Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
Æ Unit - Juba II and Cleopatra Selene Caesarea
| Issuer | Mauretania |
|---|---|
| Year | 25 BC - 24 AD |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Round (irregular) |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | A horse standing or prancing to the right, rendered in a bold, stylized manner typical of Mauretanian bronze coinage and reflecting the kingdom's celebrated equestrian heritage. The animal's mane and tail are indicated with summary but expressive strokes. The Greek legend KΛEOPATRA BACIΛICCA is distributed around the device in the field, identifying the co-ruler Queen Cleopatra Selene. A dotted border frames the composition. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | KΛEOPATRA BACIΛICCA |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Juba II was no ordinary client king — educated in Rome, raised in the household of Julius Caesar's heir, and married to Cleopatra Selene II, the daughter of Antony and Cleopatra. Augustus installed the pair in Caesarea (modern Cherchell, Algeria) around 25 BC as a deliberate instrument of Roman soft power on the Mauretanian frontier. The joint issue naming both rulers is politically pointed: Selene's Ptolemaic bloodline lent the new dynasty a legitimacy Juba's Numidian ancestry alone could not provide.
The nearly five-decade production window for Caesarean bronzes means die wear and corrosion vary considerably across the series.