DR-362 | Crawford: 344/1a
Lucius Titurius Sabinus
Lucius Titurius Sabinus

Gens: Tituria
Moneyer: Lucius Titurius Sabinus
Date and mint: 89 BC - Rome


Obverse: Bearded head of King Tatius, right. Dotted border.
Legend: SABIN TA

Reverse: Two soldiers left and right, with Sabine women. Dotted border.
Legend: L TITVRI

Comment: The coin shows its Sabine origin, both on the obverse with the head of a Sabine king, and on the reverse with the abduction of the Sabine women.
In the mid-8th century BC, the founders of Roma could not find enough women to keep the city growing and had to come up with an "alternative plan." They invited the neighboring towns to a festival of games that would be held in Rome, at one point Romulus made a sign and each Roman kidnapped a Sabine woman. Specifically, it is said that there were thirty Sabine virgins except one, who was the wife of Romulus himself. Years later, the Sabines infiltrated Roma thanks to the betrayal of a Roman woman named Tarpeia, they cornered the Romans and, about to begin the final battle, the Sabine women stopped the fight with the argument that: If the Romans won, they would lose their fathers and brothers. If the Sabines won, they lost their husbands. In the end everything ended with a fruitful reconciliation.

Provenance: Numismatica Ars Classica (2019)
Price: 1,975 €