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Roman Republic, Denarius Serratus

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Roman Republic, Denarius Serratus (obverse) Roman Republic, Denarius Serratus (reverse)

The obverse of this denarius serratus depicts Diana, the goddess of the hunt. She is carrying a bow and quiver over her shoulder. Above her is a bucranium, the skull and horn of an ox. The reverse shows a lighted altar; next to it is an ox about to be sacrificed, while a priest sprinkels water over the sacrificial animal.

Diana had her temple in Rome on the Aventine hill, traditionally the neighborhood of the lower classes. Legend had it that at the special sacrifice of an ox in honor of the goddess Diana, the augurs foretold Rome's victories over neighboring cities.

Around this scene is the inscription A. POST. A. F. S. N. ALBIN, referring to the moneyer Aulus Postumius Albinus.

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