Some Observations upon a Samnite-Etruscan Coin, Never before Fully Explained. In a Letter from the Rev. John Swinton, B. D. of Christ-Church, Oxon. F. R. S. to the Rev. Thomas Birch, D. D. Secretary to the Royal Society

that they very easily gave way, and the reduction was effected with as little difficulty, as ever I saw in a dislocation of the humerus. Might not the giving strong purgatives, and frequently repeating them, so as to render the muscles of strong muscular subjects more lax and weak, be a means of reducing luxations of the humerus, which are not reducible by any method of extension, which is often found the case? I am, SIR, Your very humble servant, Charles Yonge. LXXVI. Some Observations upon a Samnite-Etruscan Coin, never before fully explained. In a Letter from the Rev. John Swinton, B.D. of Christ-Church, Oxon. F.R.S. to the Rev. Thomas Birch, D.D. Secretary to the Royal Society. Reverend Sir, Read June 19, 1760. I have in my small collection a silver Etruscan coin, of the size of the consular denarii, similar to one published by (1) Fulvius Ursinus, (2) Patin, (3) Vaillant, (4) Havercamp, (1) Fulv. Ursin. in Famil. Romanar. num. incert. (2) Car. Pat. ibid. (3) J. Vaill. in Famil. Romanar. num. incert. (4) Sig. Haverc. apud Andr. Morel. in Thesaur. Numismat. p. 459. and Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri (5), a gentleman of Pefaro, who has written two learned dissertations upon three or four medals of the same kind; all which, with the greatest appearance of truth, he takes to have been struck on occasion of the Social war. Fulvius Ursinus, Patin, Vaillant, Morel, and Havercamp assign the medal resembling mine a place amongst the uncertain, or unknown, consular coins; though Havercamp (6), without any manner of foundation, affirms it to be a medal of Faleria. But this is not to be wondered at, as he seems to have been almost an entire stranger to the Etruscan character. Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri has, with the highest degree of probability, determined it to be (7) a Samnite coin; and clearly evinced it to have first appeared in (8), or about, the year of Rome 663. But notwithstanding this most learned and ingenious gentleman has so perfectly well explained three very rare silver Etruscan medals of C. Papius Mutilus, who commanded the Samnite troops in the Social war, that not the least doubt can be entertained of the truth of his explication; notwithstanding he has sufficiently proved the coin I am considering to have been adorned with the name of the pretor of the --- (5) Saggi di Dissertazioni Accademiche pubblicamente lette nella Nobile Accademia Etrusca dell' antichissima Città di Cortona. Tom. II. p. 49—72. & Tom. IV. p. 133—148. (6) Sig. Haverc. apud Andr. Morel. in Thesaur. Numismat. sive Sig. Haverc. Comment. in Famil. Roman. num. omn. &c. p. 459. (7) Annib. degli Abati Olivier. in Saggi &c. ubi sup. (8) Id. ibid. Marfi, Marfi, who likewise distinguished himself against the Romans, in the same ruinous and destructive war; yet I cannot prevail upon myself absolutely to congratulate him, upon his discovery of all the Etruscan characters forming that name. His dissertation here does not come quite up to the point. Of this he seems himself to have been aware, when he informed the learned world, that, "after having viewed the Etruscan inscription with a very good glass, and well considered it, he thought he could make out the following letters, P. ITEEIV; and that if such another medal should hereafter be found, with the elements better preserved, it might perhaps confirm his (9) conjecture." Having therefore a similar coin now in my possession, I hope I shall be indulged the liberty of transmitting to the Royal Society a few brief and concise observations upon it; especially, as these may perhaps throw some new light upon Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri's discoveries, and serve as a short supplement to his two most learned and elaborate dissertations. The laureated head on my Etruscan denarius is adorned with an ear-ring, not visible either on Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri's medal, or any of those published by Fulvius Urfinus, Dr. Patin, Dr. Vail-lant, and Mr. Havercamp. There is a minute difference between the lower part of the lance, held in the right hand of the galeated figure on the reverse of the piece before me, and the same part of the lance, exhibited by the other coins. The drapery likewise of the galeated figure on the first of these is (9) Sag. di Dissertaz. Accademich. &c. Tom. II. p. 65, 66. something different from that of the same figure on the rest. The foot of the ox or bull seems hairy on my denarius, but not so on the others. All which singularities, together with the additional Etruscan element at the end of the inscription, representing R, and the Etruscan M on the reverse, will perhaps intitle the medal I am considering to the denomination of an inedited coin. The workmanship is good, but somewhat different from that of the consular denarii, particularly those of the same age. Mr. Havercamp justly remarks, that the legend, or inscription, here is Etruscan (10); but by no means ascertains the forms and powers of the letters, of which it is composed. He even took the Etruscan A in the exergue of his own medal, which does not appear in that of mine, for an (11) inverted R. Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri calls these small silver pieces (12) Etruscan medals, because they have scarce any thing in common with those of Rome, and are adorned with Etruscan characters, or such as were in the earlier ages the letters of all Italy, then subject to the Etruscans; but at the same time he observes, that they might with greater propriety, notwithstanding the authority of the Marquis Scipio Maffei, be termed Italian coins. As I remember not to have seen an alphabet of the Samnite-Etruscan characters, exhibited to the public; I have taken the liberty to transmit one to the Royal Society, deduced from some very valuable Samnite- (10) Sig. Haverc. ubi sup. p. 459. (11) Id. ibid. (12) Sag. di Dissertaz. Accademich. &c. Tom. II. p. 49. The Samnite-Etruscan alphabet, deduced from the coins of C. Papinius Mutilus, Veturius, Capua, Acerrae, &c., and used in several parts of Italy so late as the year of Rome 673. A B C E H T H I L M N P R S T V PH or F E I Etruscan coins. The ducts of the letters are drawn with so much accuracy, that they may be entirely depended upon. [Vide Tab. XX.] The inscription here mentioned, standing behind the laureated head on this denarius, is drawn from the right hand to the left, after the Etruscan manner, and consists of eight letters. The first of these is the Digamma, equivalent to V or F, as it appears on the celebrated tables of Gubbio, and several Etruscan coins. The second is apparently I, and the fifth will undoubtedly be taken for the same element. The third is manifestly T, both on my medal and every similar one hitherto published. The fourth and fifth must be E, though the latter of these has not been perfectly well preserved on my coin. The seventh will be universally considered as V, though only part of it is visible on the piece before me. The eighth is the Etruscan R, as presented to our view by one of the medals of C. Papius Mutilus, by the tables of Gubbio, and by other Etruscan remains of antiquity. It is very perfect and entire, and not exhibited by any such piece that has hitherto appeared (13). Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri seems inclined to take the first element of the inscription (14) for P. But this is probably done in order to accommodate the name to the corrupted text of Velleius. The form he himself has given us of this letter bears scarce any resemblance to that of the Etruscan P, on the medals of C. Papius Mutilus; but approaches near enough to that of the (13) Tab. Eugubin. pass. Vid. etiam Gor. Mus. Etrusc. Vol. II. & Dempst. De Etrur. Regal. Tom. I. (14) Sag. di Dissertaz. Accademich. &c. Tom. II. p. 65. Digamma, Digamma, or Etruscan V, above-mentioned. (15) Mr. Havercamp's denarius, as well as mine, and that described by M. Morel, sets the point here insisted upon beyond dispute. From the foregoing observations we may collect, that our inscription, in Roman, or modern Latin, letters, will be FITEEIVR, or VITEEIVR; which, in the cacography of the Etruscans, as their rude and uncouth manner of writing is termed by Sig. Passeri (16), seems to answer to the VETVRI, or rather VETVRIVS, of the Romans. If this be admitted, it will be allowed extremely probable, that the name of the general, who commanded the Marfi in the Italian war, was FITEEIVR, VITEEIVR, or VETVRIVS, and neither VETTIVS nor INSTEIVS, as Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri seems inclinable (17) to believe. This general is called Vettius, or C. Vettius, by (18) Claudius Quadrigarius; Insteius, or Insteius Cato, by (19) Velleius; Ὀὐέτιος Κατων, Vetius Cato, by (20) Appian; P. Vettius, or P. Vettius Scato, by (21) Cicero; Vellius, or Vellius Cato, by (22) Florus; and T. Vettius, T. Vetius, T. Vetitius, and T. Vietius, in different manuscripts (15) Sig. Haverc. ubi sup. p. 459. (16) Jo. Bapt. Paffer. Pisauent. De Num. Etrusc. Peßtanor. Differtat. p. 18. in Symbol. Literar. opusc. var. &c. Vol. II. Florentiae, 1748. (17) Sag. di Differtaz. Accademich. &c. Tom. II. p. 65, 66. (18) Claud. Quadrigar. apud Senec. De Benef. Lib. iii. c. 23. (19) Vell. Paterc. Lib. ii. c. 16. (20) Appian. Alexandrin. p. 375. (21) Cic. Philip. xii. ii. (22) Flor. apud Sig. Havercamp. in not. ad Eutrop. p. 2c6. Lugd. Batavor. 1729. and printed editions of (23) Eutropius. From whence we may infer, that the name of this general has been corrupted in most, if not all, of the texts of those authors; even upon the supposition, that our coin bears not any relation to him. But as (24) Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri has clearly evinced the truth of the contrary supposition, the variety of corruptions here produced will add no small weight to what is more than suggested by the denarius I am considering; so that the inscription exhibited by this small medal is even supported by those corruptions, and will undoubtedly, in the opinion of the most learned men, ascertain the name of the general, who commanded the Marfi in the Italian war. In farther eviction of what is here advanced, it may be observed, that the proper name VETVRIVS itself has also been indisputably corrupted in other passages of antient writers. In one of Cicero (25) it has been transformed into Betucius, and in one of Plutarch (26) into Βετέτιος, or Butetius. Which being maturely weighed, it will not appear strange, that this general's family name should have met with so hard a fate. For that the piece I am endeavouring to explain is one of his coins, will be acknowledged more than probable, if we consider with proper attention what has been urged by Sig. Annibale degli Abati (27) Olivieri in favour of (23) Eutrop. Hist. Rom. Lib. v. c. 3. p. 205, 206. Ed. Havercamp. Lugd. Bat. 1729. (24) Sag. di Dissertaz. Accademich. &c. Tom. II. p. 65, 66. (25) Cic. in Bruto. (26) Plutarch. in Quest. Roman. (27) Sag. di Dissertaz. Accademich. Tom. II. p. 65, 66. such a notion. He has demonstrated this denarius and one of C. Papius Mutilus to be of nearly the same size and workmanship, to be adorned with inscriptions consisting of the same sort of characters, and to have the very same type on the reverse. He has also incontrovertibly proved, from the best authorities that can be produced, that C. Papius Mutilus, mentioned by the coins he has so learnedly explained, was contemporary with our Veturius, or, as he denominates him, P. Iteeius, and the general under whose conduct the Samnites so greatly distinguished themselves, in the aforesaid ruinous war, against the Romans. But this will still receive a farther accession of strength from another consideration, relative to the point I am now upon, which ought by no means to be omitted here. Two (28) medals of the Veturian family and one of (29) C. Papius Mutilus exhibit almost exactly the same type on the reverse, though the inscriptions they bear consist of different characters. This amounts at least to a pretty strong presumption, that Ti. Veturius, whose name occurs on one of the Roman denarii, was either the pretor of the Marsi himself or related to some commander of the allies of the same name; as (30) Mr. Havercamp takes the piece to have been struck not long after the Italians had the right of suffrage conferred upon them by the Romans, in order to perpetuate the memory of that remarkable event. I say, "or" related to some commander of the allies of the same (28) J. Vaill. in Num. Fam. Vetur. p. 533. (29) Sag. di Differtaz. Accademich. &c. ubi sup. (30) Sig. Haverc. Comment. in Famil. Roman. num. omn. &c. p. 438, 439, 440. "name;" " name;" because it cannot perhaps be so easily proved, that he was our Veturius himself. For we are told by Claudius (31) Quadrigarius, in a fragment of his preserved to us by Seneca, that one of this general's slaves killed him, in order to prevent his falling into the hands of the Romans; which seems to intimate, that he was dead before the conclusion of the Social war, or at least before the Italians were put upon an equal foot with the Romans. However, his name might have been impressed upon this denarius, after his death. Whether or no the Veturian family itself deduced its origin from the Marsi, notwithstanding the silence of Fulvius Ursinus, Dr. Vaillant, and Mr. Havercamp, on that head, I shall not take upon me to determine. Be this, however, as it will, from the family name \textit{OVIEETIC}, FITEEIVR, or VITEEIVR, on the silver Etruscan, or Samnite, medal, which at present is the principal object of my attention, we may infer, that the Etruscan orthography was very rough and unpolished, at least in some of the Italian provinces, so late as the 662d, or 663d, year of Rome; when that of the Romans, now called the Latin, was arrived at almost the last degree of perfection. It must nevertheless be owned, that the later Latin, or Roman, letters (so denominated in contradistinction to the antient Latin characters, undoubtedly the same with the Etruscan, and used by the Romans themselves in the earliest times) as well as the Etruscan, were in vogue amongst several of the Italian states, when the medals of C. Papius Mutilus and Veturius were struck. This most evidently appears, from the silver (31) Claud. Quadrigar. apud Senec. ubi sup. pieces, with the word ITALIA upon them, explained by Sig. (32) Annibale degli Abati Olivieri, in his first dissertation; and from a similar one in my little cabinet, hitherto unpublished, which I lately acquired. Hence some learned men may perhaps be inclined to believe, that both the denarius of the Veturian family and the coin by me here referred to our Veturius did in reality exhibit the name of the general of the Marfi, and first appeared about the 663d year of Rome. With regard to the word ΑΒΙΕΕΤΙΣ, or VETVRIVS, mentioned in the beginning of this paragraph, I shall beg leave to remark, that it might as easily have been transformed into VETTIVS, or VETIVS, in the manuscripts and printed editions of some antient writers, as PAPIVS into APONIVS in those of others; and that the (33) word APONIVS, for PAPIVS, stands in the text of Diodorus Siculus, as cited by Photius. With which observations I shall conclude what I have here to say, in defence of my lection of this Etruscan inscription. As I only intend this paper to be a short supplement to Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri’s two most excellent dissertations upon his Samnite coins, it would be intirely superfluous to attempt an explication of the types exhibited by those coins; especially, as this has already been done in so ample a manner, with so much sagacity and erudition, by that very ingenious gentleman himself, the learned Sig. Bianconi, and the most acute Sig. Passeri, that scarce anything new or material on that head can be added to their observations. However, it may not be improper (32) Sag. di Differtaz. Accademich. &c. Tom. II. p. 57. (33) Diod. Sic. apud Photium, in Myriobibl. p. 1185, 1186. Ed. Schot. Rothomagi, 1653. just to remark, that both the denarii of C. Papius Mutilus and the piece by me attributed to our Veturius (34) were coined, in commemoration of the alliance entered into by the Italian states against the Romans, about the time of the commencement of the Social war; whereas the Roman medal of Ti. Veturius (35), according to Mr. Havercamp, was probably struck after the conclusion of that war, and even after the admission of the Italian allies into the city, the memory of which it was perhaps intended to perpetuate, by the Romans. That the Etruscan pieces here considered were struck on occasion of the Italian war, or war of the allies, is likewise abundantly clear, from a most rare Etruscan medal in Lord (36) Pembroke's noble collection, never hitherto explained. It is adorned with such a laureated head as occurs on Veturius's coin, and on the reverse a bull goring with one of his horns a furious wild beast, resembling a monstrous dog, he had got under him, together with the Etruscan inscription, ΒΤΝΒΝΕ ΙΤΙΜ ΙΠΝΝΝ >, C. PAAPI MVTL EMBRATVR, though very indifferently copied. This is a fourth Etruscan, or Samnite, coin of C. Papius Mutilus, the Samnite general; which Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri had neither seen nor heard of, when he published those two learned dissertations, which this paper is intended to render a little more complete. The bull on Lord Pembroke's medal undoubtedly denoted the states of Italy, or rather (34) Sag. di Differtaz. Accademich. &c. Tom. II. p. 65—72. & Tom. IV. p. 140—148. (35) Sig. Havercamp. Comment. in Famil. Roman. num. omn. &c. p. 438, 439, 440. (36) Numism. Antiqu. &c. Thom. Pembroch. et Mont. Gomeric. Com. P. 2. T. 87. num. 10. the union of those states, combined against the Romans, as the fierce animal under him did the senate and people of Rome; the whole type pointing out to us the hoped for superiority of the former over the latter, or rather being intended as a prognostication of such superiority. That the bull was the symbol of several Italian cities, or states (37), appears from the coins of Posidonia, Thurium, Arpi, &c. and that the (38) word Ἰταλός, Italus, or Italian, in the old Etruscan tongue, the primitive language of all Italy, signified a bull, whence probably that animal might become the symbol of at least a very considerable part of this country, is a point so exceeding clear, that it will not admit of a dispute. To what has been said we may add, that the Italians looked upon the Roman republic, about the time of the Social war, as a receptacle of wolves, always ready, if not determined, to ravish their liberty from them. This we may collect from the following words of Pontius Telefinus, in Velleius: (39)—adjiciens, numquam defuturos raptores Italicae libertatis lupos, nisi Silva, in quam refugere solent, esset excisa. This observation may possibly throw some new light upon Lord Pembroke's medal, as well as upon the type of my Etruscan denarius, and the similar one of C. Papius Mutilus's coin, which seems to have a little embarrassed the learned (40) author I have all along here had principally in view. (37) Hubertus Goltzius, in Magn. Græc. Numism. paft. (38) Apollodor. Lib. ii. Ifacius ad Lycophronem, & Tzetzes in Chiliadibus. (39) Vell. Paterc. Lib. ii. c. 27. (40) Sag. di Dissertaz. Accademich. &c. Tom. II. p. 66, 67. & Tom. IV. p. 141. As the foregoing Etruscan coins are proved to have been struck about the 662d or 663d (41) year of Rome, the Etruscan alphabet then undoubtedly prevailed over a very considerable part of Italy; though the forms of some of the characters, particularly those of A, P, and I, were not precisely the same with those of the equipollent letters used in Umbria and the (42) Proper Etruria. I shall only at present beg leave farther to remark, that the reverse of my Etruscan denarius has handed down to us a new form of the Etruscan M, placed in the exergue, which has never been before observed on any of the Etruscan remains of antiquity; and that I am, with sentiments of the highest respect and esteem, SIR, Your most obliged, and most obedient, humble servant, J. Swinton. Christ-Church, Oxon. May 19, 1760. LXXVII. De Proximo Veneris sub Sole Transitu. Ad Londinensem Regiam Societatem. Read June 19, 1760. NEMO sanè ignorat Astronomus, quanti intersit ad absolutam perfectionem Astronomiae, accurate nosse distantiam Terræ (41) Annibal. degli Abat. Olivier. ubi sup. & alib. (42) Gor. Mus. Etrusc. Annibal. degli Abat. Olivier. in Sag. di Dissertaz. Accademich. &c., Tom. II. & Tom. IV.