A Dissertation upon a Samnite Denarius, Never before Published. In a Letter to the Rev. Thomas Birch, D. D. Secretary to the Royal Society, from the Rev. John Swinton, B. D. of Christ-Church, Oxon. F. R. S.

VII. A Dissertation upon a Samnite Denarius, never before published. In a Letter to the Rev. Thomas Birch, D.D. Secretary to the Royal Society, from the Rev. John Swinton, B.D. of Christ-Church, Oxon. F.R.S. Reverend Sir, Read Jan. 15, and 29, 1761. Since the communication of my last paper to the Royal Society, I have met with another Samnite denarius; which will, in a great measure, confirm what I endeavoured to evince in that paper. This inedited silver coin is adorned with two Etruscan inscriptions, that very well merit the attention of the learned. It is of the size of the larger consular denarii, discovers much of the Roman taste, and is in the finest conservation. On one side it exhibits a galeated head, in all respects agreeing Fig. I. Penes Joannem Swinton, S.T.B. Oxoniens. R.S.S. Fig. II. Penes Joannem Swinton, S.T.B. Oxoniens. R.S.S. Fig. III. Penes Joannem Swinton, S.T.B. Oxoniens. R.S.S. Fig. IV. In Gaz. Pemb. J. Mynde sc. agreeing with that preserved by a (1) medal of the Veturian family, behind which stand the Etruscan letters \(\text{VNETT}\), FITEEIV; none of which, except the last, and that but little, has suffered at all from the injuries of time. The type on the reverse perfectly resembles that presented to our view by the posterior part of the aforesaid Roman coin, attributed to Tiberius Veturius; excepting that three human figures only occur on the latter of these pieces, and five on the former. The inscription in the exergue is formed of the Etruscan characters \(>\text{HNNNN}.\), C. PAAPII. C. The workmanship of the Samnite denarius is so similar to that of the Roman, that had not the legends, or inscriptions, pointed out a different origin, these two medals might have been considered as struck at the same place, on the same occasion, and by the very same hand. The Etruscan elements \(\text{VNETT}\), FITEEIV, behind the galeated head, occupy the space in which the Latin letters TI. VET. appear on the Roman denarius. This, in conjunction with what has been already advanced in favour of the same notion, amounts almost to a demonstration, that the name of the pretor of the Marfi, as he is (2) called by Claudius Quadrigarius, --- (1) Vid. Vaill. Patin. & Sig. Haverc. in Num. Fam. Vetur. (2) That the account of this general's death in the passage here referred to, as well as the story of the two slaves immediately preceding it, was extracted out of Claudius Quadrigarius's Annals, there seems little reason to doubt. For that both these events happened in Italy about the same time, cannot well be denied. M. Lamponius having defeated a body of Roman troops, under the command of Licinius Crassus, and put 800 of them to the sword, shut the rest up in Grumentum, a city of Lucania, either the first or second campaign of the Social war, according Quadrigarius, at the time of the Social war, was FITEEIVR, FITEEIVRI, FITEEIVRII, or VETVRIVS. Whence we may learn, that the VETTIVS of the antient authors, mentioned in my last paper, ought to be converted into VETVRIVS; and that the INSTEIVS (3) CATO of Velleius, as well as the T. VETTIVS (4) of Eutropius, was in reality the TI. VETVRIVS, whose name has been transmitted down to us by the consular denarius. I say, "the TI. VETVRIVS, whose name has been transmitted down to us by the consular denarius;" for that the Latin elements TI. VET. on the Roman coin stand for TIBERIVS VETVRIVS, and consequently that the piece itself belongs to the Veturian family, my two Samnite medals render incontestably clear. A point therefore, by their assistance, is determined; which has been taken for granted only by Patin (5) and Vaillant, and not sufficiently proved by Mr. Havercamp (6). The Etruscan inscription in the cording to Appian; and therefore then probably formed the siege of that place, mentioned by Seneca. And that the pretor of the Marsi was killed by his slave before the conclusion of this war, has been rightly observed by Lipsius. That learned man therefore should not have considered the proximity of time of the two foregoing events only as a bare possibility, or rather a sort of fiction, as he manifestly has done, in the following words: Quid ergo? nonne bello Punico hostilia multa Italiae loca, et in eo praestim tradit? POTUIT et Sociali bello evenisse, ex Flori III. cap. xviii. Claud. Quadrigar. apud Senec. De Benef. Lib. iii. c. 23. Appian. Alexandrin. De Bel. Civil. p. 375. Juf. Lipf. Comment. in Senec. ubi sup. p. 300. Antverpiae, 1615. Vid. etiam Macrob. Saturn. Lib. I. p. 166. Londini, 1694. (3) Vell. Paterc. Lib. ii. (4) Eutrop. Lib. v. c. 3. (5) Patin. & Vaill. ubi sup. (6) Sig. Haverc. Comment. in Famil. Roman. Num. omn. &c. p. 438—440. Amstelædami, 1734. exergue, exergue, >.ΠΝΝΝΝΝΝ.>, C. PAAPII. C, indicates the piece to have been struck soon after C. Papius Mutilus had been constituted commander in chief of the Samnite forces, destined to act against the Romans, when the Italian states took up arms against the republic, about the year of the city 663. From the preceding observations it appears, that our coin exhibits the names of two great generals, of different families, Tiberius Veturius and C. Papius Mutilus, in conformity to the custom then (7) prevailing at Rome. For that such a custom prevailed there in this and the following age, several consular medals of the Coponian, Confidian, Curtian, Cocceian, Didian, Fonteian, Fusian, Mucian, &c. families leave us no manner of room to doubt. With regard to the letters of which the first Etruscan inscription is composed, I have not at present much to say; having already given a particular description of them, in a former paper. It may not be amiss however to remark, that the second of those characters is apparently the Samnite-Etruscan I, adorned with a sort of accent; which has been taken notice of by the learned (8) Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri, in his second dissertation. How that mark or accent varied the power of this element, I shall not presume to decide; but that the sound of it was thereby in some manner varied, I think cannot well be denied. The fourth letter is succeeded by a monogram, or complex character, formed of E (7) Patin. Vaill. & Sig. Haverc. in Famil. Copon. Confid. Curt. Coc. Did. Pont. Fuf. Muc. &c. Num. (8) Saggi di Dissertaz. Accademic. publ. let. nella Nobil. Accad. Etrusc. dell' antichiss. Città di Cortona. Tom. IV. p. 139, 146. In Roma, 1743. and the aforesaid accented I; as may be very fairly inferred from a similar inscription (9) on other denarii, that have preserved the name of our Tiberius Veturius. The last element V is likewise an accented letter, having had originally a point or small stroke, equidistant from each of its sides, in the vacant space between them; which has been flattened, and reduced to a kind of minute straight line, almost contiguous to one of them, by the injuries of time. This accent undoubtedly pointed out the (10) diphthong OV, in like manner as did a small curve line, joined to a side of V, though in another position, on some consular (11) coins of the Furian and Pomponian families. That this mark or accent denoted the V to which it adhered to be equivalent to OV, on those coins, is universally allowed; other consular denarii exhibiting the word FOVRIVS for FVRIVS, and the cogno- (9) Andr. Morel. Thesaur. Numism. Fam. Incert. Tab. I. num. 8, 9. (10) Idem ibid. Had the name of the general of the Mars been Vettius, the last letter here would have been equivalent to the Greek Omicron, or the simple Latin V. This is incontestably clear from the Greek word Βέττιος, or Οὐεττίος, answering to the Roman Vettius; which occurs both in Plutarch and Dio. But as the last element of the inscription I am considering was indubitably pronounced OV, or ΟΥ; the name itself at length must have been Veturius, or Βεττίειος, as we find it antiently written by some good authors. This single observation, exclusive of others, that might be offered, to demonstration evinces the point formerly deduced from the appearance of the Etruscan α on another Samnite-Etruscan coin. The inscription therefore exhibited by that medal and the legend before me mutually strengthen and support each other. Plut. in Grach. Dio, Lib. xxxvii. p. 48. B. & Lib. xxxviii. p. 63. E. Edit. Wechel. Hanoviae, 1606. Plut. in Num. Dionys. Halicarnas. Antiquit. Roman. Lib. ix. (11) Vaill. Patin. & Andr. Morel. in Famil. Roman. Fur. & Pompon. Num. men MVSA being only the Greek term ΜΟΥΣΑ or Mūsa in Latin characters. That the last element of the Etruscan inscription now in view had originally a point or small stroke between its sides, is abundantly evident from the correspondent letter (12) on other medals of Tiberius Veturius, and particularly one in the possession of the Reverend and Learned Dr. Barton, Canon of Christ-Church, Oxon. and a worthy member of this Society. Hence it should seem, that the custom of accenting the V was derived from the Samnites by the Romans; and that the accent annexed to the V, on the consular denarii, if not all the others that might have been in vogue amongst the Romans, was of Samnite, or rather Etruscan, extraction. The Etruscan legend in the exergue has one letter more than the similar inscription on the coin of C. Papius Mutilus, explained by Sig. (13) Annibale degli Abati Olivieri, in his second dissertation. That letter is the Samnite-Etruscan accented I, being the last element of the name ἈΝΝΙΠΠΙ, PAAPII. After what has been advanced on this head by the learned gentleman just mentioned, scarce any thing is left for me to say upon the same subject. It may not be improper however to observe, that this character is exhibited as representing I by other (14) Samnite-Etruscan remains of antiquity. Amongst the Dorians it seems to have answered to the (15) Æolic Digamma, and (12) Andr. Morel. ubi sup. (13) Saggi di Dissertaz. Accadem. di Corton. Tom. II. p. 49. in Roma, 1738. & Tom. IV. p. 132. In Roma, 1743. (14) Jo. Bapt. Passer. Pisaurenf. Junonal. Sacr. Mens. Illustat. Vid. etiam Numifm. Antiqu. &c. Thom. Pembroch. et Mont. Gomeric. Com. P. 2. T. 88. num. 3. (15) Tayl. Comment. ad Marm. Sanduicenf. p. 43, 44, 45. Cantabrigiae, 1743. the Greeks in general are said to have (16) used it sometimes as a note of aspiration. On the Marmor Sanduicenfe (17), according to Dr. Taylor, it served to express the value of the obolus. That the Samnite-Etruscan I, in the word MV'TIL, ΜΤΤΝΝ, on one of C. Papius Mutilus's coins, is accented, appears likewise from the correspondent word Μετιλος in Appian (18), where the I has apparently an acute accent over it. The same mark of the denarius here presents itself to our view that occurs on the similar Roman coin. This seems plainly to imply, that the notation of the Samnites agreed with that of the Romans, at the time of the Social war; which, indeed, sufficiently appears from other instances that might be produced. The name ΠΑΠΙΠ, PAAPII, is undoubtedly expressed in the nominative case, as the Roman names on the consular denarii are; at least, every thing considered, I cannot help thinking this extremely probable. Nor will the point, at the end of the word, as I apprehend, discountenance such a notion; since a point is sometimes visible after a complete name, or surname, as well as after a part of such name, or surname, on several pieces of the Postumian, Pomponian, &c. families. Of this the inscriptions A. POSTVMIVS. COS, ALBINVS. BRVTI. F, SVLLA. COS, on coins now in my possession, are clear and incontestable proofs. I therefore hope the learned will indulge me the liberty of supposing, that the name ΠΑΠΙΠ, PAAPII, is here complete; especially, as the Etrus- (16) Serg. Max. Victorin. Quintilian. Lib. i. c. 4. Donat. Prifcian. Cledon. &c. Vid. Grammaticos Putschii, Col. 1829, 1943, 1742, 1287, 1889, &c. (17) Tayl. Comment. ad Marm. Sanduicenf. p. 48, 49, 50. Cantabrigiae, 1743. (18) Appian. Alexandrin. De Bel. Civil. Lib. i. p. 381. can termination II sometimes answered to the Roman or Latin termination IVS, as we learn from (19) Sig. Passeri. The conclusions to be drawn from hence are too obvious to be, at this time, either mentioned or insisted upon. Before I dismiss the present subject, I should beg leave farther to remark, that the space behind (according to the Etruscan manner of writing) the last prenomen in the exergue, >, C, on a (20) coin published by Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri, on one in the Rev. Dr. Barton's cabinet, on another in my small collection, and on that I am considering, is spacious enough to contain an element, or at least a part of one, of the Samnite-Etruscan alphabet; and yet that not the faintest traces of any part of one are visible in this space. Hence I am inclined to believe, that there never was a letter there. Which if we admit, it will seem to follow, that the Samnites and Etruscans, at least in the seventh century of Rome, wrote only >, ΠΙΝΝΠΙΝΝ, >, C. PAAPII. C, equivalent to C. PAPIVS. C, or CAIVS PAPIVS CAII, imitating the Greeks in this particular; who used the father's name in the genitive case only, suppressing by a most common (21) ellipsis the word ΥΙΟΣ, on such occasions, as by an infinity of instances might be evinced, were it in any manner necessary. Some authors (22) take the galeated head, exhibited (19) Jo. Bapt. Passer. Pisaur. Funonal. Saer. Mens. Herculaneum Illustrat. Vid. Symbol. Litterar. Vol. I. p. 207. Florentiae, 1748. (20) Annib. degli Abati Olivieri, in Saggi di Dissertaz. Accademic. &c. Tom. II. p. 49. & Tom. IV. p. 132. (21) Such ellipses as this were antiently not uncommon amongst the Etruscans, as we learn from several inscriptions in the language and character of that nation; for a farther account of which, recourse may be had to the author here referred to. Jo. Bapt. Passer. De Architect. Etrusc. apud Ant. Franc. Gor. in Mus. Etrusc. Vol. III. p. 121, 122. & alib. Florentiae, 1743. (22) Fulv. Ursin. Patin. Vaill. Sig. Haverc. &c. by the medal I am considering, or at least by that of Tiberius Veturius above-mentioned, to have represented Fortitude or Valour; which was esteemed as a deity, by the Romans. But Sig. Annibale degli Abati Olivieri believes a similar galeated head (23), on one of the medals of C. Papius Mutilus, to have pointed out to us Mars, the god of war. Which if we admit, that preserved by our coin will probably be allowed to have represented the same deity. Nor can I think this at all remote from truth, as Mars was held in the highest veneration amongst the ancient inhabitants of Italy, and particularly the (24) Samnites, to whom the piece before me ought indubitably to be referred. Be this as it will, the galeated heads still visible on my Samnite-Etruscan denarius, in the finest conservation, and the Roman one of the Veturian family, here described, seem in all points to have agreed, notwithstanding the diversity of characters on those coins, as has been already observed. The four armed soldiers touching with their swords, or sticks, a sow-pig, held by an herald, with his left knee upon the ground, on the reverse, undoubtedly point out to us an alliance, or confederacy, formed between four powerful Italian states. The ceremony represented by this type was more antient, (25) according to Livy, than the reign of Hostilius Tullus, the third king of Rome. We find it described by (26) Virgil, who agrees with Livy in this particular, in the following lines: \[ \text{Armati, Jovis ante aras, paterasque tenentes,} \] \[ \text{Stabant; et caesa feriebant faedera porca.} \] (23) Annib. degli Abat. Olivier. ubi sup. Tom. II. p. 64, 65. (24) Annib. degli Abat. Olivier. ubi sup. Tom. II. p. 64, 65. (25) T. Liv. Lib. i. (26) Virg. Æn. Lib. viii. v. 640, 641. The Samnites, the Marsi, the Picentes, and the Lucanians (27) seem to have been the four principal nations that first entered into an alliance against Rome, the memory of which has perhaps been perpetuated by this coin, a little before the commencement of the Social war. That the first letter of the monogram, in the inscription behind the galeated head on my Samnite denarius, is E, to demonstration appears, from the last Etruscan element of the word ΤΕΤΕΡΕ, as it occurs on a valuable medal published by (28) Mr. Havercamp; especially, as this is supported by a similar inscription, handed down to us by one of Lord (29) Pembroke's Etruscan coins. The last letter of the aforesaid monogram is evidently the Samnite-Etruscan accented I, as has been already remarked. This character and the other connected with it formed the diphthong EI, or EI, which the most antient (30) nations of Italy had in common with the Greeks. A coalition of the two elements here is most evident and conspicuous. The accented I in power seems to have approached pretty near the Latin E, as we learn from the name VETVRIVS; the second letter of which apparently answers to the first Samnite-Etruscan accented I of the word ΑΝΕΤΗ, FITEEIV, on my coin. It may likewise be clearly evinced, from the local proper name ΗΥΝΡΙΤ, TEANVR, or TEANOR, exhibited by a silver medal of Teanum, in my possession, extremely well preserved. (27) Aut. Liv. Epit. Lib. lxxii., lxxiii. Appian makes the Marsi, the Peligni, the Vestini, and the Marrucini to have first taken up arms against the Romans, in the Italian war. Appian Alexandrin. De Bell. Civil. Lib. i. p. 634. (374.) Amst. 1670. (28) Andr. Morel. ubi sup. Tab. Num. Hispan. n. 18. (29) Numism. Antiq. &c. à Thom. Pembr. & Mont. Gomer. Com. Collect. P. 3. T. 116. num. 1. (30) Jo. Bapt. Pafler. Pifaurenf, ubi sup. Vid. Symbol. Litterar. ubi sup. p. 207. preserved. This piece, about the size of a double denarius, presents to our view a type on the reverse somewhat different from that of Lord Pembroke's (31) similar medal. The Samnite-Etruscan N and R, on my coin, are of a pretty unusual form. With regard to the word PAAPII, or PAPIVS, we find a Samnite proper name, with the same termination in the nominative case, on one of the most valuable Samnite-Etruscan remains of antiquity, dug out of the ruins of Herculaneum, and most learnedly explained by Sig. (32) Passeri. That word and the prenomen prefixed to it occur in the following Samnite-Etruscan characters, L. SLABIVS, not L. SLABIIS (33), as that acute and ingenious author seems once to have imagined. That some Etruscan proper names, of cities at least, in nature singulars, and expressed in the nominative case, always retained the termination II, from the words VEII, TARQVINII, VOLNSINII, &c. must be allowed abundantly clear. Many more curious particulars, relative to antient Etruscan literature, are naturally deducible from the Samnite-Etruscan inscriptions I have undertaken to consider, in this and a former paper; all of which I must at present supersede, as having time only to assure you that I am, Good Sir, Your most obliged, and most obedient servant, Christ-Church, Oxon. July 21, 1760. J. Swinton. (31) Numism. Antiq. &c. à Tho. Pembr. & Mont. Gomer. Com. Collect. P. 2. T. 88. num. 3. (32) Symbol. Litterar. ubi sup. p. 207—216. (33) Jo. Bapt. Passer. Pifaurenf. Funonal. Sacr. Mens. Herculanens. Illustrat. Vid. Symbol. Litterar. ubi sup. p. 209.