223/1. Curiata (142 BC)

AR Denarius (Rome, 142 BC)

O/ Helmeted head of Roma r.; TRIGE behind head, X below chin.

R/ Juno in quadriga r., crowned by Victory, holding reins & sceptre. C CVR below. ROMA in exergue.

Crawford 223/1 (43 obverse dies/54 reverse dies)

3.36g

Gaius Curiatus Trigeminus:

Trigeminus belonged to the plebeian gens Curiata. Originally the Curiatii were patricians; we can track their origin to the mythical fight between three brothers from Rome, the Horatii, and three brothers from Alba, the Curiatii (which was famously depicted by the French painter Jacques Louis David) -- hence the cognomen of Trigeminus, meaning "triplets". Despite their prestigious ancestry, the Curiatii only counted a single Consul: Publius Curiatius Fistus Trigeminus (in 453 BC). Since other known Curiatii were Tribunes of the Plebs, the gens must have lost its status, or the later Curiatii were actually the descendants of freedmen of the patrician Curiatii.

Besides, our moneyer was a Tribune of the Plebs in 138 BC. He is only known for having imprisoned the two Consuls of that year, Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica and Decimus Junius Brutus, because they had denied the Tribunes their right to exempt some citizens from military service (Livy, Periochae, 55). Cicero called him the "the lowest and vilest of men" for this act (De Legibus, III, 19).

The reverse with Victory must refer to the end of the Third Punic War.

Trigeminus' son was probably moneyer in 135 BC (RRC 240), only seven years after his father, but his subsequent career is unknown.

Referencia : RRC 223/1

Colección : Roman Republic