Deux Domitians

[David Atherton]

I present these two new additions as a pair - one struck for Domitian as Caesar under Vespasian, the other struck as Augustus in 85 AD. Both are decent examples.

 

Domitian as Caesar [Vespasian]
Æ As, 10.19g
Rome mint, 73-74 AD
Obv: CAESAR AVG F DOMITIAN COS II; Head of Domitian, laureate, bearded, r.
Rev: VICTORIA AVGVST; S C in field; Victory stg. r. on prow, with wreath and palm
RIC 676 (R). BMC 692. BNC -.
Acquired from Variana Coins, August 2024.

A rare variant of a common victory type struck for all three Flavians under Vespasian. Some have argued for the type to be included in the 'Judaea Capta' series, erroneously IMHO. It is too generic without any overt references to the Judaean war. Hendin does not include it in his Guide to Biblical Coins.

In hand.

 

 

Domitian
Æ As, 10.81g
Rome mint, 85 AD
Obv: IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM COS XI CENS POT P P; Head of Domitian, laureate, bearded, r., with aegis
Rev: ANNONA AVG; S C in exergue; Annona, std r., holding open on lap by two ends bag full of corn-ears; in front of her stands a small figure, l., also holding two ends of bag, and in the background, stern of ship
RIC 377 (C). BMC -. BNC 370.
Acquired from Variana Coins, August 2024.

A most curious reverse type was struck for Domitian on his dupondii and asses for a short period between 84-88. Here we see Annona seated holding open a bag (?) of corn-ears and a mysterious small figure standing before her holding the other end of the bag with a ship's stern in the background. Overall, the reverse likely alludes to Domitian's care of the corn supply, hinted at by the stern, here a symbol of the all important African grain ships. The small individual before Annona has variously been described as a 'boy', a 'child', or ambiguously as just a 'figure'. H. Mattingly has the most imaginative explanation in BMCRE II - 'Annona herself, the spirit of the corn-supply, and the ship, the symbol of the overseas corn, are familiar: but who is the small figure who stands before her? He is certainly no child, but only a man reduced to tiny proportions beside the goddess; and the fact that he is bare to the waist may suggest that he is an Italian farmer. If this interpretation is right, the type records a definite policy of Domitian to encourage the growing of corn in Italy.' Mattingly may be correct about the overall meaning, but I think the figure is indeed a child, symbolic of the emperor's care, through Annona's auspices, for his subjects. Common variety of the type, but missing from the BM.
 

In hand.

 

Thanks for looking!

[CPK]

Great new additions. I like the Annona reverse.

[JAZ Numismatics]

Very nice additions to your collection! I'm always fond of the flowery conjectures of numismatists like Harold Mattingly, who weren't afraid to let their imagination wander when it came to interpreting coins. Modern scholarship is rather antiseptic by comparison.