Collecting ancient coins (as well as being an amateur comparative mythologist and fan of Hetalia), I've been fascinated by Roman coins that feature personification deities of cities and abstract concepts. So far, I can think of:
• Personified cities/regions: Aegyptus, Alexandria, Arabia, Carthage, Constantinopolis, Dacia, Gallia, Germania, Italia, Judaea, Libya, Macedonia, Mauretania, Mesopotamia, Pannonia, Phoenicia, Roma, Sarmatia
• Rivers: Danube, Euphrates, Hebrus, Nilus, Orontes, Tiber, Tigris
• Personified countries/regions found on modern coins: Britannia, Flanders, Helvetia, Hispania
• Personified concepts (and lesser deities) on Roman coins: Abundantia, Aequitas, Concordia, Fecunditas, Felicitas, Hilaritas, Liberalitas, Pax, Pietas, Providentia, Pudicitia, Salus, Securitas, Spes, Virtus
• Others: Senate, Via Traiana
But I'm pretty sure there are more. Do you know any? (Or any good source?)
I personally have the following in my collection:
Cities: Roma
Provinces: Moesia
Lesser deities: Virtus, Concordia, Ubertas, Victory, Pax, Felicitas, Fides, Liberalitas, Hilaritas, Aeternitas,
Gods: Diana, Mars, Iove, Sol, (Greek gods Athena and Ares on roman provincial coins)
Also I have one example showing the hand of the christian god.
I focus mainly on Roman coins from the 1st to the beginning of the 3rd century. As far as I can tell deities were especially common in that period. If you combine regular coins with provincial issues I think you can pretty much collect the entire pantheon of gods present in the Roman world. For me the most interesting Roman coins are the ones that represent real life events or people. I also like legionary coins, I'm planning to start a legionary standard collection one day.
I collect and deal in ancient Roman coin. In case you're looking for affordable ancient coins or need any help with the coins you already have send me a message.
Citeer: "Andy289"Can you show me that one or can you give me a link?
Its a bit worn but you can see it coming from the sky, holding a diadem above the empresses head (Aelia Eudoxia - wife of Emperor Arcadius). Its seen on some of the later roman coins.
Hmm. I'm debating whether Victory fits in this category, since Nike/Victoria is more prominent in mythology than other deities of this personification type but she's also an abstract concept...if she qualifies, then I'm supposing Thanatos/Eros will, too? As well as Sol and Selene, perhaps?
I didn't know Moesia had a personified counterpart, but it comes as no surprise. And when I read "hand of God" I thought of the Schwäbisch Hall coinage...didn't know Romans did such design, haha.
Citeer: "Cuthwellis"
I didn't know Moesia had a personified counterpart, but it comes as no surprise.
Coins from Moesia are very affordable and in my opinion impressive. They're usually large bronze coins with the reverse depicting a young woman, Moesia, relying on a bull and lion which are symbols of the legions stationed there, Legio VII Claudia and Legio IIII Flavia.
I collect and deal in ancient Roman coin. In case you're looking for affordable ancient coins or need any help with the coins you already have send me a message.
The Swedish emergency copper Dalers issued by Charles XII depict a number of deities. They include Jupiter, Saturn, Apollo, Mars and Mercury. There is also Svea, which is a female personification of Sweden along the lines of Britannia.
Nice find. I only recently found out about them when I bought the Daler depicting the warrior and lion. I'm definitely going to try and get the full set.
After further research I've remembered and discovered some more deities: Aeternitas, Alamannia, Annona, Antiochia, Armenia, Asia, Bonus Eventus, Cappadocia, Constantia, Hispania (Roman), Indulgentia, Justitia, Laetitia, Liber, Libertas, Parthia, Quies, Rhine, Saeculum Frugiferum, Sicilia, Syria, Tellus, Tranquillitas, and Ubertas. (Kabeiros too, perhaps?) But there must be more city/province personifications...
