Ira and Larry Goldberg Auctioneers
Auction 98 6-7 Jun 2017
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Augustus. Æ As (11.08 g), 27 BC-AD 14. Uncertain mint in Northwestern(?) Spain, ca. 27-23 BC. IMP AVG DIVI F, bare head of Augustus left; before, palm branch; behind, winged caduceus. Reverse: Celtiberian shield. ACIP 3302a; RPC 4. Rare. Light green and earthen patina. Choice Very Fine. Estimate Value $500 - 600
This coin belongs to a somewhat mysterious bronze series struck at an uncertain mint probably in northwestern Spain. Based on the obverse titulature and stylistic similarity of issues of Emerita struck by Publius Carisius during his tenure as legatus Augusti pro praetor in Lusitania (25-23 BC) it is thought to have been struck between 27 and 23 BC, but there remains some question as to whether it should be treated as an imperial or a provincial issue. Since no city, people, or dynast is named in addition to Augustus, it has been suggested that it is a military issue connected to the first phase of the Cantabrian War (29-19 BC), which saw Augustus and then Carisius lead Roman forces against the Asturian allies of the Cantabrians in 26-25 BC. The round shield on the reverse was a typical defensive weapon used by Celtiberian peoples like the Cantabrians and Asturians in their conflict with the Romans. As the reverse type on a potentially Roman military issue in Spain, the shield serves both as an emblem of the enemy and perhaps as shorthand for the booty carried off and trophies erected after his defeat.
This coin belongs to a somewhat mysterious bronze series struck at an uncertain mint probably in northwestern Spain. Based on the obverse titulature and stylistic similarity of issues of Emerita struck by Publius Carisius during his tenure as legatus Augusti pro praetor in Lusitania (25-23 BC) it is thought to have been struck between 27 and 23 BC, but there remains some question as to whether it should be treated as an imperial or a provincial issue. Since no city, people, or dynast is named in addition to Augustus, it has been suggested that it is a military issue connected to the first phase of the Cantabrian War (29-19 BC), which saw Augustus and then Carisius lead Roman forces against the Asturian allies of the Cantabrians in 26-25 BC. The round shield on the reverse was a typical defensive weapon used by Celtiberian peoples like the Cantabrians and Asturians in their conflict with the Romans. As the reverse type on a potentially Roman military issue in Spain, the shield serves both as an emblem of the enemy and perhaps as shorthand for the booty carried off and trophies erected after his defeat.