DR-284 | Crawford: 311/1d
Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiaticus
Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiaticus

Gens: Cornelia
Moneyer: Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiaticus
Date and mint: 106 BC - Rome


Obverse: Laureate bust of Jupiter, left. Dotted border.
Legend:
Symbols: Reverse above, control mark

Reverse: Jupiter in quadriga, right, holding scepter and reins on the left and throwing lightning with the right. Dotted border.
Legend: L SCIP ASIAG

Comment: The Cornelia gens was one of the most illustrious in Rome, with numerous family branches that left their mark in politics and war. Within it, the line of the Scipios stood out, famous for their military campaigns in Hispania and Africa. Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiaticus descended from the brother of Scipio Africanus, who was given the nickname Asiagenus for his successes against the Seleucid king Antiochus III in Asia Minor after the Battle of Magnesia in 190 BC. The memory of that victory marked the prestige of the family and explains the choice of its cognomen.

The moneyerist Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiaticus is known mainly for this issue. He later reached the consulship in 83 BC, but his career was cut short when he was included among Sulla's outcasts, which led him to exile in Marseille. His career reflects well the oscillating fortunes of the Scipios, between inherited glory and the ups and downs of the politics of the late Republic.

The coin was minted in Rome in 106 BC, a year marked by the election of Gaius Marius as consul for the second time and by the continuation of the war against Jugurtha in Numidia. The failure of the previous generals had led Mario to command, and with him a profound transformation of the army began. In this context of military crisis, the Scipios sought to reinforce the memory of the past glories of their lineage.

The message of the coin is consistent with that intention. On the obverse appears a laureate bust of Jupiter, the supreme god, represented with authority and majesty. On the reverse, Jupiter advances in a chariot to the right, holding the reins and scepter while throwing the thunderbolt. We interpret this set as an affirmation of the supremacy of Jupiter and, by extension, of divine protection over Roma and the Cornelia family. The cognomen Asiaticus in the legend reinforces the link with the victory of Magnesia and presents the moneyer as heir to a lineage favored by the gods and associated with great triumphs. In a year of war uncertainty, the coin evoked the memory of past successes as a promise of new victories. It should also be noted that four variants of the Crawford 311/1 type are known, differentiated from each other by the placement of control marks at different points on the coin, which accounts for the extent of the issue.

Provenance: Nomos Ag (2017)
Price: 640 €