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Sextus Pompey
SmEagle1795
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Here's a new acquisition of mine, the first of a string of posts I'll be making as I have a fair number of queued coins to post. I've cobbled together the writeup from some historical articles and auction descriptions - let me know if you have any questions!
Sextus Pompey AR Denarius. Uncertain mint in Sicily (Catania?), 42-40 BC. MAG PIVS IMP ITER, bare head of Pompey Magnus right; capis behind, lituus before / Neptune standing left, holding aplustre in right hand, resting right foot on prow, between the Catanaean brothers, Anapias and Amphinomus, carrying their parents on their shoulders, PRÆF above, CLAS ET ORÆ MARIT EX S C in two lines in exergue. Crawford 511/3a; Sydenham 1344; Sear 334; RRC 511/3a; BMCRR Sicily 7; Pompeia 27; Catalli 2001, 824. 3.96g, 20mm, 11h.
Virtually Mint State. Ex Chiltern Collection; Ex A. Tkalec, 18 February 2002, lot 119;
After the death of his father, Pompey the Great, in 48BC and the execution of his older brother, Gnaeus Pompey the Younger three years later, Sextus Pompey, a skilled naval commander, took over the campaign started by his father.
The title he uses on this coin, “praefectus classis et orae maritimae ex senatus consulto” (commander of the fleet and of the sea shores by decision of the Senate) is a well-aimed insult to the other triumviri. In order to put an end to the attacks of Pompey's fleet of pirates on the ships bringing grain to Rome, they were forced to reconcile with Sextus Pompey and prove to him their goodwill by asking the Senate to bestow on him this official title. The mention of this title on the coin informs everyone that Pompey was given an official command by the Senate, and that therefore he was not simply a commander of pirates, as the triumvirs proclaimed.
The reverse of this coin alludes not only to Sextus' command of the seas and the probable location of the mint through the legend of Amphinomus and Anapias, but is also a reference to the piety (the faithfulness for the divine rules) of Sextus Pompey in upholding the Republican ideals of his late father, who is depicted on the obverse.
This imagery was intentional and open defiance to Octavian. In the ancient version of the legend there was only one pious hero, leaving no room for Octavian to claim the same title. Sextus would likely have been inspired by the original poem by Lycurgus:
"A stream of fire burst forth from Etna. This stream, so the story goes, flowing over the countryside, drew near a certain city of the Sicilians. Most men, thinking of their own safety, took to flight; but one of the youths, seeing that his father, now advanced in years, could not escape and was being overtaken by the fire, lifted him up and carried him. Hindered no doubt by the additional weight of his burden, he too was overtaken. And now let us observe the mercy shown by the Gods towards good men. For we are told that the fire spread round that spot in a ring and only those two men were saved, so that the place is still called the Place of the Pious, while those who had fled in haste, leaving their parents to their fate, were all consumed."
Octavian had always boasted of his own piety which pushed him to prosecute the murderers of his adoptive father, Julius Caesar. With the representation of the son risking his life to save his father, Sextus is now formally claiming this piety towards his own parents. He represents himself, exactly like Octavian, as a son who wants to follow in the footsteps of his murdered father, Pompey the Great.
Pompey presided over the Mediterranean for some time as claimed on this coin, represented by Neptune, the master of the Sea. But he did not have the allegiance of all of his captains, evidenced by the fact that they did not adhere to his orders or honor the truce agreement with the triumviri.
Because of this insubordination, after the formation of the Second Triumvirate, Sextus himself was declared an enemy, and the Senate instructed Octavian to defeat him. At this point, Sextus had occupied Sicily where he received fugitives from the Republican defeat at Philippi who were condemned as enemies of the state by the Triumvirs. With the help of these soldiers, Sextus Pompey defeated Salvidienus who had been sent against him by Octavian.
In 38 BC, Octavian himself declared war against Sextus, with limited success. He was offered support from Lepidus, who landed 14 legions in Sicily. However, Lepidus attempted to take advantage of the situation and gain control of Sicily himself, but his legions defected to Octavian when challenged.
The tides turned against Sextus on September 3rd, 36 BC when Octavian and Agrippa destroyed his fleet at the Battle of Nauolchus. Sextus escaped and fled to the East, but was later captured by Antony’s general, Ahenobarbus, and was executed.
Sextus Pompey AR Denarius. Uncertain mint in Sicily (Catania?), 42-40 BC. MAG PIVS IMP ITER, bare head of Pompey Magnus right; capis behind, lituus before / Neptune standing left, holding aplustre in right hand, resting right foot on prow, between the Catanaean brothers, Anapias and Amphinomus, carrying their parents on their shoulders, PRÆF above, CLAS ET ORÆ MARIT EX S C in two lines in exergue. Crawford 511/3a; Sydenham 1344; Sear 334; RRC 511/3a; BMCRR Sicily 7; Pompeia 27; Catalli 2001, 824. 3.96g, 20mm, 11h.
Virtually Mint State. Ex Chiltern Collection; Ex A. Tkalec, 18 February 2002, lot 119;
After the death of his father, Pompey the Great, in 48BC and the execution of his older brother, Gnaeus Pompey the Younger three years later, Sextus Pompey, a skilled naval commander, took over the campaign started by his father.
The title he uses on this coin, “praefectus classis et orae maritimae ex senatus consulto” (commander of the fleet and of the sea shores by decision of the Senate) is a well-aimed insult to the other triumviri. In order to put an end to the attacks of Pompey's fleet of pirates on the ships bringing grain to Rome, they were forced to reconcile with Sextus Pompey and prove to him their goodwill by asking the Senate to bestow on him this official title. The mention of this title on the coin informs everyone that Pompey was given an official command by the Senate, and that therefore he was not simply a commander of pirates, as the triumvirs proclaimed.
The reverse of this coin alludes not only to Sextus' command of the seas and the probable location of the mint through the legend of Amphinomus and Anapias, but is also a reference to the piety (the faithfulness for the divine rules) of Sextus Pompey in upholding the Republican ideals of his late father, who is depicted on the obverse.
This imagery was intentional and open defiance to Octavian. In the ancient version of the legend there was only one pious hero, leaving no room for Octavian to claim the same title. Sextus would likely have been inspired by the original poem by Lycurgus:
"A stream of fire burst forth from Etna. This stream, so the story goes, flowing over the countryside, drew near a certain city of the Sicilians. Most men, thinking of their own safety, took to flight; but one of the youths, seeing that his father, now advanced in years, could not escape and was being overtaken by the fire, lifted him up and carried him. Hindered no doubt by the additional weight of his burden, he too was overtaken. And now let us observe the mercy shown by the Gods towards good men. For we are told that the fire spread round that spot in a ring and only those two men were saved, so that the place is still called the Place of the Pious, while those who had fled in haste, leaving their parents to their fate, were all consumed."
Octavian had always boasted of his own piety which pushed him to prosecute the murderers of his adoptive father, Julius Caesar. With the representation of the son risking his life to save his father, Sextus is now formally claiming this piety towards his own parents. He represents himself, exactly like Octavian, as a son who wants to follow in the footsteps of his murdered father, Pompey the Great.
Pompey presided over the Mediterranean for some time as claimed on this coin, represented by Neptune, the master of the Sea. But he did not have the allegiance of all of his captains, evidenced by the fact that they did not adhere to his orders or honor the truce agreement with the triumviri.
Because of this insubordination, after the formation of the Second Triumvirate, Sextus himself was declared an enemy, and the Senate instructed Octavian to defeat him. At this point, Sextus had occupied Sicily where he received fugitives from the Republican defeat at Philippi who were condemned as enemies of the state by the Triumvirs. With the help of these soldiers, Sextus Pompey defeated Salvidienus who had been sent against him by Octavian.
In 38 BC, Octavian himself declared war against Sextus, with limited success. He was offered support from Lepidus, who landed 14 legions in Sicily. However, Lepidus attempted to take advantage of the situation and gain control of Sicily himself, but his legions defected to Octavian when challenged.
The tides turned against Sextus on September 3rd, 36 BC when Octavian and Agrippa destroyed his fleet at the Battle of Nauolchus. Sextus escaped and fled to the East, but was later captured by Antony’s general, Ahenobarbus, and was executed.
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Great coin and great write up as always, thanks for sharing
<< <i>Sorry everyone for the double post my mistake >>
No apology necessary and
I had to look up "aplustre".
So it's the ornament from the stern of a ship.
So it would appear Neptune has the ornament from a ship's backside in his hand, while he viciously stomps on the front portion of it. The rest of the ship is missing, having presumably disappeared beneath the waves after receiving such rough treatment from a deity.
It actually looked to me as though he was picking an exotic flower. While stomping a basket with a snake in it.
You've gotta love the quirkiness of the ancient engravers' art. Quirky or not, it certainly was masterful.
<< <i>Amazing coin there and very nice descriptions included. On a side note I have seen those type of images around and absolutely love them so just wondering who offers the photography services? is it NGC? >>
Hi, newcastle.
(Hey, my antique mall coin booth was on Newcastle Street, so I should remember your handle pretty well.)
I am fairly sure Joe (SmEagle1795) does his own photography. NGC doesn't offer anything even close, unfortunately.
There are several members here who are professional and semi-professional numismatic photographers. Did you want to be put in touch with somebody?
<< <i>Thanks for the welcomes everyone very nice of you all. Thanks for the info Lordmarcovan I must say that those people must get a medal of some sort cause those are amazing photos. Also thanks for the offer but don't yet have the coin i'd be looking at getting photographed but SmEagle1795 would definetely be at the top of my list so far. >>
You're too kind
Thanks again, and stay tuned for some new threads in the coming days/weeks!
<< <i>
It actually looked to me as though he was picking an exotic flower. While stomping a basket with a snake in it.
You've gotta love the quirkiness of the ancient engravers' art. Quirky or not, it certainly was masterful. >>
I wouldn't put it past them actually making it picking an exotic flower - ancient engravers definitely did like to keep us guessing