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HERITAGE AUCTIONS: ROMAN REPUBLIC ANCIENT COINSHeritage Auctions will be hosting their Roman Republic Ancient Coins Showcase Auction on August 3. Select items are discussed below. -Garrett 
P. Licinius Crassus M.f. (ca. 55 BC). AR denarius (18mm, 4.03 gm, 8h). NGC Choice XF 5/5 - 4/5. Rome. S•C, laureate, draped bust of Venus right, seen from front, wearing stephane, pendant earring and beaded necklace, hair in large chignon at back of head / P•CRASSVS•-M•F, female figure, in military attire, standing facing, head right, right hand grasping bridle of horse standing left behind her with right foreleg raised, grounded spear in left hand; cuirass at feet to left, shield at feet to right. Crawford 430/1. Sydenham 929. Licinia 18. Beautiful iridescent toning.
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A. Postumius A.f. Sp.n. Albinus (ca. 81 BC). AR serratus denarius (19mm, 4.02 gm, 2h). NGC XF 5/5 - 4/5. Rome. Draped bust of Diana right, hair tied in topknot, bow and quiver over shoulder; bucranium above head / A•POST•A•F•-S•N•ALBIN (AL ligate), togate figure standing facing, head left, on rock platform, with aspergillum in outstretched right hand, over bull standing right; lit altar between them. Crawford 372/1. Sydenham 745.
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Augustus (27 BC-AD 14). AR denarius (19mm, 3.79 gm, 1h). NGC Choice VF 5/5 - 3/5. Pergamum, ca. 27 BC. CAESAR, bare head of Augustus right; dotted border / AVGVSTVS, bull standing right, head raised; dotted border. RIC I 475. Pretty azure toning. Born on 23 September 63 BC into a wealthy plebeian family, Augustus, originally Gaius Octavius, was the grandnephew and posthumously adopted son of Julius Caesar. This inheritance set him on a collision course with Rome's political elite, leading to the formation of the Second Triumvirate with Marc Antony and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus. Their initial unity against Caesar's assassins eventually gave way to conflict, from which Augustus emerged as Rome's first true emperor after victories in key battles like Philippi and Actium. In 27 BC, he was honored with the title "Augustus" by the Senate, signaling the start of his reign and the Pax Romana, a golden era of peace, prosperity, and cultural flourishing that lasted over two centuries. Augustus' rule saw significant military, administrative, and cultural reforms that stabilized and enriched the empire. He established a standing army, including the Praetorian Guard, reorganized Rome's provinces, and became a patron of the arts, fostering the careers of poets like Virgil and Horace and commissioning monumental buildings that reshaped Rome. His savvy use of coinage to communicate his achievements and vision helped solidify his power and legacy. Augustus died in AD 14, he left behind a transformed Rome. Through Suetonius's "The Twelve Caesars" and his own "Res Gestae Divi Augusti," we glimpse the life and achievements of a ruler who balanced autocracy with republican ideals, setting a precedent for future emperors and leaving an indelible mark on Roman history.
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L. Cestius and C. Norbanus (ca. 43 BC). AV aureus (20mm, 8.05 gm, 12h). NGC AU 5/5 - 1/5, damage. Rome, ca. January-April 43 BC. Draped bust of Africa right, seen from front, wearing elephant skin headdress over helmet; large dotted border / L•CESTIVS / C•NORBA, Corinthian helmet right on curule chair, legs decorated with eagles flying right; S•C-P R in fields, dotted border. Calicó 3. Crawford 491/1a. Sydenham 1153. Cestia 1 and Norbana 3. This intriguing gold aureus belongs to the 12 months immediately following the assassination of Julius Caesar, which produced a chaotic situation in Rome when the Senate briefly regained its preeminence and a host of unlikely alliances were formed and broken up. Octavian, Caesar's young heir, allied himself with Cicero and the Senate against Marc Antony, who, following the end of his Consulship on 1 January 43 BC, took an army north to attack Decimus Albinus Brutus, one of the assassins, who had been appointed by the Senate as governor of Cisalpine Gaul. The new Consuls Hirtius and Pansa, in turn, raised a Senatorial army and set off to attack Antony, ostensibly with Octavian's support. Lucius Cestius and Gaius Norbanus, both Caesarians and supporters of Octavian, were elected Praetors for 43 BC and ordered the striking of this issue of gold aurei to pay the Senatorial soldiers. Two of the new legions were raised in Africa, reflected by the personification on the obverse of this piece. The curule chair on the reverse reflects the authority of the Consuls and Praetors. The alliance between Octavian and Senate would prove to be short-lived, and the latter's renewed authority was swept away when Octavian, Antony, and Lepidus formed the Second Triumvirate.
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L. Calpurnius Piso Frugi (ca. 90 BC). AR denarius (18mm. 3.98 gm, 1h). NGC Choice XF 5/5 - 5/5. Rome. Laureate head of Apollo right; L behind, L before / L•PISO FRVGI / ?XXIII (III barred), horseman galloping right, palm branch over shoulder in left hand, reins in right. Crawford 340/1. Cf. RRSC D136.1c for similar control number on reverse. Stone blue backlight on obverse, iridescent toning on reverse.
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L. Cornelius Cinna (ca. 169-158 BC). AE as (30mm, 2h). NGC Choice Fine. Rome. Laureate head of Janus; I (mark of value) above / CINA, prow of war galley right; I (mark of value) in right field, ROMA below. Crawford 178/1. Sydenham 368. Cornelia 11. From the Sulla Collection.
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