The Roman Republic
Marcus Antonius, Lucius Antonius with L. Cocceius Nerva. Denarius, mint moving with Marcus Antonius 41, AR 3.91 g.
Description: M·ANT·IMP·AVG III VIR·R·P·C·M NERVA PROQ·P Bare head of Marcus Antonius r. Rev. L·ANTONIVS COS Bare head of Lucius Antonius r. References: Babelon Antonia 48 and Cocceia 2
C 2
Sydenham 1185
Sear Imperators 246
RBW 1799
Crawford 517/5a Condition: Very rare. Old cabinet tone, hairline flan crack, otherwise about extremely fine / good very fine Provenance: Sincona sale 4, 2011, 4062 Note: This denarius, depicting the bare heads of Marcus Antonius and his youngest brother Lucius Antonius, is a rare dual-portrait issue of the Imperatorial period. The family resemblance is uncanny, and one wonders if they truly looked this much alike, or if it is another case of portrait fusion, much like we observe with the dual-portrait billon tetradrachms of Antioch on which the face of the Egyptian queen Cleopatra VII takes on the square dimensions of Marcus Antonius. When Antonius fled Rome to separate himself from Octavian and to take up his governorship in Gaul, Lucius went with him, and suffered equally from the siege of Mutina. This coin, however, was struck in a later period, when Lucius had for a second time taken up arms against Octavian in the west. Marcus Antonius was already in the east, and that is the region from which this coinage emanates. Since Lucius lost the ‘Perusine War’ he waged against Octavian, and was subsequently appointed to an office in Spain, where he died, it is likely that he never even saw one of his portrait coins.