DR-628 | Crawford: 451/1
Caius Vibio Pansa / D. Postumius Albinus Bruti
Caius Vibio Pansa / D. Postumius Albinus Bruti

Gens: Postumia / Vibia
Moneyer: Caius Vibio Pansa / D. Postumius Albinus Bruti
Date and mint: 48 BC - Rome


Obverse: Mask of Pan with a beard, right. Dotted border.
Legend: C PANSA

Reverse: Round caduceus with two clasped hands. Dotted border.
Legend: ALBINVS BRVTI F

Comment: The Vibia gens was a plebeian family that, although not very relevant in the first centuries of the Republic, achieved notoriety in the 1st century BC. thanks to some of its members, including Gaius Vibius Pansa, a faithful supporter of Caesar. The Postumia gens, on the other hand, was one of the oldest families in Rome, with patrician origins and a long consular tradition. Decimus Junius Brutus Albino came from her, who appears on his coins under the affiliation of D. Postumius Albinus Bruti f. and that he would end up being remembered as one of Caesar's assassins.

This denarius was issued jointly in 48 BC, immediately after the battle of Pharsalia, which in August of that year gave Caesar the definitive victory over Pompey. The obverse shows the head of the god Pan, probably as a play on the name Pansa (Pansa – Pan), a common resource in Romen numismatics. The reverse features a handshake under a caduceus, a symbol of concord and reconciliation. According to historian Harold Grueber, the iconography would reflect the desire for peace after the civil war and an offer of alliance to the Romans on the opposing side.

The fate of the two currencies was marked by the instability of the time. Vibius Pansa, after Caesar's death, aligned himself first with Mark Antony and then with Octavian, dying in the campaign against Antony. On the contrary, Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus betrayed Caesar by actively participating in his assassination and supporting the “liberators”; He was finally captured and executed by order of Mark Antony.

Thus, this broadcast not only transmits a message of peace after the victory, but also reflects in its two authors the diversity of paths that Caesar's supporters took in the turbulent years that followed Pharsalia.

Provenance: Numismatica Ars Classica (2015)
Price: 6,236 €