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  [Image]                               Item Sold At Auction #7
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                  Web Product ID: 1258
                  Estimate: $300.00
                  Final Sale Price: $357.50
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                  Denomination: Denarius
                  Grade: VF light toning
                  Reference: Crawford 511/4a




  Sextus Pompey. 38-37 BC. AR Denarius (3.71 gm). MAG PIVS IMP ITER, galley adorned
  with aquila, sceptre and trident before the Pharos (lighthouse) of Messana, decorated
  with a statue of Neptune / PRÆF CLAS ET ORÆ MARIT EX SC, the monster Scylla, her
  torso of dogs and fishes, wielding a rudder as a club. Crawford 511/4a; Sear 335a;
  RSC 2; Sydenham 1348. Nice VF, light toning, scratches and surface marks, areas of
  weakness. Rare! Estimate $300.



  It seems beyond doubt that this coin marks Pompey's "victory" over Octavian's fleet,
  which was mainly accomplished by an unfavorable wind that drove the latter's ships
  onto the rocks known as Scylleum near the harbor of Messana. Therefore the dates
  given for this issue in RSC, Sear and Crawford (42-40 BC) are wrong; the disaster at
  Messana occured circa 38 BC.


Used by permission of CNG, www.historicalcoins.com