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Home ▸ Catalog ▸ |Themes & Provenance| ▸ |Gods, Non-Olympian| ▸ |River God||View Options:  |  |  |   

River Gods
Selinous, Sicily, c. 450 - 440 B.C.

|Other| |Sicily|, |Selinous,| |Sicily,| |c.| |450| |-| |440| |B.C.||cast| |tetras|
Selinus was once one of the most important Greek colonies in Sicily. In 409 B.C., the Carthaginians attacked with a vast army believed to include at least 100,000 men. Selinus, with a population of about 30,000 excluding slaves, was unprepared and an auxiliary force promised by Syracuse, Agrigentum and Gela did not arrive. The Selinuntines defended themselves with courage, and after the walls were breached, continued to fight from house to house. After tens days the city fell. Of the citizens, 16,000 were slain and 5,000 made prisoners, but more than 2,600 escaped to Agrigento.
GI112253. Bronze cast tetras, Calciati I p. 236, 7; BMC Sicily p. 143, 50; SNG Munchen 897; HGC 2 1234 (R1); SNG Cop -; SNG ANS -; SNG Morcom -; SNG Tüb -, F, dark green patina, scratches, porosity, weight 9.325 g, maximum diameter 19.8 mm, die axis 270o, Selinus mint, c. 450 - 440 B.C.; obverse horned head of young river god left, hair gathered at back of neck, anepigraphic; reverse wild celery (selinon) leaf, three pellets (mark of value) around, anepigraphic; rare; $150.00 (€141.00)
 


Hadrian, 11 August 117 - 10 July 138 A.D.

|Hadrian|, |Hadrian,| |11| |August| |117| |-| |10| |July| |138| |A.D.||denarius|
Hadrian traveled broadly, inspecting and correcting the legions in the field. More than half his reign was spent outside of Italy. Hadrian traveled as a fundamental part of his governing, and made this clear to the Roman senate and the people. This type was probably struck to commemorate his journey on the Nile when he traveled to Egypt in 130.
RS114327. Silver denarius, RIC II 310, RSC II 989, BMCRE III 857, SRCV II 3508, Choice F, well centered, excellent portrait, light scratches, mild porosity, edge cracks, weight 2.980 g, maximum diameter 17.3 mm, die axis 180o, Rome mint, c. 134 - 138 A.D.; obverse HADRIANVS AVG COS III P P, bare head right; reverse NILVS, Nilus reclining right, resting right arm on urn(?), reed in right, raising cornucopia in left hand, hippopotamus before him at feet, crocodile in waves below; scarce; $140.00 (€131.60)
 


Maximus, Caesar, 235 or 236 - 24 June 238 A.D., Deultum, Thrace

|Deultum|, |Maximus,| |Caesar,| |235| |or| |236| |-| |24| |June| |238| |A.D.,| |Deultum,| |Thrace||tetrassarion|NEW
The Roman Colony of Deultum (Debelt, Bulgaria today) was founded during the reign of Vespasian on the west shore of Lake Mandren between Anchialus and Apollonia, and settled with veterans of Legio VIII Augusta. The town followed the usual Roman plan, with a very good water supply, sewers, and impressive baths with floor heating. It became one of the richest towns in the province. During the reign Mark Aurelius, Deultum was protected by large fortified walls and for centuries it served as an important communication point and a bulwark against barbarian raids. In 812 Khan Krum conquered Develt (its medieval name), banished the local residents to the north of Danube River, and resettled the town with Bulgarians.

Oiskos (Oescus), modern Iskar, is a tributary of the Danube river.
RP113330. Bronze tetrassarion, Draganov Deultum 822-24 (O94/R635); SNG Bobokov 822; Jurukova Deultum 228; RPC Online VI T835; BMC Thrace p. 112, 15; MPR II-4 1976; Varbanov II 2490, VF, red-brown surfaces resembling embossed leather, light roughness, slightly off center obverse, central mint dimples, weight 7.729 g, maximum diameter 24.1 mm, die axis 45o, Deultum (Debelt, Bulgaria) mint, c. 235/236 - 24 Jun 238 A.D.; obverse C IVL VER MAXIMVS CAES, Bareheaded, draped and cuirassed bust right, seen from the front; reverse COL F-L PAC DE,VLT (ending in exergue), River-god (ancient personification of the Sredetska River) reclining left, reed in raised right hand, cornucopia in left hand and arm, left elbow resting on overturned urn from which water flows; ex CNG E-sale 537 (26 Apr 2023), lot 291; ex Dr. Michael Slavin Collection; $130.00 (€122.20)
 


Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Deultum, Thrace

|Deultum|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Deultum,| |Thrace||tetrassarion|NEW
On RPC Online and elsewhere, we sometimes find our river god labeled Istrus (Danube) or its Bulgarian tributary, Oiskus (modern Iskar). Both waterways, however, never flowed close to ancient Deultum. As a Roman colony, it was founded under Vespasian near the mouth of the Sredetska (srai-DETS-kah) River (ancient name unknown), which empties into Lake Mandra. The presence of galleys on the city’s coinage suggests the colony was supported by maritime trade and fishing, at a time when the lake was suitably connected to the Black Sea. Coins depicting our river god must therefore refer to a local river, as in Sredetska, the closest to Deultum of several rivers that flow into the lake.

The magnificent Gordian III coin type featuring two river gods and a galley (RPC Online VII-2 823) grants even further certainty in linking Deultum's fortunes to Lake Mandra and beyond, via the Sredetska. The overturned urn of the older, bearded river god flows into a large bowl rather than forming a river, clearly symbolizing a standing body of water. His beardless counterpart grasping the ship's rudder has long been assumed to be Thalassa, the primordial goddess of the sea. However, the figure doesn’t appear very feminine on high grade coins and lacks Thalassa's important crab claw headgear. On RPC Online VI T772, we find probably the same deity reclining left with a flowing urn and holding a reed and the prow of a ship—all very river god like except for the missing beard. In reference to this puzzle in his 1695 work, Numismata Aerea Imperatorum, Vaillant wrote, "Rivers emptying themselves into the sea, are depicted on ancient medals under the figures of old men, with flowing beards, as though they were the fathers of other streams. But the personifications of those rivers which discharge their waters into other rivers, are represented without beards." Perhaps our spurt off the old river may also personify the short, heavily navigated inlet from Lake Mandra to the sea.
RP113331. Bronze tetrassarion, Draganov Deultum 1255–1257 (O113/R638) = SNG Bobokov 1255–1257; Jurukova Deultum 250; RPC Online VII.2 956; BM Acquisitions 1921 p. 159, 33, gVF, dark green patina, good detail, minor pitting, cleaning scratches, rev. off center, small edge splits, central mint dimples, weight 6.434 g, maximum diameter 22.9 mm, die axis 225o, Deultum (Debelt, Bulgaria) mint, c. 241 - 242 A.D.; obverse IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG (AV ligate), laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse COL FL PAC DEVL,T (final letter in exergue), River-god (ancient personification of the Sredetska River) reclining left, holding cornucopia in raised right hand, resting elbow on urn from which water flows; ex CNG e-sale 537 (26 Apr 2023), lot 293; ex Dr. Michael Slavin Collection, ex Herakles Numismatics (Apr 2003); $130.00 (€122.20) ON RESERVE


Armenian Kingdom, Tigranes II the Great, 95 - 55 B.C.

|Armenian| |Kingdom|, |Armenian| |Kingdom,| |Tigranes| |II| |the| |Great,| |95| |-| |55| |B.C.||chalkous|
Tigranes was called "Tigranes the Great" by Plutarch. The "King of Kings" never appeared in public without having four kings attending him. At its height, Tigranes' empire extended from the Pontic Alps to Mesopotamia and from the Caspian to the Mediterranean. In 83 B.C., the Syrians offered him the crown and after conquering Phoenicia and Cilicia, he effectively ended the Seleucid Empire. His southern border reached as far as Akko-Ptolemais. The first Armenian ruler to issue coins, he adopted the Seleucid tradition and struck coins at Antioch and Damascus during his occupation of Syria from 83 to 69 B.C. In 66 B.C., Pompey advanced into Armenia with Tigranes' own son as an ally. Tigranes, now almost 75 years old, surrendered. Pompey treated him generously and returned part of his kingdom in return for 6,000 talents of silver. His unfaithful son was sent back to Rome as a prisoner. Tigranes continued to rule Armenia as an ally of Rome until his death in 55 B.C. In reference to the titulature on Tigranes II's coinage, Jack Nurpetlian in his paper, "Ancient Armenian Coins: the Artaxiad Dynasty (189 BC - AD 6)" in Berytus Archaeological Studies 51–52, writes: "The consensus is that the coins bearing the imperial title – BAΣIΛEΩΣ BAΣIΛEIΩN TIΓPANOY – are from mints located within Armenian lands, whereas the coins with the royal title – BAΣIΛEΩΣ TIΓPANOY – come from mints in newly acquired territories."
GY113387. Bronze chalkous, MDHRAC 24, Nercessian AC 51, Bedoukian CCA 92 (Nercessian and Bedoukian list as a tetrachalkon), VF/F, dark patina, earthen deposits, marks, weight 6.915 g, maximum diameter 21.3 mm, die axis 0o, 70 - 66 B.C.; obverse bust right wearing five-pointed Armenian tiara ornamented with star between two eagles, top extends outside of dotted circle; reverse Tyche seated right on rocks, turreted, holding palm frond in right, half-length figure of river-god Orontes swimming right at her feet below, BAΣIΛEΩΣ downward on right, BAΣIΛEIΩN / TIΓPANOY downward in two lines left, no letters or monograms in fields; $110.00 (€103.40)
 


Philip I the Arab, February 244 - End of September 249 A.D., Diocaesarea, Cilicia

|Cilicia|, |Philip| |I| |the| |Arab,| |February| |244| |-| |End| |of| |September| |249| |A.D.,| |Diocaesarea,| |Cilicia||hexassarion|NEW
Diocaesarea, Cilicia was known as Olba until it was renamed during the reign of Vespasian. According to a legend told by Strabo (Geography, 14.5.10), the temple of Zeus Olbius was founded by Ajax, one of the Greek heroes of the Trojan War. The city and its surrounding territory was a theocracy, ruled by the hereditary priests of the temple.
RP113345. Bronze hexassarion, BMC 18 (same dies); RPC Online VIII U2053; Staffieri Diocaesarea 22; SNG BN 879 var. (rev. leg.); SNG Levante 676 var. (same); c/m: Howgego 470, F, rough brown surfaces, edge split, weight 22.790 g, maximum diameter 33.8 mm, die axis 0o, Olba-Dioceasarea (Mersin Province, Turkey) mint, Feb 244 - End Sep 249 A.D.; obverse AYT K M IOYΛIOC ΦIΛIΠΠOC CE,B (final B in lower right field), radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; c/m: six pointed star in 6.3mm round incuse; reverse AΔPI ΔIOKAICAP-E-ΩN MH, KEN/NA/T (ending in three lines upper center field), Tyche of Diocaesarea on left, seated right, turreted and draped, stalks of grain in right hand; Tyche of Olba on right, standing left, draped, kalathos on head, rudder in right hand, cornucopia in left hand; river-god Calycadnus(?) swimming left below; big AE34!, ex CNG e-sale 537 (26 Apr 2023), lot 330; ex Dr. Michael Slavin Collection; $100.00 (€94.00) ON RESERVE


Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Nikopolis ad Istrum, Moesia Inferior

|Nikopolis|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Nikopolis| |ad| |Istrum,| |Moesia| |Inferior||tetrassarion|
Struck under Sabinus Modestus, legatus Augusti pro praetore at Nikopolis, 241 - 244 A.D.
RP113327. Bronze tetrassarion, H-H-J Nikopolis 8.36.32.1 (R5); RPC Online VII.2 1297; SNG Budapest III 489; AMNG I 2069; Varbanov 4220, aVF, struck on a broad flan, green-brown patina, deposits, minor roughness, flan crack, central depressions, weight 13.375 g, maximum diameter 29.8 mm, die axis 180o, Nicopolis ad Istrum (Nikyup, Bulgaria) mint, 241 - 244 A.D.; obverse AVT K M ANT ΓOPΔIANOC AVG (VΓ ligate), laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse VΠ CAB MOΔECTOV NIKOΠOΛEITΩN (ΩN ΠP ligate), River-god Istros reclining left, bearded, nude to waist, himation around hips and legs, reed in right hand, resting elbow on urn behind from which water flows, ΠPOC ICTPO/N (ΠP ligate, N in second line) in exergue; ex CNG e-sale 537 (26 Apr 2023), lot 276; ex Dr. Michael Slavin Collection; $90.00 (€84.60)
 


Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Hadrianopolis, Thrace

|Hadrianopolis|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Hadrianopolis,| |Thrace||tetrassarion|NEW
Hadrian refounded a Thracian tribal capital, changed its name to Hadrianopolis, developed it, adorned it with monuments, and made it the capital of the Roman province. The city is Edirne, Turkey today. From ancient times, the area around Edirne has been the site of no fewer than 16 major battles or sieges. Military historian John Keegan identifies it as "the most contested spot on the globe" and attributes this to its geographical location. Licinius was defeated there by Constantine I in 323, and Valens was killed by the Goths during the Battle of Adrianople in 378.
RP113332. Bronze tetrassarion, Jurukova Hadrianopolis 470 (V230/R456); RPC Online VII.2 733; Varbanov II 3837 var. (obv. legend); BMC Thrace p. 121, 36; SNG Hunterian 916, aVF, brown patina, small flan crack, area of weakness, central mint dimples, weight 8.913 g, maximum diameter 26.1 mm, die axis 180o, Hadrianopolis (Edirne, Turkey) mint, 29 Jul 238 - 25 Feb 244 A.D.; obverse AVT K M ANT ΓOPΔIANOC AVΓ (Imperator Caesar Marcus Antonius Gordianus Augustus, AVΓ ligate), laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse AΔPIANOΠO,ΛEITΩN (ending in exergue, ΩN ligate), river-god Tonzus or Hebros reclining left, reeds in raised right hand, rudder in left hand and crook of left arm, resting left elbow on overturned urn behind from which water flows; ex CNG e-sale 537 (26 Apr 2023), lot 297; From the Dr. Michael Slavin Collection; $90.00 (€84.60)
 


Maximinus II Daia, May 310 - 30 April 313 A.D., Antioch, Syria, Civic Christian Persecution Issue

|Antioch|, |Maximinus| |II| |Daia,| |May| |310| |-| |30| |April| |313| |A.D.,| |Antioch,| |Syria,| |Civic| |Christian| |Persecution| |Issue||quarter| |follis|NEW
In 311, after the death of Galerius in late April or May, representatives from Nicomedia presented themselves before Maximinus, bringing images of their gods and requested that Christians not be allowed to live in their city. Late in 311, an embassy from Antioch, led by their curator Theotecnus, also requested permission to banish Christians from their city and its territory. Other cities followed with the same request. Maximinus support for Antioch's requests is advertised by this coin type. Fearing his co-emperors, however, Maximinus changed his mind. His edict in May 313 restored privileges and property to Christians. Later in 313, Licinius captured Antioch and executed Theotecnus.
RT114686. Billon quarter follis, McAlee 170(b), Van Heesch 3(a), Vagi 2954, SRCV IV 14927, VF, near centered on a tight flan, highlighting earthen deposits, rev. weakly struck, weight 1.602 g, maximum diameter 15.2 mm, die axis 0o, 2nd officina, Antioch (Antakya, Turkey) mint, c. 312 A.D.; obverse GENIO ANTIOCHENI, Tyche of Antioch seated facing on rocks, turreted and veiled, stalks of grain in right; upper body of river-god Orontes below, standing facing in waist deep water, arms outstretched; reverse APOLLONI SANCTO, Apollo standing left, patera in right hand, kithara (lyre) in left hand, B right, SMA in exergue; $90.00 (€84.60)
 


Elagabalus, 16 May 218 - 11 March 222 A.D., Marcianopolis, Moesia Inferior

|Marcianopolis|, |Elagabalus,| |16| |May| |218| |-| |11| |March| |222| |A.D.,| |Marcianopolis,| |Moesia| |Inferior||tetrassarion|NEW
Renamed by Trajan after his sister, Ulpia Marciana, Marcianopolis was an important strategic center, part of Roman Thrace until c. 190, and then belonged to Moesia inferior. Marcianopolis' prosperity was ended by Gothic raids in 248 and 249, another in 267 or 268, and other barbarian invasions from the north. The city recovered and under Diocletian Marcianopolis became the center of the province Moesia Secunda of the Diocese of Thrace, and was thoroughly rebuilt in the late 3rd and early 4th century. During Valens' conflict with the Goths (366 - 369), Marcianopolis was a temporary capital of the empire and the largest city of Thrace. In 447, it was destroyed by the Huns under Attila, immediately after the bloody Battle of the Utus River. Justinian I restored and fortified it, but it was subject to regular barbarian attacks. An Avar raid finally destroyed it in 614 or 615.
RP113325. Bronze tetrassarion, RPC Online VI T1391 (10 spec.); H-J Marcianopolis 6.26.32.3; Varbanov I 1590; AMNG 835, aVF, broad flan, rough, scratches, central mint dimples; struck under legatus Augusti pro praetore Iulius Antonius Seleukos, weight 10.055 g, maximum diameter 26.6 mm, die axis 0o, Markianopolis (Devnya, Bulgaria) mint, 16 May 218 - 11 Mar 222 A.D.; obverse AVT K M AVPHΛIOC ANTΩNEINOC, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse VΠ IOVΛ ANT CEΛEVKOV MAPK,IANOΠO/ΛITΩN (ending in two lines in exergue), River-god Istrus reclining right, reed upright in right hand, inverted vase behind from which water flows, left hand resting on galley on far side; ex CNG e-sale 537 (26 Apr 2023), lot 274; ex Dr. Michael Slavin Collection; $70.00 (€65.80)
 




  



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REFERENCES|

Imhoof-Blumer, F. "Fluss- und Meergötter auf griechischen und römischen Münzen (Personifikationen der Gewässer)" in RSN 23 (1923), pp. 173-421.
Malloy, A. "The Danubian Celts" in Alex G. Malloy Auction Sale XLVI, June 24, 1997. NumisWiki webpage
Molinari, N.J. & N. Sisci. Potamikon: Sinews of Acheloios. A Comprehensive Catalog of the Bronze Coinage of the Man-Faced Bull, With Essays on Origin and Identity. (Oxford, 2016).

Catalog current as of Tuesday, March 19, 2024.
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