first-brass of Augustus restored by
Nerva gives him the hollow cheek and attenuated visage
of the grave sexagenarian, with a tendency in the profile
to the " cum 7iaso adunco" style, in compliment of course to
Nerva's eagle-beaked organ. This portraiture could never

COINS DENOMINATED "RESTORED." 255

have exactly suited Augustus, for we are told that he was
beautiful at all periods of his life 11 . Yet still the general
likeness is admirably hit off, so that no one could doubt for
a moment for whose head it was intended. A second-brass
coin of the same emperor restored by Titus presents a mar-
vellous difference. Here all the bones are well covered, the
hollows more than filled up, the lower jaw rounded, and ex-
tending to a chin of some prominency, the whole reminding
us of the plumpness of the Flavian family; at the same time,
it is evidently no other than Augustus himself, and we may
imagine the true Julian blood to beat beneath the surface.
In vol.1, p. 80, of M. Mion net's "Rarete des Medailles"
we find an engraving of a denarius of Pompey the Great,
restored by Trajan, which is cited from the cabinet of M.
Gossellin. Considering it, as no doubt we may, to be a
faithful representation, we are struck with its great resem-
blance to Trajan. The nose, which appears on the regular
coins of Pompey somewhat pug-fashioned, is here very tole-
rably bridged, and just such a one as Trajan might have
claimed for his own. Indeed, were it not for the curly tuft
upon the forehead, distinctive of Pompey (and, curiously
enough, expressly mentioned by Plutarch), the portrait
might pass for that of his great successor in Eastern
triumphs. However, the Roman artist had on this occasion
little difficulty, for, as far as we can judge from medals, these
two famous men were much alike in person, as well as in
military talents and achievements. The difficulty must
have been greater in the instance of the portrait of J. Caesar
restored by Trajan in gold. I refer to a beautifully exe-
cuted cast in my possession, one of a set taken from the

11 Forma f nit per omnes cetatls gradus venustissima." Suet, in
vitd ejus, Ixxix.

256 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

gold coins which have been since unfortunately plundered
from the royal French cabinet. From the well-known dif-
ference between the spare physiognomy of the Dictator, and
the massive proportions of Trajan's countenance, a glance
at this portrait shows us that the Caesar Redivivus of the
latter was a disguised personation of himself. There is a
pretension to the true Caesarean style of features, but the
mould seems to have been enlarged and squared. " The
voice of the legend is Caesar's voice, but the hands em-
ployed are Trajan's;" and we must be as blind as old
Isaac was in the case of his two sons, if we do not per-
ceive the trick. A similar practice was occasionally
adopted at the commencement of a reign, the features
of the new emperor being, as is well expressed by Captain
Smyth in his work on Roman Large-brass Medals, "depicted
under the flattering trace of a likeness to his predecessor." 12
This is precisely the case with a denarius which I have of
Trajan, evidently one of the first struck, as it bears the date
of his second consulate, in which he succeeded to the empire.
The Coelatores and Flatores (query Flatterers?) of the
mint fully accomplished their design, if it were to hint that
the virtues of Nerva must necessarily belong to one who had
already inherited both his empire and his face. These were
the parties with whom all such clever modes of court-compli-
ment originated, it being soon understood that they received
at least the tacit approbation of their employers, and were
in no danger of losing their situations by making somewhat

12 Page 16. (Tiberius.) I cannot omit the opportunity of ex-
pressing my admiration of this interesting and useful book. I wish
for the sake of the literary world I could call it a publication ; for
having been printed for private circulation only, the number of
readers, who can have been gratified by its perusal, has been far
too few. I was not at all surprised to hear lately that it was in
the course of translation on the Continent.

COINS DENOMINATED " RESTORED." 257

free, on certain occasions, with the majesty of the imperial
lineaments. The tyro in numismatics must not, on this ac-
count, however, be misled into the notion, that little de-
pendence is to be placed on the fidelityofmedallic portraits
in general. No conclusion would be more false. The in-
stances commented upon are peculiar exceptions, thoroughly
understood by experienced numismatists, and, so far from
misleading, merely amuse by the skill and ingenuity they
display. The fact, that these ingenuities are so readily de-
tected, proves the truth of the standard likenesses with
which the regular coins abundantly furnish us. Certainly,
excessive flattery prevailed on ancient coins, though scarcely
more so than it does on most modern medals ; but this was
worked into the legends and imaginary devices, while
the portraits were studiously copied from the reality.

Another point, and one relating to the restorations in
brass, deserves notice. It is said, and with general pro-
priety, that while the gold and silver coinages were under
the direction of the emperors, the senate retained authority
over that of the brass, and hence the stamp of S C which
almost invariably appears upon it. But why then do the
legends of the restored brass coins so particularly attribute
the act of restoration to the emperors ? It is true, they bear
the S C equally with the others ; but it can signify no more
than that the senate approved of what the emperors had
ordered. Why should not the senate have taken to them-
selves the merit of the restorations in their own metal ? We
may be led from these circumstances to conclude, that, after
all, the authority of the senate over the brass was more no-
minal than real; that, in fact, every type they published re-
quired virtually the sanction of a " cum regis privilegio ;"
and this may be easily believed, when we consider the un-
bounded adulation displayed on Roman medals, and the

M M

258 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

universal obsequiousness of the senate, as history fully
shows, whether the emperors were good or bad.

I have only to add, in completion of this sketch, an obser-
vation or two on the Consecration types of some former em-
perors struck at a late period in billon. They are usually
attributed to Gallienus, but with no better authority than
conjecture. From their base material and coarse fabric, they
must certainly belong to some part of the period compre-
hended between Philip and Gallienus; and from their uni-
formity must have been the production of the same mint.
They have been given to Philip, because he might have
struck them on the occasion of the secular games; to
Decius, because he had a strong antiquarian turn, and,
" rejoicing in the name" of Trajan, made some experiments
upon the coinage ; to Trebonian, because one of the reverses
belongs also to coins of himself and his son Volusian, and
occurs only during these two reigns; and to Gallienus,
because by this time the calamities of the empire had accu-
mulated to such a dreadful degree, that the interposition of
all the gods, and of all the deified worthies of the Roman
calendar in addition, was deemed necessary to avert from
the state total destruction. I am sorry to finish in a per-
plexity among " tot discrimina rerum" but there is no help
for it, as the author of these extra specimens of medallic art
declined taking due pains for the transmission of his name
to posterity. After all, however, perhaps he was a wise man
to leave future numismatic connoisseurs in doubt, however
distressing, upon a matter so little creditable, either to his
bullion-office, or his taste in die-sinking.

E. C. BRICE.

259

XXX.

ON THE WEIGHT OF THE JEWISH COINS
DESCRIBED BY BAYER.

As Bayer, in describing the Jewish coins with Samaritan
characters, has given the weight either in Spanish grains, or
in French grains, it may not be unacceptable to some
readers of his two excellent Latin works to know, at once,
how to reduce those Foreign grains to English grains,
and thus to be able, without delay, to compare the
coins noticed by Bayer with others to which ready access
may be had.

The Spanish weight called " El Marco," or the Marc,
used in weighing gold, consists of 4608 Spanish grains,
and of 3550 English grains. If, therefore, any number of
Spanish grains be multiplied by '770399, the product will
be the corresponding number of English grains. Thus, as
Bayer himself possessed a copper or brass Jewish coin
weighing 184 grains Spanish, that coin weighed 141 f Eng-
lish grains, inasmuch as 184 multiplied by -770399 gives
141-753416 for the product.

The French weight called " La Livre de Paris," or the
Paris Pound, consists of 9,216 French grains, and of 7,560
English grains. If, therefore, any number of French grains,
or Paris Marc grains, be multiplied by '820313, the pro-
duct will be the corresponding number of English grains.
Thus, as Louis the Sixteenth possessed a Jewish shekel
weighing 256 French grains, that coin weighed 210 English
grains. For, 256 x -820313=210 -000128.

J. FREEMAN,
\

Stratford, Essex.

260 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

XXXI.

REVIVAL BY DR. WALSH OF A REFUTED
ERROR.

IN " An Essay on Ancient Coins, &c.," by the Rev. Dr.
Walsh, we have been sorry to observe an old error revived,
which, in the opinion of the best numismatists for a century
past, had been most satisfactorily refuted. We allude to a
legend on a brass coin of Constantine the Great, read in-
cautiously by Occo, " Imp. Constantino P. Aug. BAP NAT,''
instead of B R P NAT," and interpreted by him
RAPtismate NATo, instead of Bono JRei Publics NATo. Occo
was followed upon trust by Mediobarba, Du Cange and
Beger, which Jobert accounts for very naturally : " Uenvie
qu'ils avaient que la decouverte fut vraie, les avait empeche
d'examiner trop exactement les caracteres, et la signifi-
cation qu'ils pouvaient avoir." 1 Dr. W. appears to have
been influenced by a similar sentiment, though less excus-
ably, for he has reverted to Occo's interpretation in defiance
of the plainest evidence of its incorrectness, and produced
the said coin among those " illustrative of the early pro-
gress of Christianity," as one struck in commemoration of
the Baptism of Constantine. We say we are sorry for this,
because we feel mortified that any English writer on coins
in the present day, should have so unfortunately committed
his judgment on a noted point. Hardouin was the first that
found out the mistake, and the discovery was of such a con-
vincing nature, that no one dreamt of contravening its
truth, till Dr. W. imagined, we are bound to believe sin-
cerely, that the former reading, so calculated to heighten

1 La Science des Mcdailles,tom.u. p. 321, (Ed. of 1739).

DR. WALSH'S REVIVAL or A REFUTED ERROR. 261

the interest of his Essay, was after all genuine. Eckel, with
his usual good sense, dismisses the matter in few words.
He says, " Inveteratum errorem felicitur difflavit Har-
duinus," and contents himself with adding, that the same
legend occurs on coins of nearly the same era, viz. of
Magnus Maximus, and his son Fl. Victor, where we read
at full length, " Bono Rei Publicae nati." 2 It is to be ob-
served, that the device of these coins is precisely similar to
that of the coin in question, viz. the two emperors mutually
supporting a globe, emblematical of the Roman " orbis
terrarum."

The error originated in the similarity of form between
the letters R and A on the coins of the lower empire, the
two main strokes of the A being made nearly parallel, and
apparently joined at top by another stroke, instead of
meeting at a point, as on the coins of the Augustan age,
and as we ourselves now form it on the purer Roman
model. It is very possible to mistake the one for the other
in a legend with which we are not familiar, or when the coin
is indifferently preserved. In the case before us, no sooner
had Hardouin given his own reading, than all the leading
numismatists of Europe discovered on a re-examination of
the coins, that he was perfectly right, and that the true
legend was B R P NAT. We beg to refer Dr. W. to a
specimen which we presume he may conveniently inspect,
we mean a coin of this type in the British Museum. We
venture, also, confidently to refer him for another scrutiny
to the original, if in fair preservation, of the engraving pre-
sented in his own book, requesting him to bear in mind our
remark respecting the formation of the letter A. We say
the original, for in consequence of the shape of this letter

2 Doctr. Vet. Num. vol. viii. p. 32.

262 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

in the engraving being different from what we have seen on
hundreds of the coins of Constantine, it would appear that
the artist employed fully participated with Dr. W. himself in
the desire of converting a Pagan into a Christian medal.

Historians are all agreed that Constantine delayed his
baptism till he was almost " in articulo mortis" Our author,
aware of this, says, that " the coin was struck probably after
his death" (p. 94). But does not the type bear every in-
dication of having been published while he was alive, and in
the plenitude of ambition and power ?

We are really surprised that any mistake respecting this
coin should ever have been made, considering the character
of its device. The emperor is represented standing, dressed
in the civil robe of the statesman over the warrior's coat of
mail, in his right hand a globe, in his left a spear. This is
perfectly consonant with the legend, which, in the usual
complimentary style of medals, declares that he was " born
for the good of the republic ;" but what, in the name of
common sense, has it to do with his baptism ? Dr. W.
seems to have had some misgiving on the point, for he says,
that the emperor holds " a globe on which the cross had not
yet been placed.' 9 If there be any argument at all in this, it
is one of the " lucus d non lucendo" sort.

Jobert having misunderstood the letters P* AVG. to sig-
nify Patri Augusto, instead of Pio Augusto, and thereupon
advanced a false argument in favour of the true reading,
B-R-P-NAT, his judicious commentator, the Baron Bimard
de la Bastie, duly corrected the error in an annotation on the
opposite page. This correction, however, Dr. W. omits to
notice. It better suited his purpose to deal on this point with
Jobert alone, whose argument is shown up and demolished,
though not for the first time. Dr. W. professes to cite
Jobert's reasons with numerical precision; but how are we

DR. WALSH'S REVIVAL OF A REFUTED ERROR. 263

to account for his having left out the following, and the
most important : " Le Type de la medaille n' a nul rapport
avec le Bateme, ni a la Religion ?" 3

Not content, however, with enhancing the interest of this
coin, by making it refer to the baptism of Constantine, he
expresses a pretty confident opinion, that it was minted in
London itself. This he grounds on the exergual letters
PLC. We admit the possibility of its correctness, but con-
sider that the coin was far more probably struck at Lyons,
which was one of the largest and most important cities of
the empire, the military centre of a very extensive region,
and where we know an immense quantity of money was
coined at that period. He attempts to corroborate his
opinion by stating, that while " Jobert reads PL, wherever
it occurs, Pecunia Lugduni^ "The money of Lyons," his com-
mentator (the Baron de la Bastie) reads it Pecunia Londini,
" The money of London." Begging Dr. Walsh's pardon
with all due respect, the Baron says no such thing. What
he does say, we find to be this (turning to La Science des
Medaittes, torn. ii.p. 104, to which Dr. W. particularly refers
us ) "PLON." (a very different reading from PL.) " Je
croirais qu'il faut lire Percussa Londini, ou Pecunia Londi-
nensis" an interpretation with which all numismatists,
Continental as well as English, are now satisfied.

We have been induced to make these observations, be-
cause we love especially the simple truth of an ancient
medal, and are jealous of the application of any fanciful,
unwarrantable meaning, however apparently calculated
to render it more interesting. We admire and prize the rich
gloss of a genuine patina, but repudiate with no very agree-
able sensations a fictitious varnish. S.P.Q.R.

3 La Science des Mtdailles, torn. ii. p. 322.

264

NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

XXXII.

UNPUBLISHED COINS OF CARAUSIUS AND
ALLECTUS.

THE types here engraved have been hitherto unpublished.
They are presented for this reason, rather than from their
possessing any remarkable peculiarity. The former (Carau-
sius) escaped the researches of the zealous Stukeley, nor does
it occur in the very extensive and valuable list of the coins
of this emperor given in Mr. Akerman's "Descriptive Cata-
logue" There is a coin of the same type of Maximian
(Hercules), one of the two co-partners in the empire whom
Carausius, the British Hercules of those days, termed, in
pseudo-affection, "fratres sui." The type before us is clearly
one of emulation and rivalry. The legend on the reverse
is HERC VLI PACIFero. Some of the latter letters are de-
faced, otherwise the coin is in fine condition. It found its
way to London from Bury St. Edmunds, where it was
discovered. CONTRIBUTOR.

MISCELLANIES.

MEDAL OF CHARLES XII. OF SWEDEN. Mr. Loscombe,
who communicates the above interesting piece, observes, " This
small jetton would be quite unworthy of notice, were it not, per-
haps, unique, and did it not throw some light on a passage in the
life of Charles XII. of Sweden, whose portrait is on its ob-
verse. It bears the date 1709, in which year the duke of Marl-
borough was sent to discover in a conference with that monarch,
whether he meditated an attack upon Russia, or an irruption into
the North of Germany. The sagacious Marlborough soon saw
where the storm would fall. The reverse of this medalet,
however, seems to show that there was reason for the doubt.
It represents a narrow strait of the sea, meant, no doubt, for the
Cattegat, with the pillars ; and PLUS VLTR A alluding to
possessions which were his, in hope and intention, beyond the Cat-
tegat, which divided him from Germany."

DISCOVERY OF GOLD COINS AT SOUTHEND NEAR LEWISHAM.
Mr. J. D. Cuff obligingly communicates the following particulars
respecting this discovery. " Understanding that a Mr. Waghorn
had the custody of the coins, I. went down to Southend, and he
kindly brought for my inspection twenty pieces, and the jars in
which they were enclosed. Nine of the pieces were the Laurel
Units of James I. and the remaining eleven twenty-shilling
pieces, or Broads of Charles I. of different coinage ; some with
the ruff, others with the band : all had the appearance of wear
by circulation. Mr. Waghorn told me, that altogether there
were four hundred and twenty-one coins, and that the twenty I
had seen were a fair sample of the bulk, having been taken out
promiscuously from the whole. The coins were discovered by a
labourer trenching a field at the back of Mr. Forster's house, not
more than a foot under the surface, in two blue and white china
jars covered over with lead. The man very honestly and corn-
men dably communicated the circumstance to his employer ; and the
treasure now remains subject to the decision of the jury as to the
ownership."

N N

RATIOS OF GOLD TO SILVER FROM 17GO TO 1829.

, Averages for each Ten Yeart, and the total Mean Average for Seventy Years.
From the Appendix to a Report of a Select Committee of the American Congress on Coins, June 30, 1832.

Years.

Pure Gold to
pure Silver.

Average for
Ten Years.

Years.

Pure Gold to
pure Silver.

Average for
Ten Years.

1700

1429 to

1795

1477 to

1761

13.94

1796

14.77

1762

14.63

1797

lfi.45

1763

14.71

1798

1545

1764

14.91

1799

1429

1765

14.9

1800

14.81

1494 to 1

1766

14.41

1801

1447

1787

14.45

1802

15.23

1768

14.58

1803

14.47

1769

14.45

14.51 to 1

1803

14.67

1770

14.35

1805

15.14

1771

14.36

1806

14.25

1772

14.19

1X07

14.46

1773

14.73

1808

14.79

1774

15.05

1809

1C.25

14.85 to 1

1775

1462

14.3

1810

16.15

1776

1434

1811

1 5.72

1777

14.04

1812

15.04

1778

14.34

1813

14.53

1779

13.89

14.49 to 1

1814

lf>.85

1780

1443

1815

16.30

1781

13.33

13.9

1816

13.64

1782

13.54

14.8

1817

15.58

1783

13.78

1818

15.42

1784

14.90

28.7

1819

1582

15.41 to 1

1785

15.21

14.3

1820

15.71

1786

I4.M

1821

15.98

1787

14.83.

1822

1591

1788

14.71

1823

1591

1789

14.89

14.45 to 1

1824

1564

1790

15.01

14.7

1825

I5.f>9

1791

14.95

14.9

1826

15.69

1792

1443

1827

15.77

1793

15.01

29.6

1828

15.77

1794

15.32

14.8

1829

15.95

15.80 to 1

Total Mea

14.92 to 1.

A Table of the Prices in the Market of Gold and Silver, from 1760 to 1819,
exhibiting the relative prices of Gold and Silver to each other.

STANDARD SILVER.

GOLD.

Lowest.
s. d.

Highest.
s. d.

Average.
s. d.

,. d.

Av. for 10 years.

1760 .. 5 34

1764 .. 5 94

5 6J per oz.

3 19 5

134 to H|

14 3 \ 14 3

1765 ., 5 34

1769 . 5 74

3 19 2

14J .. 14|

14 4/

1770 .. 5 24

1774 .. 5 8

5 5| ..

3 19 1

14 . 14 fc

}14 1

1775 ..52

177 ..59

3 17 7

134 .. 15

. .

1780 ..53

1784 . . f> 10J{

3 17 8

13$ .. 14|

13 9x

5)27 6

5)19 12 11

(

3 18 7J

) I4

1785 .. 5 14

1789 .. 5 3|

3 17 6

144 iH

14 8

1790 ..5 14

1794 .. 5 44

5 4|

3 17 6

14J .. 15i

14 7\

1795 ..50

1799 ..56

3 17 6

14J .. 154

14 9j l

1800 ..54

1804 .. 5 K'4

5 8 ..

439

13J .. 15

14 Hl4 9

1805 .. 5 44

1809 ..59

442

144 16*

15 5J

1810 ....
1815 .. ..

1814 .. . r
1819 .. ..

6 3i ..
5 DJ ..

4 18
434

144 - 6
14| .. 15}

15 2^
V 15 3
15 2j

267

TRANSACTIONS OF THE NUMISMATIC
SOCIETY.

The first ordinary Meeting of the Society took place on Thursday
the 26th January ; Edward Hawkins, Esq. F.R.S. and S.A.
in the chair.

The following communication from Sir Henry Ellis, K. H. was
read.

British Museum, Jan. 14, 1837.

My dear Sir. Among the popular errors of England, I know
of no one so prevalent, as that which supposes a farthing of Queen
Anne to be of enormous value ; and it is not confined to the lower
classes of life, but pervades even those who mix with the best so-
ciety. The received tradition is, that after three impressions had
been struck, the die of this farthing flew in pieces ; that two of the
impressions are known in our cabinets, but that the third has been
constantly advertised for, almost from the days of Queen Anne
without success, and still remains a desideratum. At the British
Museum, scarcely a week passes, without some officer or other of
the Institution receiving an offer for the Museum cabinet of the
presumed lost coin, sometimes estimated at the value of 300/.
sometimes at 600Z., and once I have known it estimated at 1000/.
I possess one letter in which the writer states, that he had written
about his farthing to the Lords of the Treasury, who had very
uncivilly returned him no answer ; and I have been assured that
even his Majesty has been once personally addressed upon this
supposed rare coin.

To the Members of the Numismatic Society, there can be no
necessity for entering into detail respecting the farthings of
Queen Anne : their history and varieties are sufficiently known.
But possibly they may not all be aware that at the Quarter Sessions
of Dublin in the year 1814, the error of the Queen Anne's farthing
was actually a ground of serious litigation ; and that the Counsel,
Judge, and Jury, all followed each other, like sheep leaping a dry
ditch ; and that, for borrowing and detaining from a friend the sup-
posed third farthing, one George Hone was sentenced to be im-
prisoned for twelve calendar months, and afterwards to find sure-
ties.

A copy of the report of this trial, with the speeches of the
Counsel and Recorder is enclosed, taken from the British Press

268 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Newspaper of Feb. 14th, 1814. It is an instance of the singular
effects which may be produced even from a popular error, I am
my dear Sir, ever faithfully yours, HENRY ELLIS.

Dublin, February 8th, QUARTER SESSIONS.
A FARTHING !

The King, at the Prosecution of John Millar, against George Hone.

Mr. Green as Counsel of the Crown, stated the case in nearly
the following terms :

Although the privilege is often waved in this Court, yet there
are some particularities in this case which you require to be ac-
quainted with before you hear the evidence. It may appear at
first sight trivial and insignificant, on account of the small value
of the property taken ; but, gentlemen, in morality, principle, and
law, the offence is not the less culpable because the object is
trivial. Gentlemen, you have probably all heard, that in the reign
of Queen Anne, there were but three farthings coined: it was at
a short period before the death of that sovereign this coinage took
place ; and, Gentlemen, it is a matter of historical record, that in
the coining of the third farthing, the die broke. From this cir-
cumstance an adventitious value was added to these three pieces ;
so much so, that one of them is preserved in the King's Museum,
as a great curiosity, a second is also in the British Museum ; but
the third is missing. I do not doubt but that the Gentlemen on
the other side will argue, that a Jury ought not to take into their
notice or consideration any extrinsic value that may be placed on it,
but look upon it merely as a farthing. But, Gentlemen, I may say
to you, in the words of Hudibras

" Th' intrinsic value of a thing
Is just as much as it will bring."

Some years ago a public advertisement was sent, offering a re-
ward of five hundred pounds for the third farthing ; and so well
aware of this circumstance was the Prosecutor, that when this
farthing came by accident into his hands, he considered it of the
greatest value, and kept it under lock and key. Gentlemen of
the Jury, if it is the real farthing it must be of considerable value.
The Prisoner convinced of this, conceived the base idea of secur-
ing it to himself, and for this purpose borrowed it from Mr. Millar (in
whose service he was), under the pretence of shewing it to a person
who was a judge of antient coins. Mr. Millar gave it to him with-
out any suspicion of any sinister design; but on his making repeated
application to the Prisoner for it, he got nothing but evasive re-
plies in return. A few evenings after this transaction, the prisoner
Hone asked Millar to accompany him to a public-house on the
quay, which they had before been in the habit of resorting to.

NUMISMATIC SOCIETY. 269

Millar rather unwillingly accompanied him ; but when he had sat
down in the public room, he found a parcel of Hone's acquaintance
there, who immediately began a conversation about a farthing, as
to its value and what was to be done with it. Mr. Millar declined
any conversation about it, conceiving he was only brought for the
purpose of being betrayed into some expression before witnesses,
but demanded the farthing from Hone. Now, Gentlemen of the
Jury, what do you think of the modest proposal of Mr. Hone ?
Why that before he would give it up, Mr. Millar must execute a
security or bond to the amount of 700, as half the expected
price of the farthing. Mr. Millar spurned at this, went home,
and the next day brought him before Mr. Guiness, one of the
Magistrates of Duke Street Police Office. At first Mr. G. thought
it a case too trifling for any legal process, but when he saw with
what perseverance Hone kept possession of the farthing, he could
not refuse to take the informations. Gentlemen, I must inform
you, that even in this stage of the case he was attended by the
attorney, and two barristers were there to defend his right of
assuming to himself this part of the property of Mr. Millar. Let
me ask you, Gentlemen of the Jury, would not a man who acted
in this way shew you that he attached a much greater value to
this piece of metal, than its nominal value. It is not to be allowed
in a court of justice, that any man shall, with impunity, take even
a farthing, and dare the person whom he thus deprived of his
property. Mr. Greene then stated the nature of the indictment,
and the reason that it contained so many counts. It was for the
purpose of preventing any quibble in the defence which might be
urged by the other side, that the pleadings were so widely spread.
Mr. Greene concluded by stating a general principle of law,
that if a person gets property in a fraudulent manner, or by fraudu-
lent representation, he was guilty of larceny. To which the
learned Recorder assented, by saying, that no person can have
legal possession of property by fraudulent means.

Dorothea Millar examined by Mr. Wallace.

The substance of her examination was, that she was married and
lived in Graf ton Street, No. 3, where she keeps a confectioner's
shop. She knew the prisoner Hone ; he lived with them as a
journeyman ; he also boarded in the house. About eight or nine
weeks ago, Hone came into the parlour where she was sitting,
there had been some halfpence brought in by the servant-maid,
which were laid on the mantelpiece, among which was the farthing
in question. Hone took it into his hands, and said it was a Queen
Anne's farthing ; and, after some conversation as to the value of
it, she locked it up in the shop. On the 22nd of September, Hone
came to her, and asked her for a loan of the farthing ; she asked
her husband, Mr. Millar, where it was, not wishing to give it, but

270 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Mr. Millar gave it to him, and he never returned it since. Hone
never made any proposition as to buying it, there were several con-
versations about it, at all of which it was estimated at a great value ;
Hone said he had been looking for it for twelve years.

This witness was cross-examined with much ingenuity by Mr.
Me Nally, but nothing very important arose out of it.

' John Millar, examined by Mr. Hitchcock, stated, that he was
the husband of last witness ; remembered the circumstances stated
by his wife ; remembered the night that Hone wanted to borrow
the farthing he went to the door, looked out, came back, hesi-
tated, and then made the application to Mrs. Millar for the
farthing ; he desired her to let him have it, he considered it of
great value ; he had read in a Bath paper of three hundred pounds
reward for the lost farthing. Hone said it was worth 1400. He
remembers the evening when Hone brought him to the public-
house ; he had his friends there, who began asking witness what
he would do with the farthing ? After some conversation, Hone
asked him to give security or a bond for 700, until they divided
the profits of the farthing between them. The night he made
Hone a prisoner, he asked three separate times for it; at the last
application, Hone said he would be d d before he would give it
up. He also refused to give it up before the magistrates.

This witness was cross examined by Mr. Ridgeway.

Mark Magrath, Esq. was sworn, and stated that the Prisoner
had promised before him at the police office to return the farthing,
which he did not.

The Court then said, that Hone had made an affidavit stating
his having lost the farthing.

On the part of the defence two witnesses were produced as to
the character of Hone, whose knowledge went to but a short time,
but during that time they gave him an excellent character.

Mr. Me Nally submitted to the Recorder that there was no
evidence to support the indictment ; there was no stealing, the Pro-
secutor had given the farthing to his client voluntarily.

The Recorder then addressed the Jury by stating that it was
for them to consider whether, when the Prisoner borrowed the
farthing, it was with a fraudulent intention or not. If they be-
lieved it was so, they must find him guilty of larceny. There
were a number of counts in the indictment, but none of them
went further than to charge him with petty larceny, for none
of them put a higher value on the farthing than one shilling ; it
was then for them to decide whether they conceived the borrowing
was but a device to obtain possession of it. This they were to
judge from the evidence, and the first circumstance for their atten-
tion was, that he knew the value of it, for he said he was for
twelve years in search of it : the next was, his continually

NUMISMATIC SOCIETY. '271

refusing to return it : a third was, his collecting his friends in a
place where he had invited the Prosecutor to come ; and when he had
succeeded in bringing him, he wanted, before those persons so as-
sembled, to procure from Millar a security or bond for so large a
sum as 700. Surely these circumstances are worthy to be taken
into consideration by an intelligent Jury, as to what was the Pri-
soner's intention in getting possession of this farthing. There
was also bringing counsel to the police office, and his anxiety to be
discharged the first sitting day of that Court, after the informations
were sworn, and before the bills of indictment had been found by
the Grand Jury. His conduct on that occasion was, that when
this application was made, he (the learned Judge) desired him to
leave the farthing in the hands of the Clerk of the Crown: his
answer was, that it was at his lodgings, which were a great way off;
yet in an affidavit which he afterwards made, and in which he swore
he had lost the farthing, it proved that his lodgings were so near the
Court as Abbey Street. Besides, considering all these circumstances,
by what right does he keep the property of Mr. Millar ? Surely it
cannot be said that he has a legal right. I think, Gentlemen of
the Jury, all these circumstances considered, that it is by a fraudu-
lent right he keeps possession of the property, and, with a fraudu-
lent intention he obtained it.

The Jury instantly returned a verdict of Guilty.

The Recorder then addressed the Prisoner :

" George Hone, the Court has taken into consideration all the
circumstances of this case, in which you are only charged with
petty larceny, yet it appears with more circumstances of aggrava-
tion than are generally to be found in crimes of that class. You
were the servant of the man whose property you have taken
this was an aggravation. From your manners, appearance, and
the character you have got, you ought to have been above the mean
devices, the fraudulent schemes, by which you have obtained this
property, and which you have kept without the smallest signs of
contrition. Let me tell you, though you seem insensible of it,
that the verdict of the Jury has stamped ignominy on your cha-
racter. Your sentence is, that you be imprisoned in the gaol of
Newgate for twelve calendar months, after which, you are to find
two sureties in 20 each, and yourself in 40 ; and, unless you
give up the farthing, not a day of that time will be remitted you."

A list of the Members was read, amounting to upwards of one
hundred. Several presents of books and coins were an-
nounced, and the President gave notice that the Society would
meet again on Thursday the 23rd February.

272 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

At the second ordinary Meeting of the Society, which took place
on the 23rd February, the following letter, addressed to the
President, was read.

Coins of Clau- Sir, I* nas frequently been observed with

dius with regret, by Numismatists, that the best evidence

DE BRITANNIS. of Antiquity has been strangely neglected by his-
torical writers. In few instances, have medals been quoted ; and
even Gibbon, who sometimes deigns to notice them, appears not
to have referred to actual specimens, but rather to the medallic
authors by whom they are described. The establishment of a Nu-
mismatic Society affords, however, the assurance that the importance
of medallic studies is at length duly felt and acknowledged ; still
there are many persons who appear to be all but ignorant of the ex-
istence of such an important adjunct to the annals of the historian.

I have been led into these remarks, in consequence of a paper
having been very recently read at the Royal Society of Litera-
ture by Mr. Hogg, in which that gentleman, in giving an ac-
count of the inscription on a stone preserved in the wall of the
Barberini Palace at Rome, recording the subjugation of the
Britains by the Emperor Claudius, ventures, most unadvisedly, to
offer a new reading of this very interesting record.

Mr. Hogg commences by stating, that although the prsenomen
IMP. is omitted, the inscription belongs to Claudius I. A re-
ference to the coins of that emperor would have shown Mr. Hogg
that the title IMPerator was never used by Claudius as a prse-
nomen ; and, indeed, Suetonius says, " prccnomine Imperatoris
abstinuit" of the truth of which we have the best possible evi-
dence in the numerous coins of Claudius.

As regards the inscription itself, there can be no doubt that the
date, as inserted by Gauges de' Gozze was supplied on the best
authority the coins a.bove alluded to.

The mere Tyro in Numismatic Science must be familiar with
the gold and silver coins of Claudius, bearing a triumphal arch in-
scribed DE BRITANNIS, and having on the obverse the titles,
TRIE- POT- IX- COS- V- IMP- XVI; thus showing that
the triumph decreed by the senate to Claudius, was while that em-
peror held the tribunitian power for the ninth and not for the
eleventh time as Mr. Hogg supposes. I have the honour to remain,
Sir, your very faithful servant, J. Y. AKERMAN.

The following note on the Pontefract money, addressed to the
President, was also read. To the collectors of English coins,
the extract which it introduces will be highly interesting.

NUMISMATIC SOCIETY. 273

Feb. 13, 1837.
Pontefract My dear Sir ; I think I am right in stating that

Siege fa e authenticity of some of the siege pieces of Charles
I. or rather of some of those of his time is question-
able ; that is, they are not spoken of in any contemporary docu-
ment, and the place or places where they were struck are doubtful.
This, however, is not the case with the shillings struck at Pon-
tefract in Yorkshire. In a newspaper of the day, " The Kingdome's
Faithfull and Impartial Scout," Feb 2 to 9, 1643, we read, " Mun-
day, Feb. 5. The Intelligence from Pontefract is this ; the besieged
have lately made two sallies forth, but repulsed without any great
losse to us ; in the last, they killed but one man of ours, and we
took two of theirs prisoners, one of which had a small parcell of
silver in his pocket, somewhat square, on the one side thereof, was
stampt a castle, with P O for Pontefract, on the other side was
the Crown, with C ' R on each side of it. These pieces they make
of Plate, which they get out of the country, and pass amongst them
for coyn. They cry, they will have a king, whatever it cost them."

Such gentlemen as possess the Pomfret money in their cabinets,
will, no doubt, recollect that what in the paragraph just quoted, is
called P O is in reality P C ; but I have seen several of these
coins myself, in which, from bad striking or battering, the form of
the C is carried round like an O. I communicate this trifling
memorandum to you, simply as a contemporary notice of the Pom-
fret money, hitherto unseen by our Numismatic writers ; and am.,
my dear Sir, with much respect, very faithfully yours,

HENRY ELLIS.

Mr. Cullimore commenced the reading of a paper on the Darics.

Sir Henry Ellis, in a note to the President, communicated the
following interesting particulars.

British Museum, Feb. 25, 1837.

Pewter My dear Sir. The kind manner in which the Nu-

Farthings. mismatic Society was pleased to receive my communi-
cation at their last meeting, upon the Pomfret shillings, induces me
to forward to you one or two other scraps of information upon coins,
derived from a similar source. None of our Numismatic writers
upon English coins appear to have thought of looking into old
newspapers.

Ruding, in his annals of the Coinage of Britain, 8vo. edition,
vol. iii. p. 270, refers to certain patterns for farthings in pewter
and copper, of the time of the Commonwealth and Cromwell, en-
graved in figures 12, 13, 14, and 15, of his 31st plate ; which he
says, " icere never pat into circulation.'' He may be ri^ht as to

O O

274 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

the three last cf the figures mentioned ; but fig. 1 2 was certainly
issued as a coin. It is the pewter farthing which has on one side
the words, J OVNCE OF FINE PEWTn" with the letters
T K above an escutcheon ; and, on the reverse, FOR NECES-
SARY CHANGE. This farthing was certainly in circulation,
and came out in 1654. In a newspaper of that year, to be found
among what are called, " The King's Pamphlets," in the British
Museum, in " Several Proceedings of State Affaires, 20 to 27
April," Num 239, under April 26, we read, " This night are come
out new Farthings" weighing a quarter of an ounce fine pewter,
which is but the price of new pewter ; that so the people may never
hereafter fear to loose much by them ; with the harp on one side,
and a crosse on the other, with T K above it."

The publication of some sort of coin of this value had been long
in contemplation. In a previous paper of the same title, 9th to
16th March, 1653, we read, "It is uncertain what will be done
about farthing tokens."

Ruding and Snelling consider the letters T - K upon the parti-
cular coin in question, to be the initials of some private tradesman.
From the language, however, of the newspaper, and the appear-
ance and inscription of the coin, I cannot help suspecting that it
was issued under some more extensive authority, though perhaps
not by the government.

Another newspaper settles another trifle. The Public Intelli-
gencer, Oct. 22 to 29, 1 655, has an advertisement concerning one
Abraham Stapley, a coiner. " This Abraham Stapley is a false
coiner of money, for in his house at Deptford were found several
false coining-irons for half-crowns, and false half-crowns, coined
with the date of 1655. And this is to give notice to all persons
whatsoever, that shall receive any of the said money of Stapley's,
dated 1655 ; there being none of that date in his highness' mint
coined to this day, the 26th of October."

I believe that subsequently to this date, no Commonwealth
half-crowns of the year 1655, were struck. At least, I have en-
quired for such in numerous cabinets, and always without success.
The fact, as stated in the above advertisement, I think, is worth
preserving. I am, My dear Sir, Very sincerely Yours,

HENRY ELLIS.

A paper was read by Mr. Akerman, on the Coinage of the
Ancient Britons, which will be found at length in our present
number.

Some observations by Mr. Cullimore were read, in which the
writer expressed an opinion that Mr. Hogg was not in error

NUMISMATIC SOCIETY,

275

in his conjecture as to the date of the inscription in the palace
Barberini 1 .

A portion of a paper on the Coins of the Ptolemies, by Mr. Sharpe,

was read by Mr. Cullimore.
Several presents were announced, and the Society adjourned to

Thursday the 20th April.

MEMBERS OF THE NUMISMATIC SOCIETY.

John Lee, Esq. L.L.D, F.R.S, F.S.A, F.R.A.S.

Council.

C. F. Barn well, Esq. F.R.S, F.S.A.
Thomas Burgon, Esq.
Sir Henry Ellis, K.H, F.R.S, F.S.A.
W.D. Haggard, Esq. F.S.A, F.R.A.S.
Edward Hawkins, Esq. F.R.S, F.S.A.

Captain William Henry Smyth, R.N,
K.S.F, V.P.F.R.S, F.S.A, Mem-
ber of the French Institute.

W.Wyon, Esq. A.R.A.

John Yonge Akerman, Esq. F.S.A. Isaac Cullimore, Esq. M.R.S.L.

Barker, E. H. Esq.

Bate, John, Esq.

Belfour, John, Esq. M.R.S.L.

Bentham, William, Esq. F.S.A.

Bergne, I. B. Esq.

Birch, Samuel, Esq.

Bowler, Lieutenant Colonel,

Boyne, Robert, Esq.

Brandreth, Henry, Jun. Esq. F.S.A.

Brice, Rev. Edward C.

Bristoll, T. Esq.

Broad, James, Esq.

Brooke, William Henry, Esq. F.S.A.

Brown, William Henry, Esq.

Brumell, John, Esq.

Burgon, John William, Esq.

Burney, D.D, F.R.S, F.S.A,
F.R.A.S.

Cary, Robert, Esq. F.S.A.

Children, J. G. Esq. F.R.S.

Clint, Scipio, Esq.

Corner, George R. Esq. F.S.A.

Cuff, James Dodsley, Esq. F.S.A.

Cureton, Harry, Esq.

Cust, Richard, Esq.

Davis, Arthur, Esq.

Dean of St. Patrick's, The very Reve-
rend the, Dublin.

Devonshire, His Grace the Duke of,
&c. &c. &c.

1 A reference to the Coins of Claudius, and to the admirable lectures of
professor Cardwell " On the Coinage of the Greeks g,n& Romans," Oxford,
1832, will set this question at rest. Ed. Num. Journal.

276

NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Diamond, Hugh Welch, Esq. F.S.A.
Diamond, Francis Henry, Esq.
Dickinson, Binley, Esq.
Doubleday, John, Esq.
Edmonds, Christopher, Esq.

Edmonds, Esq.

Evans, C. Esq.

Field, John, Esq.

Freebairn, Alfred R., Esq.

Freeman, John, Esq.

Gage, John, Esq. M. A. Director S.A.

Giles, Rev. John Allen, M.A.

Goodall, Rev. Dr. Provost of Eton

College.

Grayling, Francis Thomas, Esq.
Hamilton, William Richard, Esq.

F.R.S, M.R.S.L, Vice Pres. S.A.
Harrison, George Rogers Harrison,

F.S.A. Blue Mantle.
Hawksley, Rev. I. W.
Hayward, Francis, Esq.
Hering, Henry, Esq.
Hincks, Rev. Edward, D.D.
Hodges, W. R. Esq.
Hollier, Richard, Esq. F.S.A.
Huxtable, John, Esq.
Janson, Joseph, Esq.
King, Thomas William, Esq. F.S.A.

Rouge Dragon.

Konig, Charles, Esq, K.H, F.R.S.
Loscombe, C.W.Esq.
Landmann, Colonel George,
Leake, Colonel William,
Leathes, Philip, H. Esq. F.S.A.
Littlewood, George, Esq.
Mackie, Rev. John William,
Martin, Montgomery, Esq.
Martin, Rev.J.W.
Mullins, Edward, Esq.
Musgrave, Sir George, Bart., F.S.A.
Newman, John, Esq. F.S.A.
Nichols, John Gough, Esq. F.S.A.

Nichols, John Bowyer, Esq. F.S.A.
Nightingale, Benjamin, Esq.
Pettigrew,Thomas Joseph, Esq. F.R.S.

F.S.A, F.L.S,M.R.A.S.
Pettigrew, Williafti Vesalius, Esq.
Pfister, J. G. Esq.
Philipe, George Peter, Esq.
Philipe, George Ashley, Esq.
Philpott, Rev. Henry,
Purland, Theodosius, Esq.
Renouard, Rev. G. C.
Rhodes, Abraham, Esq.
Robson, Harry, Esq.
Ross, Lieutenant Col. John,
Rowe, George Robert, Esq. M.D,

F.S.A.

Rutter, John, Esq.
Saull, W. Devonshire, Esq. F.R.S,

F.G.S.

Scratton, Daniel Robert, Esq.
Scriven, Mr. Sergeant,
Sharpe, Samuel, Esq.
Smee, William, Esq.
Smith, Benjamin, Esq.F.R.S.A.
Smith, E. Osborne, Esq. F.S.A.
Smith, Charles Roach, Esq. F.S.A.
Sotheby, Leigh, Esq.
Spencer, Edmund", Esq. F.G.S.
Taylor, Richard, Esq. F.S.A., G.S.,

F.R.A.S.

Taylor, William, Esq.
Till, W. Esq.
Turner, Rev. Charles,
Valpy, A. J. Esq. M.A.
Walter, George, Esq.
Wansey, William, Esq F.S.A.
Williams, John, Esq.
Wilson, E. Jun. Esq.
Windus, Thomas, Esq. F.S.A.
Wyon, Benjamin, Esq.
Yeates, Thomas, Esq.
Young, Matthew, Esq.

Mons. E. Cartier, of Amboise, ) Editors of the " Revue Nu-
Mons. L. de la Saussaye, of Blois ] mismatique Fran9oise."
Mons F. de Saulcy, of Metz.
Dr.H. Grote, of Hanover, Editor of the " Blatter fur Miinzkunde."

CORRESPONDENCE.

The following letter has passed through our hands on its way to

"S," the Great Unknown.
Most highly esteemed and honoured 2,

Be it known to you that having been much amused with your
facetious lucubrations on " Tradesmen's Tokens," and much
instructed by divers and sundry notes of sterling value therein
contained, it is greatly my wish " to make acquaintance with
you," the more so, as I infer that you are a student in the
sublime science of the stars ; and therefore, I expect that you
will, on some future day, illustrate the astronomical series of
the Great Moguls, the Sun and Moon on the coins of the
Chalifs, and the astronomical brass of Egypt in the time of
Hadrian. In the meanwhile, to hear the oracles delivered by
such a mouth as yours, will be the quintessence of enjoyment,
to one who was from his boyish days an admirer of " TRADES-
MEN'S TOKENS."

Mint Street, Currency Square, February 1837.

IVDAEA NAVALIS. The Reverend Mr. Waddilove observes,
in reference to the article of M. Dumersan on the coin of
Titus bearing IVDAEA NAVALIS : Besides Solomon's
navy, and later attempts, I think there is not sufficient reason
for believing that the Jews never enjoyed a great reputation
as seamen, and that the cause of our having formed such an
opinion, is the circumstance of their history not having been
sufficiently attended to, as well as from the relations of those
who wished " they should not be a people." Jerem. xxxii. 24,
26. Very early in history, the tribes of Dan and Asher
(to the last of whom Tyre belonged) appear to have been
naval, see the song of Deborah (Jud. v. 17) ; and as Tyre is
not enumerated among the cities out of which Asher did not
drive the Canaanites or original inhabitants (Jud. i. 31, 32),
the natural inference is, that they did drive them out, and
that, in fact, those seamen whom we are in the habit of calling
Tyrians, were " Asherites."

We are obliged to I. W. M. for the impression of a coin of Har-
diknute ; but the type is already published.

P P

278 NUMISMATIC JOURNAL.

Dr. Grote, the learned editor of the " Blatter fur Munzlmnde"
will receive our best acknowledgments for his obliging letter,
which we have answered by post. We cordially accede to
his proposition. To Messrs. De la Saussaye and Cartier,
editors of the " Revue de la Numismatique Francoise" our
warmest thanks are also due. We have just received their
packet.

We are much obliged to Mr. Lindsay (of Cork) for his interesting
communication. Could he favour us with a drawing of the
coin described, from which an accurate engraving might be
made ? In this case, we would gladly insert it in our next
number, together with his letter, and any additional remarks
he may be pleased to send us.

The " Revue de la Numismatique Francoise," edited by M. M. de
la Saussaye and E. Cartier, appears at Blois every two months ;
six numbers form a volume. The first volume was completed
at Christmas last, and the first number of the new volume has
just appeared.

The " Blatter fur Munzkunde," edited by Dr. Grote of Hanover,
appears in single 4to sheets at intervals of a few days. A
volume has already been completed.

The " Numismatique du Moyen Age? by J. Lelewel, a Polish
gentleman, is a work of great labour and research, and cannot
fail to interest our English numismatists. The atlas of plates,
engraved by the author himself, is curious, arid the coins are
executed with singular fidelity.

OMITTED UNDER THE HEAD "TRANSACTIONS OF THE
NUMISMATIC SOCIETY"

An extract of a letter from the very Reverend the Dean of St.
Patrick's was read, in which he expressed his readiness to become
a member of the Society ; and stated, that it would give him
pleasure to communicate any information respecting ancient Irish
coins, of which his cabinet contained many unpublished specimens.

END OF THE FIRST VOLUME.

J. Wertheimer & Co. Printers, Circiu Place. Kin>bury Circus.

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