The New York Sale
Auction LI 12 Jan 2021
View prices realized
► Sale information
Find similar lots
Brutus. Silver Denarius (3.51 g), 42 BC. Military mint traveling with Brutus and Cassius in western Asia Minor or northern Greece. P. Servilius Casca Longus, moneyer. CASCA behind, LONGVS before, laureate and bearded head of Neptune right; trident below. Reverse: BRVTVS behind, IMP before, Victory advancing right, breaking diadem tied with fillet and holding palm; below, broken scepter. Crawford 507/2; HCRI 212; Sydenham 1298; RSC 3. NGC grade Ch VF; Strike: 4/5, Surface: 3/5. Flan flaw, edge scuffs. Estimated Value $250
The image of Victory trampling upon a broken scepter and tearing the diadem powerfully evoke the long tradition of Roman hatred for monarchical rule. It was rumored that Julius Caesar had inclined to become king, purportedly wearing red boots as the Roman kings had worn and having his statue placed next to those of the kings, and these were all used by the tyrannicides to justify his assassination. The obverse type of Neptune was an obvious choice for Casca, who was the commander of Brutus' fleet.
Ex The William Oldknow Collection.
The image of Victory trampling upon a broken scepter and tearing the diadem powerfully evoke the long tradition of Roman hatred for monarchical rule. It was rumored that Julius Caesar had inclined to become king, purportedly wearing red boots as the Roman kings had worn and having his statue placed next to those of the kings, and these were all used by the tyrannicides to justify his assassination. The obverse type of Neptune was an obvious choice for Casca, who was the commander of Brutus' fleet.
Ex The William Oldknow Collection.