Roma Numismatics Ltd
E-Sale 91 2 Dec 2021
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L. Hostilius Saserna AR Denarius. Rome, 48 BC. Female head to right; carnyx behind / Artemis standing facing, holding spear and placing hand on head of stag; SASERNA upwards to left; L•HOSTI[LI]VS downwards to right. Crawford 448/3; BMCRR Rome 3996-8; RSC Hostilia 4. 3.88g, 18mm, 3h.
Extremely Fine; attractive old cabinet tone.
Acquired from Papillon Numismatic.
This coin dates to the early days of the Civil War between the Caesarians and Pompeians, and shows the Caesarian party's flair for numismatic propaganda. The obverse, with its realistically emotive depiction of a captive Gallic woman combined with the 'carnyx' (Gallic war horn), showcases Caesar's history of conquest in Gaul over the 50s BC, an important source of the prestige and fame on which his popular support lay.
The reverse of the coin speaks of a more recent Gallic conquest, that of Massilia, a city loyal to Pompey, which Caesar had stormed on his way to Spain to face Pompey's army. It is to this city that the archaic statue of Artemis on the reverse refers: the worship of Artemis of Ephesus had been a major part of the city's religious fabric since its establishment as a colony by Greek settlers, and she appears here in her capacity as chief goddess of the city - a signal to all of Caesar's early victory against Pompey.
Extremely Fine; attractive old cabinet tone.
Acquired from Papillon Numismatic.
This coin dates to the early days of the Civil War between the Caesarians and Pompeians, and shows the Caesarian party's flair for numismatic propaganda. The obverse, with its realistically emotive depiction of a captive Gallic woman combined with the 'carnyx' (Gallic war horn), showcases Caesar's history of conquest in Gaul over the 50s BC, an important source of the prestige and fame on which his popular support lay.
The reverse of the coin speaks of a more recent Gallic conquest, that of Massilia, a city loyal to Pompey, which Caesar had stormed on his way to Spain to face Pompey's army. It is to this city that the archaic statue of Artemis on the reverse refers: the worship of Artemis of Ephesus had been a major part of the city's religious fabric since its establishment as a colony by Greek settlers, and she appears here in her capacity as chief goddess of the city - a signal to all of Caesar's early victory against Pompey.