“In an era when communication through the media was virtually nonexistent, coins were the most important means of political propaganda and this coin is an excellent example of it,” Russo adds, speaking with Joe Dziemianowicz of Barron’s. For Brutus and Cassius, the coin’s symbols are an argument for their heroic triumph in the overthrow of a brutal dictatorship. On the reverse, the coin features two daggers-thought to represent Brutus and his co-conspirator, Gaius Cassius-and a Phrygian cap, an accessory similar to the one that emancipated Roman slaves traditionally wore and, to this day, is associated with freedom, as Lucia Carbone, curator of Roman coins for the American Numismatic Society (ANS), notes in a video. Known as the “Eid Mar” or the “Ides of March,” the coin may have marked a high point of good feeling among Caesar’s assassins. ![]() He minted several of these coins in silver and gold in Greece, where he fled shortly after killing Caesar and launching ancient Rome into a civil war, David Sanderson reports for the Times UK. Known as the “Eid Mar” or the “Ides of March,” the coin bears a heroic portrait of Brutus with the inscription BRVT IMP, which casts him as a military victor. One of Brutus’ high-profile, wealthy supporters-or perhaps even one of his co-assassins-could have worn the coin as a badge of pride, per the statement.Īncient Romans may have-literally-killed for this small piece of gold. The coin is pierced with a hole indicating that it might have been worn by a high-ranking official around their neck as jewelry. “It is extremely rare to come across an ancient coin with such exceptional provenance, a point illustrated by its inclusion in the British Museum’s display for over a decade.” “The Eid Mar coin commemorates one of the most important moments in Western history: the assassination of the dictator Julius Caesar,” says Russo in an emailed auction house statement. ![]() The front side features a heroic portrait of Brutus, who likely had the coins made in a mobile military mint after he had fled to Greece. Following the assassination, the infamous Roman politician Marcus Junius Brutus is said to have minted the coin to mark his key role in the murder and to celebrate Rome’s freedom from tyranny. On the March 15, 44 B.C.E., a group of senators stabbed to death the dictator Julius Caesar on the floor of the Roman Senate. “It’s priceless, but it still has a price tag,” says Arturo Russo, managing director of the auction house Numismatica Ars Classic, per Bloomberg. Experts estimate that the historical coin could sell for as much as $2 million when it goes on the chopping block in Zurich, reports Marina Stanley for Bloomberg. ![]() A rare golden coin, one of just three known specimens in the world, is likely to tempt buyers with deep pockets at auction later this spring.
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