483 | Roman Empire

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AUGUSTUS. Cistóforo. (Ar. 11.16g/28mm). 28-20 AD Ephesus, Ionia. (ICR 476). Obv: Laureate head of Augustus to right, around legend: IMP CAESAR DIVI F COS VI LIBERTATIS PR VINDEX. Rev: Pax standing to left carrying caduceus, behind basket from which snake comes out, in front: PAX, all within a laurel wreath. Good Very Fine. Beautiful and rare specimen.

Of Greek origin, the cistóforo takes its name from the main element on its back, the cist or basket, that is, a cylindrical container from which a snake emerges. This iconography, and specifically the appearance of the snakes, has been interpreted as the representation of the god Dionysus or Bacchus, a god honored as patron of nature and as a dispenser of life and wine to men. The cult of this divinity and the cistóforo follow practically parallel lives: both are born around 200 BC in Asia Minor and spread rapidly through Mysia, Phrygia or Lydia until they reach Rome through Anatolia. At first, these coins did not bear any other epigraphic indication than the name of Filetero, the founder of the Pergamon dynasty, but over time their iconography evolved to the point that, on Roman coins, the name does not always appear. mystic cist (they appear in specimens like this from the time of Augustus only to tend to disappear in later mintings). The main centers of production of the cistophores were Pergamon and Ephesus.