top of page

sulla80
3 days ago14 min read
Italy and Rome: The World Turned Upside Down
Rome turned against its allies and against itself, redefining the Roman city-state, and paving the way for future upheavals...
196 views


sulla80
Jan 276 min read
The Syrian Goddess: Atargatis
Hierapolis, located within Cyrrhestica, northern Syria, was a major religious center dedicated to Atargatis, the "Syrian Goddess"...
25 views

sulla80
Jan 258 min read
Sextus Pompey
The Civil War between Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great ended with Pompey's assassination shortly after his defeat...
13 views

sulla80
Jan 158 min read
Petillius and the Capitoline Temple
There is little known about the moneyer of today's coin of interest, Petillius Capitolinus, one of the last moneyers to strike independent..
5 views


sulla80
Jan 154 min read
Galba : First of Four Emperors in 69 AD
Dionysos leading the Horae (Seasons), marble, Roman 1st century AD ( image public domain ) Today's coins of interest are two...
32 views

sulla80
Jan 114 min read
Sulla Portrait Coin
In Melville's Moby Dick, Captain Ahab stands in his boat, harpoon in hand, and in the final moments of his chase of the great white whale...
36 views


sulla80
Jan 103 min read
Saeculum Frugiferum
Clodius Albinus (c. 150–197 CE) was a Roman general and politician who was briefly emperor during the tumultuous Year of Five Emperors...
16 views


sulla80
Jan 25 min read
A Crown of Deified Emperors
Kilikarch wearing a crown of busts, from the Adana Museum. Photo by E. Borgia c. 2018. The Kilikarchia was a provincial magistracy in...
8 views


sulla80
Dec 27, 20243 min read
Water God from a Dry Land
While this is not the prettiest coin - it is an interesting coin with a water-god and a fish on the reverse of a coin, from an place,...
538 views

sulla80
Dec 22, 20245 min read
Pomegranates
Today's note is all about the pomegranate and more than 300 years of coins from Side (Σίδη), Pamphylia (Παμφυλία). For those who would...
50 views


sulla80
Dec 19, 20247 min read
The 3rd Punic War
It could be argued that the Roman Republic reached its peak in the second half of the 2nd century BCE. The final war with Carthage...
35 views


sulla80
Dec 17, 20244 min read
Saturnalia Gift
Saturnalia in Red: an AI generated abstract image evoking the spirit of Saturnalia. Saturnalia is December 17th. I was excited to open...
23 views


sulla80
Dec 11, 202412 min read
The Children of Tamerlane
Gur-e-Amir - a mausoleum of the Asian conqueror Timur (also known as Tamerlane) in Samarkand, Uzbekistan ( Copyright: under license from...
232 views

sulla80
Dec 7, 20243 min read
Qazaghan's puppet
By the mid-14th century, the Chaghatai Khanate, originally established by Chaghatai, the second son of Genghis Khan, had begun to fracture.
28 views


sulla80
Dec 6, 20242 min read
What is this coin?
This week, a mystery coin has been re-identified. Somewhere along the way, it lost its attribution.
27 views

sulla80
Nov 30, 20246 min read
Mamlūks
The arabic word مملوك or mamlūk means "owned" or "possessed". In the context of 13th century Islamic society, Mamlūks were usually ...
30 views

sulla80
Nov 24, 20244 min read
Civil War Money, 42 BC
After Caesar's assassination (42 BC) as the triumvirate prepared to avenge his death, this denarius of C. Vibius Varus was issued.
35 views


sulla80
Nov 23, 20245 min read
Balakros son of Nikanor
Cilicia was a Persian military base in the 4th century BC and after Alexander defeated Achaemennid King Darius III at Issos it was...
14 views

sulla80
Nov 20, 202410 min read
2024 - Top 10 Ancients
2024 has had ups and downs - it seems that every year I start with same thought. This has been an unusual year with and earth quake,...
173 views


sulla80
Nov 16, 20246 min read
Triumphs of Augustus
Augustus' refusal to celebrate personal triumphs after his triple triumph in 29 BCE cultivated imperial image and shifted power dynamics.
69 views
bottom of page